Cinnamon buckwheat pancakes with chocolate sauce

Everyone needs pancakes right? Or maybe it’s just me. I love the endless array of toppings you can use, plus they only take a few minutes to whip up. Perfect for a lazy Sunday morning or a post work out refuel. I’ve kept these gluten free, but feel free to sub the buckwheat for plain all purpose flour if that’s all you have.  I’ve added cinnamon and maca powder to the dry ingredients. Cinnamon is loaded with antioxidants and is a powerful anti inflammatory.  Did I also mention it tastes amazing in pancakes? I love it! Maca powder really energises me and has a powerful balancing effect. I like to have it when I have a big day ahead. It also has a slight caramel flavour, which lends itself perfectly to this recipe. The chocolate sauce is made with carob powder, which is even better for you than cacao, but much cheaper and has more of a rich, dark chocolatey flavour. It’s worth getting your hands on some if you can.

Recipe

Dry

• 1 cup buckwheat flour*
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 2 tsp Organic Burst maca powder (optional)
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Wet

• 1 mashed banana
• 1 3/4 cup dairy free mylk (I used almond)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• Juice of half a lemon
• Coconut oil (for frying)

Chocolate sauce

• 2 tsp carob powder
• 2 tsp maple syrup

1. Mix all dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
2. Combine all wet ingredients apart from the coconut oil in a jug and add to dry mix. Stir until combined, try not to over mix. You want the mixture to be thick, but very pourable, I always do a little test pancake first and then add more liquid if needed.
3. Heat your pan up to medium heat and add a dab of coconut oil. Spoon in half a ladel of batter into the pan and fry until bubbles appear all over. Turn over and cook on the other side. Keep in a warm oven until you’ve made all your pancakes.
4. To make the chocolate sauce, just mix carob powder and maple syrup. Mix well with a fork until the mixture is smooth and glossy.
5. Serve warmed pancakes with chocolate sauce, fresh fruit and more maple syrup!

 

*If you don’t have buckwheat flour (it can be expensive, I never buy it), just make your own from buckwheat groats. Simply grind buckwheat groats in your blender until they turn into flour, it only takes a couple of minutes!