Gluten Free Mini Pancakes

~ Gluten Free Pancakes with Strawberries & Maple Syrup ~

My little girl has requested for pancakes topped with strawberries and maple syrup for breakfast last weekend. Naturally, Mr. Google was my first helpdesk for anything that is not in my usual recipe. As I have often heard of the “gluten free diet” being a popular diet amongst many, I am eager to explore more on gluten free cooking. For a first trial with gluten free ingredient, I bought a pack of the Gluten Free Baking Flour to experiment on making pancakes.

According to a study published in 2015 on the U.S. National Center for Biotechnology Information, individuals with eczema improved with gluten free diet. My little girl and myself do have eczema prone skin. Although I have neither had any solid read on whether gluten triggers eczema nor have my family and I been diagnosed for gluten intolerance, I thought it would be a worthy to begin minimizing gluten consumption.

Gluten free diet strictly excludes gluten, a protein in wheat or any related grains that causes health problems for those whom are gluten intolerant. Gluten free diet can be hefty to adopt and the convenience, as well as the temptation of all kinds of wheat products can be challenging to resist. For practical reasons, I would not adopt an entire gluten free diet but to limit the consumption of wheat products whenever possible.

Pan-frying can be challenging. Without some experience, one would not be able to tell if the pan is ready for greasing, when it is ready for the food to be flipped over, additional oil may have to be added too. Too short a time may result in the pancakes being undercooked while too long a time may result in the fat being overly heated beyond its smoking point, unsafe for consumption. With some experiment in my AMC kitchen, even when I am pan-frying for the first time, I am doing it at ease with the temperature indicator. At 50°C, the pan is ready for greasing and at 70°C, the pancakes are ready for flip-over.

When I first started to embark on my journey as a full-time home-cook, I find it dreading to adhere to the day to day cooking requirements. It is not so much about being able to whip up a nice delicious meal for the family but to ensure I strive a balance in our daily food consumption, which posts an effect in the family member’s health in the long run. The ultimate goal can be motivating when one knows that home-cooking means one is in control. Now I do not mind that I will definitely have a steep learning curve for life.

Gluten Free Pancakes with Strawberries & Maple Syrup Recipe (yield 10 mini pancakes) :

1. 1 cup Gluten Free Baking Flour, approximately 120 grams
2. 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
3. 1 tablespoon Brown Sugar
4. A pinch of Salt
5. 200 ml Water/Soy Milk/Almond Milk/Coconut Milk/Whipped Cream
6. 1 AA Grade Egg, around 65 grams with shell on
7. 1 tablespoon Butter or Cooking Oil of Choice
8. Maple Syrup (drizzle on pancakes when served)
9. Strawberries (sliced & serve)

AMC Healthy Cooking Method :

1. Add ingredients 1 to 6 above into a 20cm Combi Bowl. Whisk the ingredients until smooth and well combined.
2. Preheat an AMC 20cm 2.0 litre HotPan unit on the Navigenio heat level “3” to 50°C or “Meat Window”. Use Audiotherm as an indicator by turning it on, place on lid knob, indicating 50°C or “Meat Window”.
3. When Audiotherm beeps, turn off the Audiotherm and reduce heat on Navigenio to level “2”. Add butter to the pan. Swirl to grease pan evenly.
4. Scoop a ladle of batter and spread to fill a size of about 10cm. Cook 2 pancakes at a time. Avoid spreading on the side of pan. Cover lid and pan-fry till 70°C. Remove lid, flip pancakes to pan-fry the other side.
5. Repeat step 4 to pan-fry the rest of the batter. Adjust heat on Navigenio between level “2” and “3” as necessary (Tip 1 below refers).
6. Serve with strawberries and drizzle maple syrup on pancakes when served.

Tips :

1. In step 5 above, the adjustment in heat is only necessary if the pancake is not cooked to your desired brownness. You may increase from heat level “2” to “3” when you are cooking every 3^rd batch of the batter. Otherwise, you may retain Navigenio at heat level “2” throughout.
2. As butter or oil first added to pan results to an adjustment in the pan temperature, the first batch of pancakes will always be “uglier” than all the subsequent ones. All subsequent batches should come out perfectly brown without the need to add a single drop of oil as you continue to pan-fry them.
3. If oil based liquid like coconut oil or whipped cream is used in the recipe mixture, no butter or cooking oil is required. The AMC Hotpan unit is as good as a non-stick pan for pan-frying!
4. As pancakes cook easily, alternatively, you may use the new AMC oPan to pan-fry these pancakes. It is a great alternative as it is perfect for tender pan-fried pancakes that cook easily, even without a lid. It works similarly like an AMC Hotpan, except that the pancakes cook without a lid on.