Multigrain Pancakes

By amaliana

Makes about 16 4-inch pancakes

Familia-brand no-sugar-added muesli is the best choice for this recipe. If you can't find Familia, look for Alpen or any no-sugar-added muesli. (if you can't find muesli without sugar, muesli with sugar added will work; reduce the brown sugar in the recipe to 1 tablespoon.) Mix the batter first and then heat the pan. Letting the batter sit while the pan heats will give the dry ingredients time to absorb the wet ingredients, otherwise the batter will be runny. Unless you have a pastry brush with heatproof bristles, a paper towel is the best means of coating the pan surface with oil. Pancakes will hold for 20 minutes when placed on a greased rack set on a baking sheet in a 220F oven. Serve with maple syrup or Apple, Cranberry, and Pecan Topping(recipe follows).

Ingredients

• 4 teaspoons juice from 1 lemon
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 1/4 cups (6 ounces) plus 3 tablespoons no-sugar-added muesli
• 3/4 cup (3 3/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (2 3/4 ounces) whole wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons light or dark brown sugar
• 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 2 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Vegetable oil

Details

Servings 4

Preparation

Step 1

1. Whisk lemon juice and milk together in medium bowl or 4-cup measuring cup; set aside to thicken while preparing other ingredients

2. Process 1 1/4 cups muesli in food processor until finely ground, 2 to 2 1/2 minutes; transfer to large bowl. Add remaining 3 tablespoons unground muesli, flours, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; whisk to combine.

3. Whisk eggs, melted butter, and vanilla into milk until combined. Make well in center of dry ingredients in bowl; pour in milk mixture and whisk very gently until just combined(few streaks of flour and lumps should remain). Do not over-mix. Allow batter to sit while pan heats.

4. Heat 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon oil and brush to coat skillet bottom evenly. Following instructions below, add 1 tablespoon batter to gauge temperature of pan. Pour 1/4 cup batter onto 3 spots in skillet, using bottom of ladle to spread batter smooth if necessary. Cook pancakes until small bubbles begin to appear evenly over surface, 2 to 3 minutes. Using thin, wide spatula, flip pancakes and cook until golden brown on second side, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes longer. Serve immediately. Repeat with remining batter, brushing surface of pan lightly with oil between batches and adjusting heat if necessary.

Apple, Cranberry and Pecan Topping
Serves 4 to 6

The test kitchen prefers semifirm apples such as Fuji, Gala, or Braeburn for this topping. Avoid very tart types like Granny Smith and soft varieties like McIntosh.

3 1/2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
3 medium apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces(about 4 cups) (see note above)
Pinch tables salt
1 cup apple cider
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon juice from 1 lemon
3/4 cup pecans, toasted and chopped

Melt 1 1/2 tablespoons butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add apples and salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and browned, 7 to 9 minutes. Stir in cider and cranberries; cook until liquid has almost evaporated, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in maple syrup and cook until thickened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add vanilla, lemon juice, and remaining butter; whisk until sauce is smooth. serve with toasted nuts.

Pancakes 101: Is The Pan Ready?

The best way to determine when the skillet is ready is to make a test pancake the size of a half-dollar(use 1 tablespoon of batter). If after one minute the pancake is golden brown, the pan is ready. If the bottom of the pancake remains blond-or is close to burning-adjust the heat accordingly.