Egg, Dairy, Nut & Gluten-Free Pancakes, Oh My!
Pancakes... a universal fun food, whether you are six years-old or sixty. It never fails that if I tell my kids I'm making them pancakes, smiles and cheers of joy will ensue. The problem for a family with food allergies? Well, eggs - just to name one. I dare you to find a pancake recipe that doesn't call for an egg, whether it comes from a box (and it's in the pre-made mix) or you are making them from scratch. So, one of my first food allergy victories was when a friend turned me on to a food allergy mom, cook and advocate named Kelly Rudnicki. She is the author of two cookbooks, the first of which - The Food Allergy Mama’s Baking Book - was a lifeline for me when we started out. It's full of delicious sweet treats, and one of my favorite staples is her egg, dairy and nut-free pancake recipe. I'm telling you, these are perfect. And your kids will LOVE them.
A few tips:
I've mentioned this before, but my secret dairy-free milk option when I bake is hemp milk. I don't know why, but the fluffiness of these pancakes went up about two notches when I started using hemp milk instead of soy or rice milk in this recipe.
These pancakes are AWESOME gluten-free. I'm constantly working to improve my gluten-free baking, and these pancakes are absolutely perfect when I make them with g-free flour. (I use King Arthur's Gluten-Free All-Purpose Baking Mix.)
Use mix-ins! This adds something super special to the traditional version. I make blueberry and chocolate chip versions of this recipe all of the time.
Dairy, Egg & Nut-Free Pancakes
2 cups all-purpose regular OR gluten-free flour
4 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons water
4 tablespoons canola oil
2 cups dairy-free milk (I use hemp, but soy or rice also work well)
dairy-free cooking spray
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and set aside. In another bowl, mix together water, oil and dairy-free milk. Pour combined wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with whisk or spoon until just combined. If batter is slightly lumpy, it's okay!
Preheat griddle or skillet. Once pan is hot, pour batter (about 1/4 of a cup) and cook until it begins to bubble. Then, flip and cook other side until pancakes are light brown in color. .
BLUEBERRY OR CHOCOLATE CHIP VARIATIONS
Sprinkle a handful of blueberries or chocolate chips over the top of the pancakes after pouring the batter (and before flipping).
Check out Kelly's website and this recipe in it's original form at:
http://www.foodallergymama.com/2008/12/04/warm-dairy-egg-and-nut-free-pancakes/
