Apple-Cinnamon Pancakes

We always do pancakes on Saturday morning.

This is what we had for breakfast today.  Use real maple syrup.  Always.

1 cup all-purpose flour (preferably Martha White)

1 tablespoon cinnamon sugar

1 tablespoon ground flax meal (such as King Arthur)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 large egg

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup buttermilk

4 ounces applesauce (the contents of one snack cup!)

In a small bowl, combine the dry ingredients.  Set aside.

In another small bowl, whisk together the egg, oil, vanilla, buttermilk and applesauce.  Pour the wet mixture over the dry and whisk until combined.

Heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat.  Very lightly grease the surface with butter.  Portion out the batter with an ice cream scoop.  Spread each scoop out just a bit.  Cook until the edges look dry.  Flip.  Cook through, flipping again if needed.

Serve piping hot with syrup.

Makes 8 pancakes.

Good (And Good For You!) Blueberry Pancakes

I made these for breakfast this morning and our daughter rubbed her tummy and said "MMMMM" repeatedly.

She didn't know she was getting a powerful dose of antioxidants, fiber and Omega-3 fatty acids.  They just tasted like doughnuts to her!  And they're easy to make:

1 1/2 cups Aunt Jemimah Original Pancake and Waffle Mix

1/2 cup ground flax seed (Measure after grinding.  I use a bullet-style mini food processor for this.)

2 large eggs

1 cup milk

1 tablespoon canola oil

Dash of vanilla extract

Fresh or frozen blueberries that have been thawed, drained and patted dry

Butter and real maple syrup, for serving

Combine the dry ingredients and set aside.  Whisk together the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla in a small bowl and add to the dry mixture.  Stir to combine.  (The batter will be very thick.) Heat up the largest nonstick skillet you have (or griddle) over medium heat.  Quickly rub a stick of butter over the cooking surface; you won't need a lot.  Ladle out the batter in 1/4 cup portions; you may have to spread out the portions with a spoon or your fingers.  Sprinkle on blueberries to taste.  When the edges of the pancakes look dry, it's time to flip.  Decrease the heat if the pancakes are browning too quickly. These take a little longer than "regular" pancakes to cook through, but you will be rewarded with soft, puffy clouds of fruity goodness.

A shake of powdered sugar is a nice touch, but the wee one just wanted them plain today.  Top with butter and syrup and dig in!

Yield: 9-10 pancakes