Homemade Buttermilk Pancakes

I decided the premix packages/boxes are full of stuff that I don't want to eat.  Figuring homemade was easy enough for my ancestors who cooked on wood stoves I thought I would learn how to make them homemade.  I am no wimp.  For the most part that is.

My first step was to scour the internet for recipes.  They were all kinda sorta basically the same with the exception of quantities for the various ingredients.  With about a month tweaking the ingredients this is what I finally came up with that works for us.

Wet Ingredients:
2 3/4 - 3 cups Buttermilk
2 Large eggs
1/4 cup Butter (melted and cooled)

Dry Ingredients:
2 cups Flour
1 Teaspoon Backing soda
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 1/2 Tablespoon of Sugar


Combine the wet ingredients and set to the side

Whisk together the dry ingredients.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry.  Do not over mix as it cause you pancakes to become tough.

I use an electric griddle set on 375 degrees.  If you cook them on heat that is to low it will cause them to be dry.  I have found this setting to be perfect as I don't have a doughy middle nor arid pancakes.  You might have to find what works best for you.

Why do I use an electric griddle.  I use it because I like the way it cooks pancakes as well as french toast.  They come out pretty and I like pretty as well as tasty.

Some options you might want to try:

In my last batch I included chopped walnuts and flax seeds to the dry mix.  This batch as been my tastiest.

An option I have seen on the internet; added 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract as you combine the wet and dry ingredients.


I hope this helps those of you that like me want to do things the more traditional way.  I find they taste much better and they look prettier without all those preservatives.  Trust me, you will see and taste a difference.


I will have to note that unfortunately we can no longer produce the quality that our grandmothers were able to.  That is a result of changes in how our food is now produced.  I won't go into that but those who remember what tomatoes use to taste like as well as beef know that our food has lost 3/4 if not all of it's flavor.  Not to mention nutritional value.  I can use my Granny's recipe exactly to make her homemade buttermilk biscuits and it still doesn't taste like Granny's.  It is a sad fact and a sign of our times.

East Texas Gumbo

I got a little creative today.  I do this from time to time.  I cook by taste and some times I like to just get in the kitchen and make something up.  I generally have a mental image of the ingredients and how they may go together.

Today I made something from 1/2 sausage link, white rice, crushed tomatoes, garlic, onion, garlic chives, Mexican gray squash, collards, Tabasco sauces and spices.

I started off by browning the rice in butter.  When the rice just about as brown as I wanted it I added the chopped onion and garlic.  I let that cook for about 3 minutes or so.  





 



Added crush tomatoes.  (note:  when adding tomatoes it might be good to remove from heat.  I had tomato splatter since the skillet was so hot.)  I added water to compensate for the rice and the dehydrated vegetables I was adding.

   I added the remain ingredients along with spices to taste then 
allowed it to simmer until the rice was done.

I am happy to report that although this dish does not have a name it is tasty.  The only thing I would change with the ingredients is I would put less collards in it as it has a strong collard flavor.  I don't mind that much as I do enjoy collards but I will admit it is a bit much.


So if you can come up with a jazzy name for my new dish let me hear it.  If I like it I'll use it.

Added note:  It would be really good with garlic bread or toast.  I didn't think of that until after I had already eaten.  I'll let you know how it taste after it has had a night for the spices to sit in.