I have three kids. This means a lot of things when it comes to eating; nothing spicy (mostly), noodles are always their first choice, and anything shaped like a pancake is delicious. This can be something savory, like a black bean griddlecake, or the apogee of all pancakes, the blueberry pancake. So, I thought I would publish this wild blueberry pancakes recipe for all to make. It is about as good as it gets.
A few years ago, I was on a series of hikes in Harriman State Park and noticed that there was an area that was absolutely covered in wild blueberries. This blueberry patch went on for miles, over hills, under trees, in clearings; it was very impressive. These were totally wild blueberries, completely untended. The bushes were relatively high, and you had to pick your way through the foliage, bending down to pick berries as you went.
Since then, I have been meaning to go back and pick wild blueberries. Well, this was the year I finally did it. I dragged my two daughters (3 and 6) along to help with the promise that I would make a wild blueberry pancakes recipe, or blueberry muffins for them if we got enough berries. It was a challenge to get the girls to actually put the berries in a bowl and not in their mouths, but there are worse problems to have. By the end of the day, their little mouths were stained completely purple, yet they assured me they had not been eating any berries. Yeah right. It seemed reminiscent of Blueberries for Sal, thankfully minus the bears. The best part of picking your own wild blueberries is the berries are totally free, and organic.
For this wild blueberry pancakes recipe, and pretty much anything else that involves flour, I usually like to use a mix of all purpose and white whole wheat flours. I usually use King Arthur white whole wheat flour, which is great. It has 13% protein content, so you are definitely getting a bit more nutrition than you would from all purpose flour. If you are substituting white whole wheat for all purpose flour in another recipe, you might have to increase the liquid a bit.
Basics
There are some basic things about making quick breads that everyone should know. I’ll lay them out just in case you aren’t aware. First, you never want to over-mix the batter. The more you mix, the tougher the batter will become. You generally don’t want tough pancakes or muffins. The opposite is true for most breads, which is one reason why we knead bread. Next, I have found that your pancakes will come out with a lighter texture if you let the batter sit for a few minutes before you start cooking the pancakes. This lets the gluten “relax” a bit and makes everything more tender. I never have patience to do this for more than ten or fifteen minutes.
Equipment
I do love this big cast iron griddle. You can make a bunch of pancakes at the same time, and as long as you wash it correctly, nothing ever sticks to it. You can also flip it over and use it as a grill pan, which is great for grilling tofu, or searing a steak if that’s your thing. Purchasing anything via the links on this page helps support the site.
Serves 3 pancakes
24 pancakes
10 minPrep Time
15 minCook Time
25 minTotal Time
Save RecipeINGREDIENTS
- 1.5 cups all purpose flour
- 1.5 cups white whole wheat flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups milk
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted,
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1.5 cups wild blueberries
- 2 tablespoons butter (for griddle)
- Maple syrup for serving
METHOD
- Mix flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
- Whisk milk, eggs, butter, and vanilla in another medium bowl
- Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients, and gently mix until just combined.
- Gently fold in the wild blueberries. If you are using frozen blueberries, there is o need to defrost them.
- Preheat the griddle to medium. Make sure a few drops of water sprinkled on the surface sputter for a second or two. If they evaporate right away, the griddle is too hot. If they boil for a little bit, it is too cool. If you are using a cast iron griddle, this could take 5-7 minutes to preheat the griddle, a good time to let the batter rest. You can also cook these in a skillet.
- Melt the butter on your griddle and spread it evenly using a spatula.
- Ladle about 1/3 cup of batter per pancake onto the griddle. The pancakes should be about 4"-5" inches across.
- Cook until you see the top of each pancake speckled with small bubbles. Flip each pancake and cook until the underside is nicely browned.
- Serve immediately with maple syrup and butter, or keep warm in a 200 degree oven until you finish cooking the rest. Do no cover the pancakes in the oven, they will get rubbery.
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