I love pancakes, but man they can be horrible.  If they are too dense, they sit heavily in the belly, if too thin, they are flat and lifeless.  I like a bit of rise to my pancake.  A round bit of fluffy goodness.

Paleo Pancakes are even harder and I have been trying everyone’s version.  Here are the five warning signs I have so far determined of a bad Paleo pancake:

1. Not enough baking powder for leavening. It is not strong enough to give lift to a paleo pancake in regular pancake doses.  Use twice as much or go direct with cream of tartar plus base.
2. No added honey. Not only as an added sweetener, since they usually contain bananas to provide this as well as the structure of the pancake, but also as a stronger base to react with the cream of tartar, or to assist the cream of tartar within the baking powder.   Consider honey AND baking soda to react with the cream of tartar.
3. Directions to pour out in silver dollar or small sizes. This means it does not have enough structure to keep it together when you flip it. Add coconut flour, almond flour, or arrowroot in a small amount.
4. Too few ingredients.  Seriously, pancakes made from just banana, egg, and coconut flour, or banana eggs, and baking powder, are not going to make anything light and fluffy yet full of substance.  Baking requires structure and leavening both.
5. Too much almond flour.  Recipe that call for cups of almond flour with just a small amount of alternative flour are too nutty in flavor and can have a grainy mouthfeel.  Cut it down, add some more arrowroot or tapioca flour, or a bit of coconut flour plus additional eggs.

Paleo Perfected Cookbook from the fine folks at Cook’s Illustrated probably came the closest to a real, honest pancake, but they were still a little flat and dense.  Too much almond flour and not enough leavening is my guess.  I should just wait for a cheat day in July, but since I have three very ripened bananas and a handful of blueberries in the refrigerator, it is time to try again.  From scratch.

If I focus on the two things I hate most about paleo pancakes they are the  flatness and the flimsy structure that requires them to be small.  So, I want the pancakes to rise with life, to be light, fluffy, and awesome.  As indicated above in my theorizing, I will use a combination of cream of tartar, baking soda, and honey.  But how to get them bigger than a silver dollar?

They need more structure. Coconut flour aids in that but you can only use so much and simultaneously I wanted to cut down the almond flour.  What to do?  What to do?!

Eureka!  Sunflower butter. Or almond butter or even peanut better if you prefer. This would solve my problem entirely, but then, damn it, they would be all nutty flavored. But I could tame that with a bit of lemon juice and vanilla.

These are by far the best Paleo pancakes I have ever eaten and I have eaten many different recipes. If I do say so myself.

Paleo Pancakes (Breakfast, Late Night) Makes 10-12 FULL SIZE Pancakes

• 6 large eggs
• 3 very ripe bananas
• 1 cup sunflower butter or nut butter of choice
• 1 cup almond flour
• 1 cup arrowroot
• 2 tsp cream of tartar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1-1/2 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4-cup coconut milk beverage
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp salt

1. Put all ingredient in blender. Process on high. Let sit 15 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 200°F and place pan with cooling rack inside.
3. Preheat nonstick pan or griddle on medium-low heat.
4. Spray or wipe pan with oil.
5. Scoop 1/3 cup batter on to hot surface.
6. Place any fruits or chocolate chunks you intend to use.
7. Cook until edges begin to brown and surface forms bubbles, approximately 4-6 minutes.
8. Flip and cook another 2-3 minutes. Transfer to oven to keep warm.
9. Wait one minute and add more batter.
10. Spray pan every two to four pancakes as needed.
11. Eat with whatever toppings you prefer and enjoy.

Papa Satyr does not really want to eat Paleo pancakes, though he said these were the best yet, not all grainy or small and flimsy.  Success!

However, on special occasion, I will make good, old-fashioned from scratch pancakes for him.   One of my favorites I modified from Epicurious.com years ago…

Blueberry Cornmeal Buttermilk Pancakes (Breakfast, Late Night) Makes 8-10 Pancakes

• 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• 3 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, cooled
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup blueberries
• Vegetable oil

1. Sift first 5 ingredients into large bowl.
2. Whisk buttermilk, eggs,  melted butter, maple syrup, and vanilla extract in a medium bowl to blend.
3. Mix a well in dry ingredients. Add buttermilk mixture and whisk until blended and smooth.
4. Fold in blueberries.
5. Preheat oven to 200°F.
6. Lightly coat bottom of heavy large skillet with oil. Heat over medium heat.
7. Working in batches, pour 1/3 cup batter into skillet for each pancake. Cook until bottoms are golden, about 1 1/2 minutes. Turn pancakes and cook until second sides are golden, about 1 minute.
8. Transfer to baking sheet with cooling rack; place in oven to keep warm.
9. Repeat with remaining batter, adding more oil to skillet as necessary.

Pro-Tip: You can make 1 cup of buttermilk substitutes in the following manners,

• 1 cup milk:1 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar:stand 5-10 minutes.
• 3/4 cup plain yogurt:1/4 cup water.
• 3/4 cup sour cream: 1/4 cup water.
• 1 cup milk:1-3/4 tsp cream of tartar:stay 5-10 minutes.

Thank you to thekitchn.com for the last three tips, of which I was previously unaware.  According to them, you can also thin kefir to desired consistency, but I did not list that as a method since I can not tell you how much of each to use.

Addendum April 2018:

Best Keto Pancakes to Date (Breakfast, Late Night) Makes 8 small Pancakes

• 2 large eggs, separated
• 2 oz heavy whipping cream or half n half
• 2 teaspoon erythritol, granulated (I use swerve)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 oz almond flour. finely ground
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon unsalted butter or ghee

1. Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl.
2. In a small bowl, combine almond flour with baking powder.
3. Whisk dry ingredients into wet ingredients.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk egg whites until soft peaks are formed.  Fold into the batter.
5. Preheat oven to 200°F.
6. Lightly coat bottom of heavy large skillet with butter. Heat over medium heat.
7. Working in batches, pour 1/4 cup batter into skillet for each pancake. Cook until bottoms are golden, about 3 minutes. Turn pancakes and cook until second sides are golden, about 2 minutes.
8. Transfer to baking sheet with cooling rack; place in oven to keep warm.
9. Repeat with remaining batter, adding more butter to skillet as necessary.