Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

It's pumpkin season (one of my absolute favorite times of year)! We've had gorgeous weather where I live, so we've spent long luxurious afternoons at our local pumpkin patch. We've also got pumpkins in our garden and from the organic farm down the road, so needless to say, I'm pumpkin happy.

One of the foods I've been making often this year is Pumpkin Pie Pancakes. They're really just Pumpkin Pancakes, but because they're very egg-y and custard-y and they've got lots of pumpkin pie spices in them, my kids started calling them “Pumpkin Pie Pancakes,” so I guess Pumpkin Pie Pancakes it is.

And I must rave – these really are quite exquisite pancakes. I fell in love the first time I made them last year after I got the original recipe from Katie at Kitchen Stewardship, and they continue to thrill at each serving.

There's much to love about these pancakes:

1, they're custard-y with very little flour so they melt in your mouth

2, they use very few grains at all, so I happily hand them over to my 10-month-old as much as any of the rest of us (concerned about babies eating whole eggs? read this)

3, since they use mostly pumpkin and eggs with very little grain, they're a great way to provide a meal of vegetables and protein without much work.

Usually I change ingredients or ratios after I've made someone else's recipe to tweak it to how I like it, but these are pretty much perfect with Katie's original recipe. The only thing I've added is salt, which really brings the flavor of the pumpkin to the forefront.

We love to serve them with a bit of maple syrup drizzled over the top – and now that I think of it, I bet a sprinkling of crushed pecans and pumpkin whipped cream would put these over the top!

Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

makes 28-30 3-inch pancakes

N.B. Since these are not as dense as grain pancakes, we eat more of them and this recipe is barely enough for a Saturday morning brunch – I usually eat 8-10, my husband eats 14-16, and each child eats 2-4.

2 1/2 cups pumpkin puree (learn how to make pumpkin puree)
1 dozen eggs
3/4 cup spelt or whole wheat flour OR 1 scant cup sourdough starter
1 tablespoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Whisk the spices and the salt into the flour, then add to the pumpkin puree. Stir well, then add eggs, syrup, and vanilla, stirring after each addition.

Heat a griddle or other heavy bottomed pan over medium heat until thoroughly heated, 4-5 minutes. Reduce heat slightly and generously grease the pan with clarified butter or coconut oil. (Butter will burn quickly due to the milk solids, so be sure to use clarified butter instead.)

Ladle batter onto the griddle and cook until the edges are very dry. Turn with a spatula and add more flour to the remaining batter if the pancakes are crumbly or fall apart on the griddle. (These ones are still yummy though, so just set them aside.)

Reserve finished pancakes in a 150° oven until serving time.