Buckwheat pancake mix

How about a new post? It's only been about 45 days, give or take. It's like a ghost town around here. You must have thought I fell off the roof putting up Christmas lights. Well, not to worry. I'm an acrophobic, so that's about the last thing that would happen. I was just, well, occupied with many other things.

But now I'm back with another (not another! you say) pancake recipe. But, this is not a recipe, but a product, and a good one. 

Syrup is Dickinson's as available at Cracker Barrel. It has real fruit in it. Yum.

I am constantly on a quest to make our everyday foods a little healthier. I often, however, meet with familial resistance. You, too? My husband, especially, balks at any healthy addition to some foods we eat pretty often, pancakes and waffles. If I so much as add a grain of oatmeal, he detects the texture difference and moans and groans up a storm. I saw this mix at our grocery store recently and decided to purchase it, even if it was only for myself. I decided to make them for the whole family first, just to give it the ol' litmus test. And lo and behold, they loved them! Not a moan or a groan amongst them. My youngest son even ate up the frozen remnants all week long.

Buckwheat flour is a main ingredient, though there is all-purpose flour, and rye flour in them as well. Contrary to its name, buckwheat is actually not wheat. It is the seed of a fruit, similar to rhubarb. It can be ground and used similar to wheat, however. And because it's not wheat, when we eat it we are getting less wheat in our diet, a good thing in my book. Besides not being wheat, buckwheat is also known to lower cholesterol, and blood sugar, as well as provide many other health benefits.

Though I have not tried buckwheat pancakes from scratch, there are many recipes out there -- this one from Simply Recipes looks like a good one (reliable source) as it can be wheat-free or not as needed.

I wish that New Hope Mills had a wheat-free buckwheat mix, because the old-fashioned buckwheat mix is so good, but until then, or until I make them from scratch, this will definitely do. I am grateful my grocer has the mix (they don't always keep specific brands in stock, however -- it's hit or miss) for $3.50 a bag. (Amazon carries it as well, but is more costly than it is at New Hope Mills website). I like purchasing from a company that makes its products in the States, but uses locally grown grains, and some non-GMO grains as well. As you know, I am not usually a "from a mix" kind of cook, so these have to be pretty darned good. All I add is water and an egg for a batch of pancakes. There is a recipe for waffles as well.

I was not paid by any company to recommend the products I have written about today. These are just my opinions.