bewholed: + perfect vegan pancakes +

I woke up this past Sunday feeling like I need to whip up an extra special breakfast to shake up our porridge + fruit ritual, and provide a substantial breakfast for my beau after surviving an intense bike tour. I've had a couple of attempts at making vegan pancakes in the past, but the results varied. Even though I have managed to make pretty decent ones too, the maximalist within me did not think they were share-worthy. So, I just crawled out of bed and headed straight to the kitchen still half asleep. Miraculously, by the time I was fully conscious, the batter was ready and the pan was heating up on the stove. Yes. It was that simple. Don't believe me? Then I guess you'll have to try it yourself :)

OK, I admit, I haven't been the best blogger. I have enough material for 10 posts already, but I've been pretty bad at time management recently. I hope the photo above will help me make up for that. See that gorgeous golden color and the perfect texture? I honestly did not think these would turn out so well! It is scary how much they resemble the ones I used to stuff myself with at camp, which - as I know now - were quite nasty, made with tons of cholesterol and fried up in hydrogenated vegetable oil. This recipe does not contain anything nasty though. Just the way I like it. I'd proudly make it for any of my omnivore friends, too. Without further ado, let's get to it:

Ingredients:

For the pancakes you'll need:

4 tbsp buckwheat groats

3 tbsp buckwheat flakes

1 tbsp cornmeal (polenta)

5 tbsp rolled oats

1 tbsp tapioca starch

1 tsp bicarb of soda

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tbsp chia seeds

approx. 1 cup oat milk (add gradually, until pancake batter consistency is reached)

lemon zest

vanilla powder

cinnamon

For the blueberry sauce:

5 smaller dates, pitted

1 generous cup of frozen blueberries

cinnamon and vanilla powder to taste

Instructions:

Start heating your pan over medium-low heat. Blend all of the batter ingredients except for 1/2 cup of oat milk until smooth and wait 5 minutes to see how much it thickens. Add more liquid if needed until the batter is pourable, but not too runny. When the pan is properly heated up, slowly pour three small puddles of batter into it. Cook for 1-1.5 minutes. Bubbles will start to form all over your pancakes and the edges will start to set quickly. At this point, you'll be able to flip them without a problem. Cook the other side until golden (another 1-2 minutes). The recipe yields about 16 pancakes and serves 2 generously.

To make the blueberry sauce you'll have to soak the dates in warm water for a couple of minutes to soften. Dump it all in your rinsed blender and make a date paste. Add the blueberries, except for a small handful, and blend until smooth.

Serving suggestion:

Stack the pancakes on top of each other placing 4 banana slices in between each layer. Smother in blueberry sauce and garnish with whole blueberries.