A good breakfast is a must to begin each day

A good beginning to each day is a good breakfast. Our personal favorite is 5-minute pancakes. They are made from scratch, not a mix. They actually take longer to explain than to make!

These pancakes are filling, satisfying and last us through the morning. They have whole grains and no preservatives. We grind our own grains with a heavy-duty blender, but the grains can be purchased in the form of flour. Our favorite grains to use in this recipe are oats and brown rice, but others may be substituted.

If grinding the grains they should be ground and sifted first, then set aside to be used in the order they are called for in the recipe. The rice and oats can be ground together.

The liquid can be changed also to fit taste or diet needs. We usually use water, but sometimes milk, buttermilk or fruit juice.

When we get tired of pancakes we use the same batter to make waffles.

Toppings for our pancakes vary from molasses, fruit, homemade jam, honey, or real maple syrup. We stay away from imitation maple syrup or syrup that only is flavored with maple syrup because they are harder for the body to digest. For the jam we use cane sugar, not beet sugar, again easier to digest. Still all the toppings have calories so they are to be used in moderation.

The recipe we use makes about four servings so we make them fresh one day and put the leftovers in the refrigerator for the next day. They re-warm well in the toaster or microwave.

Additional variations include adding fruit into the batter, cinnamon or other spices. Customize them to suit your taste buds.

The batter is as follows:

1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups liquid, adjust to make desired thickness

1 egg

2 tablespoons oil

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup uncooked brown rice or any other grain such as wheat, millet, spelt, etc. (1 cup and 3 tablespoons rice flour or other flour, ground)

1/2 cup rolled oats (1/2 cup and 1 tablespoon, ground)

Blend in order given.

Add:

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

Pour batter onto hot griddle making pancakes about 4 to 5 inches in diameter, turn pancakes when bottom is slightly browned and cook other side.

Serve with topping of your choice and enjoy!

We enjoy trying new recipes, but for breakfast this is a keeper. The healthy ingredients are a great plus. Also, our chickens are laying again, so we are now adding an additional egg to the batter. It’s time to eat!