Sunday mornings, Fluffy pineapple pancakes

Since a young girl, I have made countless batches of pancakes for breakfasts and late night sweet fixes, It’s something that I’ve always had a knack for…

until I worked out that gluten was a bit of an issue, and cutting it way back in the household was only going to be better for my health and that of my families too.

But this is when I came unstuck, my pancakes were no longer a no brainer smash up they became a bit more complicated and I was having more “hmmm ok but not great” flat pancake Sunday morning breakies..

But hoorah! The featured recipe was a success! They were fluffy and delicious and we all loved them and my eldest daughter was happily satisfied with her request for pineapple pancakes and so my day was already complete. Happy days.

Recipe makes 12 pancakes

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

Pancakes~

2 cups gluten free plain flour (I use aldi’s ‘has no’ brand)

25g baking powder (aluminium free) *

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup almond meal

3 large eggs, separated

1 large over ripe banana

2 cups almond milk

3 Tbs rice malt syrup

Pineapple~

1 small ripe pineapple, peeled, diced

2 Tbs coconut sugar

1 Tbs butter

juice of half a lime

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

1/2 tsp ground ginger

To serve~

1/4 cup macadamia nuts, chopped

1/4 cup flaked coconut

Natural yogurt

Method:

For the pancakes, In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly and set aside.

In a jug combine the egg yolks, banana, milk and rice malt syrup and blend with a hand held blender until smooth.

In a non reactive bowl whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks are formed.

Combine the banana mixture with the dry ingredients and mix well, then gently fold through the egg whites until evenly combined, being careful no to knock too much air out of the whites.

Heat a non stick pan over medium-low heat and spoon serving spoon sized dollops of the batter in batches of two or three onto the pan and leave to cook for around 2-3 minutes or until golden and the edges are beginning to firm up before flipping. Carefully flip with a spatula and cook the other side until golden and the pancake is cooked through.

I like to have the oven on to keep the pancakes warm while continuing to cook the remaining batches.

For the pineapple, combine all ingredients into a small saucepan and cook over medium/high heat until the pineapple is softened and translucent and a sweet syrup is achieved.

Serve the warm pancakes with pineapple chunks and syrup, a dollop of desired yoghurt and a scattering of nuts and flaked coconut.

*I used almond milk in this recipe, but you can use any milk which you have on hand.

*Sourcing aluminium free baking powder not only makes your baking taste better, but is also much better for your health. I have no idea why there is aluminium in foods but it is not good for our brain health. You will find it in health food stores or supermarkets which stock a good range of health and gluten free foods. I use Bobs Redmill double acting baking powder.

*Pineapple is an amazing source of vitamin C, which is a water soluble vitamin, meaning we need to eat it everyday to help maintain a healthy immune system.