Buckwheat is delicious and highly nutritious. Despite its name, Buckwheat is gluten free and actually a seed. Ground, it looks like flour and makes for great pancakes! My goal for these pancakes was to have something filling and energy sustaining for our summer sport tournaments. During tournaments, kids play hour long games, sometimes up to 3-4 games per day! These pancakes are great and certainly won't make you sleepy! I love the crunch and grainy taste the ground almonds give these pancakes. For those who cannot have nuts, the recipe below shows an alternative without the ground almonds. ENJOY!
What I like most about Buckwheat
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High in essential nutrients including magnesium, manganese, B and K vitamins. (1)(4)
(1)
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Shown to Lower Blood Sugar after Meals and improve diabetes. (2)
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Good Source of Protein - 4 grams in 1/4 cup (3)
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Good Source of Fiber - 4 grams in 1/4 cup (3)(4)
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Good Source of Flavonoids. Flavonoids have many health benefits including powerful antioxidants, anti-inflammatory and immune system benefits. Buckwheat has been shown to have several including Rutin, Quercetin, Orientin, Vitexin, Isovitexin, Quercetrin and Isoorientin. (4)
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Good source of Lignans. Listed as forth highest according to this article (4) and if your curious, Flaxseed is number one. Lignans are known to prevent and control some forms of cancer, particularity ones where hormones play a role (Thompson 1993). (4) (5)
Recipe
3/4 Cup Organic Buckwheat Flour
3/4 Cup Sprouted Almonds
1 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
1 Tablespoon Pure Maple Syrup
2 Tablespoon Oil
1 Flax Egg (1 Tablespoon Flax meal and 3 Tablespoons Water)
1 Cup Coconut Milk ( or other non dairy milk should work fine)
1 Very Ripe Banana
- If you are omitting the almonds, make the following changes: 1 cup Buckwheat, 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder, 1 Tablespoon Oil and all the other ingredients stay the same.
Directions:
Make the flax egg and set aside. Ground the almonds. Blend the banana with coconut milk and set aside. Mix all dry ingredients together. Add it wet ingredients. Don't over mix. You may need to add an additional 2-4 tablespoons of coconut milk. Batter should be thick but pour-able. Lightly oil skillet and heat to medium. The skillet must be hot, hot to make it "non-stick." Generally, I first put the stove top on high for quicker heating and move it to medium heat when the pan is hot enough to make some pancakes! Anything that we don't eat I place on a cooling rack and freeze in a freezer safe bag. Back the next day for more... take the bag out of the freezer, let defrost and pop in a toaster to rewarm.
Enjoy,
Sandra
References:
- The Food Processor, Version 10.12.0, ESHA Research, Salem, Oregon, USA.
- http://www.webmd.com/diabetes/news/20031121/buckwheat-may-help-manage-diabetes
- http://www.bobsredmill.com/organic-buckwheat-flour.html
- http://www.globalsciencebooks.info/Online/GSBOnline/images/0906/EJPSB_3(SI1)/EJPSB_3(SI1)10-22o.pdf
- Thompson LU (1993) Potential Health Benefits and Problems associated with anti-nutrients in foods. Food Research International 26, 131-149
