Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil (you can also use coconut oil)
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Butter for cooking, plus more for serving
- Maple syrup, if desired
- Fresh fruit, if desired
Directions
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In a large bowl whisk the eggs, sugar, oil, buttermilk, and vanilla until well combined. Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt and stir just until combined. Do not overmix, the batter will likely be lumpy and that’s fine.
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Heat an electric griddle to 375°F or heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat and grease the surface with butter. Ladle 1/4 cup spoonfuls of pancake batter onto the hot surface, gently pushing the batter to form a disk. Cook for a couple of minutes, or until bubbles begin to form on the surface of the pancake and the bottom is golden. Carefully flip and cook until the other side is golden. If necessary, keep warm in a 300°F oven until ready to serve. Serve with additional butter, fruit, and maple syrup, if desired.
Recipe Notes
If you don’t have buttermilk on hand, make some by combining 2 cups regular milk with 2 tablespoons vinegar (distilled, white wine, or apple cider vinegars work) or lemon juice.
Hi. I made them this morning, but I thought it was an error to see 2 tbsps of baking powder. So instead I used 1 tsp. baking powder, another tsp. baking soda. It tasted great except for the bitter spots on some pancakes. 🙁 Btw, I only used 1 1/2 cups buttermilk (ran out) and instead added another half-cup of nonfat yogurt.
Hi! Thanks for the recipe!! I’m not sure if I did something wrong…everything looked right & they cooked up beautifully, but they had a bit of a bitter taste. This was the first time I made these cakes as well as the first time I used a whole wheat flour I bought at a farmers market, so maybe the bitterness was the flour?? Wasn’t sure if I misread the recipe. Could it have been the 2 TBS of baking soda?? I think I forgot to add salt… blerg. Ideas?
It sounds like a few things could have gone wrong 🙁 Number one is that the recipe calls for baking powder, not baking soda. I believe I might verbally say baking soda in the video by mistake but there’s an annotation correction and the recipe ingredients listed include baking powder. I’m sorry if there was any confusion! Baking soda is actually 4 times stronger than baking powder, so 2 tablespoons absolutely would have created a bitter, metallic flavor.
I’m a little confused with the recipie, is it suppose to be baking soda or baking powder?
In the video you say baking soda and its in the directions but on the ingredients it has baking powder.
It looks like I misspoke in the video – please follow the recipe as written!
Made a half batch if these yesterday and they turned out great! I love how easy they are and they only dirty one bowl! I added blueberries to the batter and served them with blueberry syrup, they were awesome!
Pancakes are the best Sunday breakfast ever! These whole wheat pancakes look like a great way to start the day!
Well, for the record, I made the recipe this morning with 2 teaspoons baking soda (thinking that the 2 Tablespoons must be in error) and they were delicious! Next time I’ll use 2 Tablespoons of baking powder instead. Just goes to show what a great recipe this is: I didn’t make it correctly, and it was STILL wonderful! 🙂 Love your blog. Keep up the good work!
I’m so relieved to hear that! I was a little worried for you this morning. Thanks so much 🙂 🙂
Recipe question- is the measurement for baking soda really 2 Tablespoons? That just seems like a lot in proportion to the other quantities. I’m in the middle of making this recipe right now- thanks for sharing! It looks delicious!
Thanks so much for your comment – I just realized that’s meant to be baking powder! In almost 5 years of blogging I’ve never made that mistake before. Just fixed it!
Hi! I’m here to comment on the recipe…
Anyways, thank you for making a whole wheat pancake recipe with 100% whole wheat flour! More often than not, I see baking with half whole wheat flour and half white flour when the recipe claims to be whole wheat. That is pretty much false advertising in my eyes. I’m not against using white flour, but I’m glad that this really is “100% whole wheat” and not “made with” whole wheat because they really do look scrumptious! Thanks!
I think the term “real woman” was an unfortunate use because I agree with you – if they aren’t real women, what are they?
I believe, maybe they meant the term “real woman” to mean what a woman is biologically supposed to look like. Women’s hips are biologically best for carrying children if they are wider. Women also are biologically “supposed” to carry a small amount of extra fat for more efficient production of milk.
Take a look at Kim Kardashian. Her hips in real life are larger, but when you see a poster (my 14 year old son has one on his wall!) – the picture is NO WAY what she looks like in person. The photo has been photo shopped because our society has, for some reason, decided that women who have men’s bodies (no curves, thin hips, etc.) are more desirable.
As for the media’s focus on celebrity rehabs and photo shopping – I think that the rehabs should be people’s own private business. At the same time, celebrities need to know that when they decide they want a job in the public eye, the scrutiny comes with the celebrity and high pay. Don’t chose that career if you don’t want to live under a microscope and lose your ability to go out freely in public and not be noticed.
