Whole wheat cinnamon pancakes

Plain and simple, this is a stack of healthy wholeness topped with delicious berry compote.

Even if you have to work on Saturday morning, you can still indulge in a little Saturday morning relaxation. Fortunately, making pancakes as “relaxation” overlaps with “work” for me!

I really wanted to call these pancakes “whole wheat brown butter cinnamon pancakes with apple cider vinegar mixed berry compote” … but that is 100 percent obnoxious and I am very against obnoxiously long post titles. Usually. But that would have been more accurately descriptive!

I used white whole wheat flour, some leftover buttermilk, heaps of cinnamon, frozen mixed berries — and the other usual stuff. Pretty straight forward. I also put a tiny bit of cornstarch in the compote, but I’m not sure it was actually necessary. I’m not a compote expert. I wanted it to thicken just slightly, and thought the apple cider vinegar might help with that … but didn’t want to be reckless.

Have a wonderful weekend! Make some pancakes! Or some breakfast pasta! Or cinnamon rolls! Clearly I’m a breakfast fanatic.

Whole wheat cinnamon pancakes
Serves 2 to 3

1 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

For the compote:
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1-1/3 cups mixed berries
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch

1. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and sugar. Set aside.

2. In a heavy saute pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir occasionally, scraping the bottom of the pan, and bring the butter to a simmer. It should fizzle and pop. Continue to stir occasionally. Once the popping has died down, keep an eye on the solids in the pan: we want them to be a dark golden brown, but not to burn. Once they turn dark brown, pour the butter (scraping everything in the pan along with it) into a separate container so it won't continue to cook.

3. Whisk together the butter and the buttermilk, then add the egg and vanilla. Combine with the dry ingredients and whisk until mostly combined (don't over-mix).

4. Heat a nonstick griddle over medium heat, and when it's hot pour 1/3 cup at a time onto the griddle. Cook until each side is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Keep warm in the oven, heated to 200 degrees F.

4. While the pancakes are cooking, make the compote: combine the apple cider vinegar with the brown sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook until the sugar has dissolved, then add the berries. Bring to a simmer, using a spatula to break apart the berries, and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the cornstarch, if using, stir and cook for another few minutes (or until thickened).

5. Serve the pancakes topped with yogurt, compote, and maple syrup!

Related post on The Kitchen Paper: Maple syrup cinnamon rolls