Homemade Pancakes

Simple Ingredients and Fluffy Every Time Tips: Before You Start  Use fresh ingredients. Check your flour and baking powder to make sure they haven't expired or gone rancid. Don't over-mix. When combining your wet and dry ingredients, whisk only until you no longer see any dry spots of flour. Over-mixing will make pancakes tougher (since gluten develops in the flour) and less fluffy (which happens when leaveners release bubbles). Lumps in the batter aren't just okay, they're essential! Beat the egg whites. Separating the egg whites from the yolks and beating the whites until they form stiff peaks will give the pancakes a cloud-like texture. Let the batter rest. Letting the pancake batter rest for 10 minutes allows the leaveners to continue to work their magic, creating and expanding into thousands of tiny pockets of carbon dioxide. The fluffier the batter, the fluffier the pancakes. Start with a hot surface. Allow your skillet or griddle to fully heat up before you add batter.  Don't press the pancakes. It's tempting to press down on the pancakes with a spatula after flipping, but this will result in a dense, gummy pancake. Hold the butter: Cooking the pancakes in butter can cause the milk solids to burn, leaving behind black specks and a noticeable flavour. For that reason, I prefer to use oil - extra virgin avocado oil works great!

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% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

In a small bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

Step 2

In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, oil, and egg yolk.

Step 3

In a small bowl or medium glass measuring cup, beat the egg whites with a hand mixer until they form stiff peaks. This step is crucial for achieving that fluffy texture.

Step 4

Add dry ingredients to the milk, oil, and egg yolk mixture; whisk until just moistened. Do not overmix; small lumps in the batter are fine.

Step 5

Gently fold and combine the whipped egg whites into the batter using a spatula. Be careful not to overmix. The goal is to keep the air in the egg whites for maximum fluffiness.

Step 6

Let the batter rest for 10 minutes.

Step 7

Heat a large skillet (nonstick or cast-iron) or griddle over medium. Light coat with extra virgin avocado oil.

Step 8

Spoon a small amount of batter onto the pre-heated skillet and repeat this step for each pancake.

Step 9

Cook until the surface of the pancakes have some bubbles and a few have burst, 1 to 2 minutes.

Step 10

Carefully flip each pancake with a thin spatula, and cook until browned on the underside, 1 to 2 minutes more. Tip: choose a thin, broad spatula (the same width as the pancakes) and turn each one over as gently and quickly as possible. The second side should take less time than the first.

Step 11

Serve with maple syrup or fruit syrupy. Enjoy!