Pumpkin Walnut Pancakes

My daughters love having a warm breakfast.  Their favorites are pancakes, french toast, and waffles!  It is easy and quick to make any of these from scratch!  It cracks me up, that anyone spends money on pancake mix, when most often, we all have the few ingredients in our kitchen.
I love to add applesauce, banana, sweet potato, or pumpkin to pancakes, even waffles and french toast, to add more flavor, make it more fun, but mostly to make it more nutritious!   Today, I made pumpkin walnut pancakes.  This recipe is adapted from my Betty Crocker Cookbook that I received as a wedding gift, some 14 years ago...  I started cooking at 8 years old, taught by my Mom's OLD Betty Crocker Cookbook- I wonder where that copy ever went, it felt like a special friend...

These pancakes are so EASY to personalize- with toppings, different nuts, different additions, make gluten free, etc... Make some today!

Easy Pumpkin Walnut Pancakes

1  organic egg
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or gluten free all purpose baking flour, such as Bob's Old Mill)
3/4 C non dairy milk ( I used SO Delicious coconut milk, but soy, rice, almond, or oat milk would do)
1/4 - 1/2 C pumpkin (or applesauce, bananas, chopped fruit like apples, peaches or pears!)
1 TBL agave nectar ( maple syrup, raw honey, or organic cane sugar)
2 TBL cold pressed canola oil (or other cold pressed oil, I've even used olive oil here)
3 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice ( or apple pie spice, cinnamon, or vanilla)
1/2 C chopped walnuts ( or other nut, my fav here is pecans)

Earth Balance or Smart Balance
Coconut oil or other cold pressed oil for frying

Beat egg in a bowl until fluffy.  Add in remaining ingredients and mix just until incorporated.  Heat griddle or skillet over med. heat.  Use the coconut oil, or other oil to grease the pan/griddle.  Pour scant 1/4 C batter.  Cook pancakes until puffed and dry around the edges, with several bubbles coming up through the cake.
Turn and cook the other sides until golden brown.  The second side, seems to always cook more quickly!

-You can make these just plain pancakes, just do not add the fruit, nuts or spice.

-I love to use 1/2 oats and 1/2 flour to make super nutritious pancakes.  Use quick cooking oats if not making the batter the night before.  Regular oats work fine if you make the batter the night before!

-I usually do not add the nuts to the batter, I sprinkle on the pancake while cooking- putting more on mine and Julia's and less on Maddy's. 
-I like to make the pancake batter the night before, and put in the fridge so it is ready to go.  I do like the batter this way- it seems to soften the flour from the soaking.  I need to add a couple splashes more of the milk, because it gets thicker overnight.  The pancakes seem to take longer to cook when I make the batter the night before, so I start at a lower cooking temp. to allow the pancakes to cook through.
- I ALWAYS double, sometimes triple the recipe!  Doubling the recipe makes enough for my family for one meal, doubling the recipe makes enough pancakes for my daughters to have 3 meals.  I refrigerate the leftovers, then warm in the toaster.  You can freeze the cakes too.  You'll need to freeze them on a cookie sheet, after frozen, put them in a freezer safe container or bag.

Enjoy!
Yours in health,
Natalie