Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

I love anything with pumpkin in it, so last fall I tried pumpkin pancakes.  Imagine my shock when I took a bit and found them to be bland and boring.  How disappointing!  I almost didn’t try again this year, but I thought pumpkin pancakes deserved one more chance.  So, armed with a new recipe, a few modifications, and a lovely assistant, off to the kitchen I went.  And, Oh. My. Goodness.  I shudder to think about how empty my life would be if I had given up.  These were perhaps the greatest pancakes I have ever eaten.  Ever.  Really.

I based this recipe off the Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Pancakes at Meal Makeover Moms.  I added some pumpkin pie spices because they are delicious.  Also, because I love chocolate, I doubled the amount of chocolate chips.  Though, as you can see from the photo below, my assistant decided that I went a little overboard on the chips and decided to take matters into his own hands.  Or maybe he just ran out of the chips I had given him on the side.  Either one.  Anyway, everyone loved the pancakes and I think I will be making these frequently.  I am already craving them again…Yum!

Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

1 cup unbleached all purpose flour

½ cup whole wheat flour

2 tbsp wheat germ

2 tbsp ground flaxseed

2 tbsp granulated sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

½ tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp ground ginger

1/8 tsp cloves

¼ cup mini semi sweet chocolate chips

2 large eggs, beaten

1 1/3 cups lowfat milk

½ cup canned pure pumpkin (or homemade pumpkin puree)

1 tsp vanilla extract

Whisk together the all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, wheat germ, flaxseed, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and chocolate chips in a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, pumpkin and vanilla until well blended.  Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.

Heat a large non stick electric skillet to medium-high heat.  Pour batter onto hot skillet, using a ¼ cup measuring cup if desired.  The batter is quite thick, so I spread it around a bit with a spoon to make the pancakes thinner and easier to cook.

Cook until bubbles begin to appear on the surface of the pancakes and the bottoms turn golden, about 3 minutes.  Flip and cook until golden, an additional 2-3 minutes.

Serve hot plain or with your favorite syrup.

Note: if you have leftovers, toast them in the toast for a minute--good as new!

Enjoy!

Amy