It may not be bad for the media to focus on photo shopping, because it is not reality, but is PERCEIVED to be reality by most people. Boys think girls should look like that, so they ignore the more realistic bodied girls and focus on the extremely thin girls, who may be that way because of an eating disorder – which positively reinforces that eating disorder, which can kill or at least make the girl ill. This also goes back to the celebrities who end up in rehab for eating disorders. They are positively reinforced for being thin and unhealthy so they purge or do not eat.
Eating disorders are HUGE among our society – either extreme over eating or extreme under eating. It saddens me that photos can’t be taken and enjoyed as they are.
Also have to add that as a younger woman (I’m turning 21 in a few months) it really does take quite the toll on your brain and self esteem. Sometimes I would think “Is it wrong that I want to work out and get more toned then? Am I supposed to just love myself? But what if I’m not as healthy as I know I can be?” It’s such a terrible time for young girls. As much acceptance as there is, the thigh gap trend is ridiculous and the fact that young girls equate being thin to being happy really gets me sad. Some days, I have to remind myself that I am a person with feelings and I am completely valid in being happy just being myself.
Hi Tessa,
I think the idea of using “real women” as a way to stray from the media is really sad. As someone who was extremely overweight and then lost most of it (I lost 60 lbs within the span of a year), it always bothered me. On one hand, we are taught to be thin and to be cautious of our weight and health from childhood, and then on the other, we are taught to love ourselves for who we are.
The idea some people have that women who are thin are not real women to me is ridiculous. As a curvier girl still, I find that it’s important to just remember to respect everyone. Someone who is a size 16 may be completely in love with their body, the same as someone who’s a size 6. I hate the idea that thinner women who are not naturally curvy here or there are not considered “real women” because we ALL exist, so we are all, in fact, REAL. People who take their fitness seriously work extremely hard and are usually quite disciplined, and there’s nothing fake about that. I respect that whole heartedly. Same for those who are not interested in fitness and are just fine living their life. What makes a real woman, in my opinion, is the essence of their personality. If you’re alive and you’ve got a soul, you’re real to me!
Anyways, these pancakes look delicious! Can’t wait to try out the recipe. 🙂
I think the term “real women” comes from the fact that, as you pointed out, nearly all pictures that appear in magazines these days have been retouched/photoshopped. Therefore they are not real, they are completely unattainable. Even thin women will not have “picture perfect” bodies, but people sometimes lose sight of that. I do think it’s important to discuss it and highlight the fact that these pictures aren’t “real”. To point out societies obsession with unattainable perfection. As long as you’re healthy it shouldn’t matter your size!
These pancakes look amazing, will have to save them for a rainy Sunday 😀
Good point on the origin of the term, Robyn. I agree that it is important to highlight that the pictures aren’t real, as long as we distinguish it’s the imagery that’s unreal and not the individuals. I think that distinction has become lost in the media. I saw some talk show on Bravo where the hosts were saying that at least Vogue put Lena Dunham, a “real woman,” on the cover in the first place, even if it was photoshopped. That kind of discussion drives me nuts!
Have you seen this piece about the movie The Counselor and the stark contrast in images among the actors vs. the actresses? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/19/women-aging-the-counselor-posters_n_3956905.html
Also, another interesting piece about the lingerie brand Aerie and their new un-altered, un-photoshopped ad campaign: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/17/aerie-unretouched-ads-photos_n_4618139.html
Hope you enjoy the pancakes on the next rainy Sunday 🙂
The term ‘real women’ (and ‘real men’, for that matter) is imprecise at best. What would be the opposite? ‘unreal’ women and men? That sounds like something from a zombie movie.
More precise body descriptor terms would be terms like typical, commonplace or average. None of these have any ‘media appeal’ and, frankly, they aren’t particularly flattering. I don’t know anyone that want to think of themselves as ‘commonplace’. I suspect that’s why we don’t see terms like this in print.
As you noted, the tragedy in all of this is it propagates a strictly ‘outward’ focus – i.e. ‘what you look like matters more than who you are’. That isn’t what counts, but we tend to be a fairly shallow, celebrity obsessed culture that places a lot of value on form over function, especially on the East and West Coasts, where a lot of this silly thinking originates from.
Culture isn’t something that changes overnight, but it does change and evolve over time. Everyone can contribute to the effort by making a difference wherever they are right now.
How? Lead by example.
Simple, really, but not always so easy. This is the best way to influence those around you and, most importantly, teach the next generation what really matters. I’ve observed that doing the right thing carries a lot more weight than saying the right thing (and doing something else).
Gandhi had it right: Be the change you wish to see in the world.
Thanks so much for your thoughtful comment. I honestly think the idea of gender qualities being more “real” started with men and ultra masculine stereotypes. Your mentioning of body descriptor terms makes me think that we are entirely lacking in language to positively describe bodies in a way that doesn’t summarize a person based solely off appearance.
You’re so right that leading by example with actions is such a great way to be the change you wish to see.
Pancakes are my all time favorite breakfast….orrr dinner, and I am always looking for new versions. I love that these are whole wheat and buttermilk! Buttermilk pancakes are always a winner!