Orange Pancakes

Weekends in my house mean my kids are going to start begging for pancakes.  They know that mum is too busy to make pancakes from scratch during the week and we are not the box batter kinda household.  Don’t get me wrong I have nothing against good old Aunt Jemima pancake mix but it just doesn’t taste the same as a stack of cakes made from scratch!  One of my boys loves orange flavoured cakes, muffins, cookies…once it has a hint of orange he is eating it.  I figured why not combine his love for orange with his love for pancakes?  Our attempt at Orange Pancakes came out pretty awesome and having him help me make them made it just that much sweeter.  I think a new tradition has been born with the two of us making pancakes for years to come.  Hope you give this one a try and maybe create a new tradition in your house too.

The batter is pretty simple to make but does need to rest for about 15 minutes in the fridge to thicken before using.  Lazy Sunday mornings are perfect for this recipe.  Vegan “buttermilk” and freshly squeezed orange juice are the key ingredients in this batter.  To make the “buttermilk” you just need to add apple cider vinegar to any non-dairy milk and let it sit for about 10 minutes.  Whilst that is happening the rest of the ingredients can be mixed up.  Combine all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl and then stir in the orange zest.  In a small bowl combine the freshly squeezed orange juice, the vanilla essence and the coconut oil.  Ten minutes should have passed by now and you can add the buttermilk to the orange juice mixture and give a quick whisk to combine.  Add this to the dry ingredients and mix to incorporate everything but don’t over mix.  Pop this batter into the fridge for about 15 minutes to thicken.

Once the batter has thickened put a tiny bit of coconut oil in a frying pan or on a griddle over medium heat.  Using a 1/4 cup measure scoop the batter into the pan.  You will see little bubbles starting to form and the edges starting to cook.  Those cakes are ready to flip!  A couple minutes on the other side and you are good to go.  Monitor your heat whilst making the batch as sometimes the pan can get too hot and there is nothing worse than a beautifully golden pancake with a gooey uncooked inside!  

Once they are all cooked up you can sprinkle them with powdered sugar, pour your favourite syrup and serve with a side of fruit.  I guarantee that they don’t all make it to the table in my house as one always gets eaten during the cooking process for “taste control purposes”.  My husband happily has claimed the job as taste tester in our household.  These pancakes got a thumbs up from my family and have been added to the must make again list.  I hope that you enjoy them as much as we did.