Product: The Pure Pantry Organic Gluten-Free Old Fashioned Pancake and Baking Mix – $6.79+
What does a runner love to eat…probably as much as bananas, pasta, and pizza. If you said pancakes…you’d win the jackpot. And, even before I became a runner, pancakes were one of my most favorite breakfast foods to have. And my mom was a pro at making them. In fact, her very own recipe in the cookbook she put together for all of the kids in the family actually has them titled “The Best Ever Pancakes.” I think we called them that once or twice…or always.
But…going gluten-free sort of took the fun out of pancakes. So often, the batter would be runny, or the pancakes would have no lift to them. They were dense, not light and fluffy. Or the flavor was all wrong. There are so many factors that go into creating the perfect pancake. And none of them ever achieved “Best Ever” status like my mom’s.
And while none of the mixes have duplicated that perfection…a few have come close. And, while this remains on the lower end of my favorite pancakes, The Pure Pantry Organic Old Fashioned Pancake and Baking Mix has achieved something that no other gluten-free pancake and baking mix has managed. It managed to get that perfect golden crust on the outside of the pancake, so that you get that initial crispy texture, followed by the soft, hot center.
Yes…it might just be gluten-free pancake nirvana.
And it all came to light on Monday morning. I had just come in from my first official marathon training run. Five easy miles…while hydrating and fueling. All on the orders of my sports nutritionist. But now it was time to recover and get some carbs and protein working in my diet. So…at the request of my roomie the previous night, and to celebrate my first run toward my ultimate goal of 26.2 miles…pancakes just seemed right. But not just any pancakes will do when you are marathon training. Nope. They have to be special. Fit with the theme.
So…I took this mix and doctored it up with some PB2, a tablespoon of melted Peanut Butter & Co Smooth Operator Peanut Butter, and a chopped banana. Does that not sound like the ultimate recovery breakfast? It’s a runner’s dream come true. Protein, potassium, and carbohydrates. I served mine up with a homemade raspberry syrup (the “jelly” component)…which gave me some antioxidants from the fruit. Oh yeah…I was feeling good. The only thing I worried about was how the mix would do when I altered the ingredients that went into it.
I should have known better than to worry. This is actually an easy mix to blend together. To the 1-1/3 cup of pancake mix, you simply add one lightly beaten egg, 1 tablespoon coconut oil, 1-1/3 cup almond milk (or non-dairy milk of choice) and blend. But I didn’t stop there. Nope. I had to go further with the peanut butter and banana. Because that’s a winning combination. You gotta admit. I wasn’t sure how it would turn out in the end…but my fears were put to rest after I scooped the first 1/4 cup serving of batter onto the hot skillet and started the first batch cooking.
Within moments, the edges of the pancakes were getting bubbly, just like real pancakes do…but gluten-free pancakes don’t often achieve. I was feeling good about this already. I flipped the first round, almost squealing with happiness when I saw the perfect golden hue on the cooked side. Nothing done halfway. No light areas. Perfectly golden and…even fluffy. They were FLUFFY!
With the first batch done, I went to prep those for breakfast consumption that morning, warming up my homemade raspberry syrup, and making a Brown Sugar Agave Butter to schmear over each pancake. With the next batch cooking on the griddle and one set ready to eat, I served them up to my roommate and ended up standing up over the skillet while eating mine and cooking up the rest of them.
I was so happy with these.
The Pure Pantry’s Organic Old Fashioned Pancake and Baking Mix is perfect for anyone following a gluten-free/casein-free diet. These pancakes can also be made with dairy-free rice, almond or soy milk. I love a mix that can work with dietary needs. Regardless of the milk you add, the pancakes don’t just fill the kitchen with that homey, Sunday morning brunch aroma, but the product that emerges off that skillet is a testament to the quality and standards of The Pure Pantry.
With the unique and versatile blend of organic, gluten-free flours, this mix is meant for more than just pancakes. In fact, it can be used to replace flour in any regular baking recipe. Gotta love that. This mix contains a blend of organic brown rice flour, organic white rice flour, organic potato starch flour, organic corn flour, organic tapioca flour, baking soda, aluminum free baking powder, xanthan gum, and organic sea salt. I will once again point out that this is another fine example of using ingredients that aren’t chemicals or unpronouncable. These are real ingredients which helps produce the very delicious product as a result.
Nutritionally speaking, these pancakes will set you back 150 calories and only 1 gram of fat. Yep…you read that right! These have no cholesterol and are low in sodium (280 mg). However, it would be best to add something like peanut butter and some fruit to these as the fiber level sits at 1 gram and the protein is a scant 2 grams before any sort of doctoring happens to the mix. So…if you make them as-is…you will probably feel hungry shortly after.
However, what you do get is a perfect specimen of gluten-free pancakes the way they should come out when cooked. I hadn’t yet achieved this level of pancake perfection until now. And I have The Pure Pantry and their amazing Organic Old Fashioned Pancake and Baking Mix to thank for it. I…am sold.
The Celiathlete 