Kefir-Cultured Blueberry Cardamom Pancakes
These pancakes are hearty yet amazingly light and very nutritious with their whole grain flours and the kefir which stimulates the immune system. Soaking the flour over night increases available nutrition and digestibility. This version is flavored with blueberries and cardamom but the recipe is as flexible as your imagination. How about Banana Almond or Cinnamon Raisin or Blackberry? Or try making them without spices or fruits but sprinkling sesame seeds or poppy seeds on each side as you cook them on the griddle. Actually most of the time we just eat them simply with butter and syrup.
Ingredients
6 cups freshly ground whole wheat or spelt flour (4 cups berries)
4 cups real kefir plus enough water to form a thick batter
4 or 5 farm fresh eggs, lightly beaten*
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
3 tsp. baking soda
3 tbl. melted butter or oil
8 0z of blueberries, the wilder the better
2 tsp. ground cardamom
Method
- The evening before, grind the flour and put it into a large bowl. Add the kefir and stir vigorously with a fork. Keep adding water until the mixture is thick and well blended. The batter should be very thick, particularly if using spelt flour which tends to get runny by the next morning.
- The next morning, beat the eggs in a bowl or glass measuring cup. Add the salt and baking soda. Stir well and then use your fingers to mash the mixture well and break up any remaining lumps of baking soda.
- Add the oil and then the blueberries to the egg mixture.
- Sprinkle the cardamom on top of the partially risen, fluffy batter in your large bowl. Pour in the egg and blueberry mixture and stir everything together quite vigorously until well blended. The batter should be light, fluffy, and moderately thick. If it is too thick, the centers of the pancakes will not cook enough; if it is too thin the pancakes will not reach their potential as little “cakes”. If necessary, thin the batter with water or milk or kefir or buttermilk until you achieve the desired thickness.
- Cook pancakes on a moderately hot, buttered cast iron griddle. Watch the heat as you proceed through your batch of batter. Don’t let the griddle get too hot as the thick, cake-like middles of these pancakes need a little time to cook before the outside gets too browned.
* If using farm fresh eggs, you can usually (depending upon the size of the eggs) use one or two less than the recipe would otherwise call for. If using grocery store eggs, use 1 egg per very cup of flour.
(Recipe ratios so you can adjust for size: for every cup of flour soak in 1 cup buttermilk or real kefir or 1 cup water with 1 tbl. whey or yogurt. [Soaking with real kefir gives the very best results in my experience.] Add 1 egg, 1/4 tsp. sea salt, 1/2 tsp. baking soda and 1/2 tbl melted butter or oil. Add blueberries and cardamom to taste.)
Serve these delicious pancakes hot with plenty of nutritious fresh butter, and maple syrup, homemade Pancake Syrup, or raw Blue Agave Nectar. Deepen their flavor with a prayer of gratitude before eating. To maximize enjoyment, share them with your eager family and anyone else who has a way to make it to your breakfast table.
If you would like to support the Pockets of the Future Project, prayers, encouragement and donations are always welcome.
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