Orange-Pinenut Buckwheat Pancakes (ARF #13)

Breakfast for dinner? Come on, I’ve done dinner for breakfast so I'm practically expected to mix it up a little. Where in the book of life does it state we must keep our themes straight? As long as we get in our fruits and veggies for the day, what’s the harm? Plus, when the weather finally makes a turn for the better we crave a lighter fare. What is more suitable than to serve up a sweet and delicious breakfast for dinner?

The dear Sweetnick’s asked me to piggyback on an orange theme for this week’s ARF roundup. Being that Sweetnick’s was the first food blogger I befriended, the fact that I’ve been participating in the ARF roundup since its inception and the two of us are almost neighbors, I was more than happy to oblige.

I dared myself with a pancake. D and I have our pancake du jour pretty much settled and it was with a little trepidation that I picked up this recipe. But I will say, it was a success. Because really, what is better than the addition of fruits and nuts to a meal? [Thinking time…. ] Okay, maybe chocolate, caviar, wine…all three? But let us not be so decadent! Fruit is right up there with the natural nectars of the gods. So now, if any of you are those naughty breakfast-skippers you can have your breakfast, dinner and your dessert too-- all in one meal!

While the usual fruit addition to pancakes is usually banana or blueberry, the use of orange was quite an elegant one when presented. The result was that while our tried and true pancake will always win out, these were a nice break in the routine.

NOTES: As I am used to pancakes with a little more substance, I think this batter alone is a little bland. The orange zest really perked it up-- I even doubled the zest-- and believe this is a necessary addition. The nuts gave a much fuller flavor to the batter and were great crunchy surprises throughout, I would not go without these. I had no almonds and substituted pinenuts (walnuts would also be tasty). The result was a milky nutty flavor throughout. I found the nuts a little overwhelming and would lessen the amount; not only in the batter, but the syrup as well [especially if you are looking to cut the fat content]. Overall, the pancakes were nice and fluffy, as a pancake should be and a good change to my usual cornmeal-molasses pancakes.

This is the recipe as it appears on the Honeywell website. Note that the provided times for these pancakes were off for me. These took me about 50 minutes total active time (including prep work). You can find other orangey recipes there as well.

ORANGE-ALMOND BUCKWHEAT PANCAKES
Makes: 6 servings, 2 (4-inch) pancakes each. Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 50 minutes.
PANCAKES:
* 1 cups sliced almonds*
* 1 whole orange
* 1 egg
* 2/3 cup 100% orange juice
* 1 cup 2% reduced fat milk
* 2 tablespoons grapeseed oil or canola oil
* ¾ cup buckwheat flour
* 1 cup all purpose flour
* 1 tablespoon baking powder
* ¼ teaspoon salt
* Non-stick cooking spray

1) Preheat oven to 375°F. Spread almonds over a cookie sheet and bake 5 to 7 minutes until nicely browned. Remove and cool at room temperature. Use grater to grate zest of the orange, while careful not to grate into the white pith. Peel remainder of skin and slice between membranes to separate each orange segment. Set aside for garnish.
2) Combine egg, orange juice, milk and oil in medium bowl and mix well. In large bowl, combine both flours, baking powder and salt with reserved orange zest.
3) Add liquid into the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly while being sure to leave some lumps. Set aside ¼ cup almonds for syrup, then gently mix remaining ¾ cup almonds into batter until ingredients are combined, but still lumpy. Do not over-beat or stir until smooth as this will make pancakes tough.
4) Ladle batter onto hot, non-stick skillet coated with cooking spray and cook until some bubbles begin to appear on top, about 3 minutes. Flip cake over and cook 2 minutes. Serve immediately with orange-almond syrup, and garnish with orange segments.

*Note: While almonds provide a healthy fat, this ingredient may be removed to reduce the recipe's fat content by 18 grams.

ORANGE-ALMOND SYRUP:
* 1 cup 100% orange juice
* 1 cinnamon stick
* ½ cup light maple syrup
* ¼ cup reserved roasted almonds

1) Simmer orange juice and cinnamon stick in small saucepot over medium heat until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 15 minutes.
2) Add maple syrup. Remove cinnamon stick, stir in reserved roasted almonds and serve warm.