All-whole-wheat buttermilk pancakes (and bonus: Korean-style filled pancakes)

Evidently, we eat a lot of pancakes at our house because here I am again with another version.  I've been making these whole wheat pancakes since I found the recipe back in January.  I first spotted it on Inquiring Chef in a favorite-recipes roundup. These light and fluffy whole wheat buttermilk pancakes were the top pick with tons of endorsement.  I had to try it...and I became a big fan.

These light, fluffy, and flavorful pancakes are made entirely with white whole wheat flour

I wasn't planning on posting this since I somehow figured many people have seen the recipe but I'd really like to have it here in my archives since I consider these a part of our regular pancake rotation now. It doesn't hurt to spread the pancake love, right?

So if you're looking for an all-whole wheat pancake recipe that really tastes good, here it is!  These pancakes are made solely with whole wheat flour and that's what really attracted me to them, much like I was drawn to the cookies.  I really wondered if pancakes made solely with whole wheat flour could be as good as advertised.  Honestly, this recipe really does turn out fluffy and light pancakes even entirely using whole wheat flour (white whole wheat, as usual, for me)!

I really like the use of brown sugar, instead of granulated, in this recipe

A generous amount of baking powder deserves a lot of credit for the fluffiness, and I think buttermilk is always something of a magic ingredient.  Interestingly, I like using canola oil in these pancakes.  I usually prefer butter in pancakes for that bit of extra flavor.  Turns out, the oil works great with the brown sugar in these pancakes.  I think the brown sugar makes a huge difference - it gives these whole wheat pancakes a deeper, more caramel-like flavor so that I don't need/miss the butter at all. These are just good pancakes that my family and I really enjoy.  Did I mention they were whole wheat?  ; )

"Bonus" Time:  Filled Pancakes

I thought I'd add a little twist to this pancake post with a little "bonus" segment.  I took this pancake recipe, thinned it out a bit with a few extra splashes of buttermilk, and filled them with a sweet nutty filling.  It turns pancakes into an on-the-go breakfast or snack!

Whole wheat pancakes filled with a brown sugar-peanut filling - inspired by the Korean-style filled pancake, "hotteok", a popular street food item in South Korea

It's a funny thing about these Korean-inspired filled pancakes...I first saw the idea in the back page of the May 2014 issue of Cooking Light.  Then, wouldn't you know it, I saw them again, featured in a Korean cooking show I've been watching, about a week or so later!  They were memorable because the Korean filled or stuffed pancakes are called "hotteok", which sounds a lot like "hot dog" to an almost-9 year old (and his mom)!  So they stuck in our minds and I had an inkling to make an easy version of "hotteok" with this whole wheat pancake batter.  My son and I had fun walking around all day saying we made, and ate, hotteok!

Filled with a mixture of dark brown sugar and chopped roasted peanuts

Traditional Korean hotteok is a snack made with a yeasted dough, filled with a sweet mix of things like brown sugar, honey, chopped peanuts, and cinnamon.  This is a take on Cooking Light's version (they call it "inside-out pancakes"), which starts with pancake batter.  They used brown sugar, pine nuts and cinnamon for the filling but I choose to go with a mixture of dark brown sugar and chopped peanuts for mine.

And I have a tip:  For an even quicker, easier, and I even daresay, tastier, filled pancake...use chunky peanut butter for the filling!  I kept thinking that I wanted to try chunky peanut butter as a shortcut; I figured it would pack a ton of flavor in an easy way if it worked.  I was a little worried that PB might be too thick as a filling but I knew I wanted to give it a try.

A delicious short-cut: use chunky peanut butter to fill these pancakes!  It packs a ton of flavor and makes it even easier. 

Happily, my gut was right in this instance.  The pancakes filled with chunky peanut butter were so flavorful and it couldn't be easier with nothing to mix or chop!  My son, my husband, and I all preferred the one with peanut butter! 

Unfortunately, I was running low on pancake batter by the time I got to the peanut butter filling but I am so, so glad I managed to try it that way.  It'll be my go-to filling whenever we get a hankering for an easy version of hotteok!


On the general subject of pancakes, do you like to stack your pancakes to eat?  We are definitely a family of non-stackers!  We don't like to stack, as wonderful as it looks all piled up that way, so you'll find us eating ours one at a time or just sort of fanned out around the plate.  

When it comes to making the filled pancakes, I wish I had better pictures for a step-by-step how-to. I recommend this Cooking Light video if you plan to make them.

Essentially, I used this whole wheat pancake recipe I'm talking about today and thinned it out a bit with a few splashes of extra buttermilk.  Start by placing a tablespoon of batter on the griddle and spreading it out a bit with the back of the spoon.

Add 2-3 teaspoons of filling.  The mixture of dark brown sugar and chopped peanuts is shown below. Add the filling you mixed, or chunky peanut butter, and pat it down a bit using your fingers.  Then add about another tablespoon of pancake batter on top and around to cover the filling.

Once it sets, flip it over.  I was nervous about leakage so I didn't use as much filling as I probably could have.  You can go a little heavier on the brown sugar-peanut mixture since it will melt as it heats.

The Japanese have a similar kind of pancake snack, filled with red azuki beans, that I love. Sometimes, they are made in special molds so that the pancakes are in fish - or some other - fun shapes.  These filled pancakes remind me of those and I imagine that canned sweetened azuki beans could be used to fill these pancakes as well for a similar result.  

You can experiment with fillings and have fun with it!  Is anyone else thinking...Nutella?

Recipes:

Light and Fluffy Whole Wheat Pancakes
Adapted from Inquiring Chef - originally adapted from "Black Jack Flapjacks" by the Black Jack Inn and the Paradise Cafe in Lawrence, Kansas

- Approximately 8-10 pancakes -

1 cup whole wheat flour (I use white whole wheat)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
2 tablespoons lightly packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 cup buttermilk

Whisk whole wheat flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl.

In a medium-size bowl, whisk the egg and brown sugar together.  Whisk in canola oil and buttermilk until combined.  Add dry ingredients and stir together with a wooden spoon until just incorporated.

Spoon batter onto lightly greased griddle or frying pan.  Cook for a minute or two, until bubbles begin to form on the surface of the pancake.  Flip and cook for another minute or so until golden brown. Serve immediately.


Korean-Style Filled Whole Wheat Pancakes
Adapted from Cooking Light

- Makes 6 filled pancakes - 

1 cup whole wheat pancake batter (from recipe above)
2-3 tablespoons buttermilk (or milk)

Filling options: (you could experiment with other fillings of your choice)
6 tablespoons lightly packed dark brown sugar mixed with 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped roasted peanuts 
OR 
1/3 cup of chunky peanut butter

Add a splash or two of buttermilk to the pancake batter to thin it out a bit.  A more fluid batter will make it easier to spread and fill.

Place a tablespoon of pancake batter onto a hot griddle.  Spread the batter out in a circular motion with the back of the spoon.  Place a tablespoon of the filling (a bit less if using the peanut butter) over the batter and gently pat it down a bit using your fingertips.  Add another tablespoon of batter over the top to cover the filling.  Let pancake cook for about a minute until sides look set.  Flip pancake over and finish cooking for about another minute until done.  Repeat with remaining batter and filling.

Wrap around parchment or wax paper, these filled pancakes make a great on-to-go breakfast or snack!