APPLE + PEAR BUCKWHEAT PANCAKES
WITH TOASTED WALNUTS, FRESH MINT + COCONUT YOGURT
This month we are focusing on delicious heart warming recipes to see you into the cooler season. This week our showcase seasonal ingredients are apples and pears. I have created a warming brunch recipe that will feature this weekend as part of our retreat brunch menu.
I popped into my mum and dad’s at the weekend, after a birthday trip to London and couldn’t resist picking the apples and pears from their trees. This is my childhood home and therefore picking fruit from the old fruit trees evoked so many memories. Foraging and picking your own vegetables allows you to really connect and appreciate your food. Now this isn’t to say that all the food I consume is foraged, seasonal or local, but I do my best where I can. Eating seasonally is often cheaper too - the produce doesn’t have to travel as far and requires less input to enable it to grow.
If you’re not lucky enough to have your own fruit trees, keep an eye out on the verges for free fruit, ask your neighbours, buy from a local fruit and vegetable store, or subscribe to a local fruit and vegetable service (I love Living Larder).
Anyway on to brunch….it’s basically the classic crumble flavours of seasonal fruit and cinnamon in pancake form! Feeling hungry?
The pancakes are made with an apple and pear puree making them super moist. They are drizzled in a cinnamon Infused maple syrup and topped with an apple and pear complete with toasted walnuts.
Servings: 2
Ingredients
200g buckwheat flour
3 apples
3 pears
2 tbsp melted coconut oil
3 tbsp coconut sugar
1.5 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
150ml almond milk
Optional toppings:
Crushed walnuts
Fresh mint
Yogurt
Maple syrup
Method
Looking for the perfect apple!
Peel and core the apples and pears and dice into cubes (approximately 1cm by 1cm)
Place the apples and pears in a pan with 0.5 tsp of ground cinnamon. Add enough water to cover the bottom of the pan. Cook over a low heat for 10-15 minutes. You want the fruit to have soften but to have kept their shape.
Allow to cool slightly before adding 120g of the fruit to a blender and blend until smooth to make your fruit puree.
Add 20g of the puree into the pan with the remaining fruit to form your compote.
Make the pancakes, by placing the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, remaining ground cinnamon and coconut sugar into a bowl and mixing well until there are no lumps.
Now add the almond milk, 100g of the fruit puree and 2 tbsp of melted coconut oil. Mix well until a smooth batter forms. If the batter gets too thick, mix an extra dash of oat milk.
Warm some coconut oil in a pan over a medium heat.
Add a large spoonful fo the batter into the pan, and cook for 3-5 minutes until the bottom feels cooked. Flip over and cook on the other side. Repeat this process until you have used all the ingredients.
Serve the pancakes on a base of yogurt, topped with the compote, a drizzle of maple and crushed walnuts.
Put on a cosy jumper, grab a mug of tea, sit back and enjoy!
Top tips
These pancakes work really well heated up, so I encourage you to make a big batch. The recipe takes a little time, but if you batch cook the recipe you will then have a super quick and speedy brunch ready to go. As they are thick I found that they heat really well in the toaster.
Make a big batch of the puree. It’s delicious with porridge or warmed with yogurt for breakfast or nutritious after dinner treat!
