By Irene Hayton

Higher in fiber and lower in sugar and fat than typical pancakes, these healthy ones will fill you up and they taste great without the blueberries if you don’t have any on hand. Unlike most pancakes which are cooked quickly in a hot pan, these ones should be cooked for a bit longer over medium-low heat due to the oats, otherwise they’ll be overcooked on the surface and uncooked on the inside.

  • ¾ cup (175 ml) large flake (old-fashioned) oats
  • 1 cup (250 ml) unsweetened almond milk, rice milk or low-fat milk
  • 2 egg whites
  • 2 tablespoons (30 ml) unsweetened applesauce
  • 1 teaspoon (5 ml) pure vanilla extract
  • ½ cup (125 ml) whole-wheat or spelt flour
  • 1 tablespoon (15 ml) non-alum baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon (1 ml) unprocessed sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon (5 ml) sucanat
  • coconut oil to grease the skillet
  • ¾ cup (175 ml) fresh or frozen blueberries (if frozen, rinse and drain well)

In a large bowl, combine the oats, milk, egg whites, applesauce and vanilla; stir to mix well and leave to sit for 10 minutes to soften the oats.

In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, salt and sucanat.

Add the flour mixture to the oat/milk mixture and stir gently just until the dry ingredients are moistened; do not over mix—some lumps in the batter are okay.

Heat a large skillet or griddle over medium-low heat; add enough coconut oil (about ½ to 1 teaspoon per batch of pancakes) to coat it evenly. For each pancake, place 1 heaping spoonful of batter (soup spoon size) into the skillet and spread it lightly to form a pancake about 3 inches in diameter. Gently press about 6 blueberries into each pancake. Cook until the edges are dry and the bottom is golden brown, another 4 to 5 minutes—do not press down the pancake with the spatula/lifter. Makes about 12 pancakes.

Serve these pancakes plain or with butter and/or a small amount of pure maple syrup. They also taste great with just a small amount of virgin coconut oil on them. The plain ones (without blueberries) are also good with just nut butter (such as almond or peanut) on them. Extra pancakes can be refrigerated or frozen and reheated. Or try them cold or at room temperature, plain or with nut butter, for a snack.