Spelt and Pinon Pancakes

Weekends and Pancakes just go together. They're certainly a part of my weekend ritual. When I make them, I never follow a recipe. I just channel Aunt Jemima, throw in a pinch of organic, and before you know it my family is devouring  a stack of light, fluffy golden brown beauties. When it comes to pancakes, I like to mix it up (no pun intended) adding a little of this or that to the batter. After all, variety is the spice of life! This morning what struck my fancy was the bit-o spelt flour that was left in my freezer which happened to be sitting right next to a bag of pine nuts. With that inspiration, I grabbed my mixing bowl and here's the recipe that followed.


Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups Organic Spelt Flour **
1/2 cup Organic Unbleached White Flour
1/4 cup Organic Cane Sugar
3 tsp Baking powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
pinch of Salt
1/2 tsp Vanilla 
1 Tbsp Orange Zest
1 Tbsp Flax Meal
1 egg
2 cups Milk (any sort will do ie: soy, almond, coconut or cow)
2 Tbsp butter  melted
2 Tbsp Grape-seed Oil
1/4 cup Pinon (pine) Nuts 

** for those of you who don't know about Spelt, it is an ancient grain that in recent years has gotten new recognition. Known for its nutty taste, spelt flour is rich in protein, B vitamins, magnesium and fiber. It is also a reliable source of iron, niacin, thaimin, copper and phoshorous. However, when baking with Spelt you should know that it has a "soft" quality to it. For this reason I like to mix it with a bit of regular flour.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk milk, egg and flax. Add flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and zest. Stir. Add vanilla, butter and oil. Stir. If the batter is extra thick, thin with a little more milk. Heat frying pan or griddle (cast iron works best) over medium heat. Lightly toast pine nuts and reserve. If your pan is well "seasoned" you'll be able to cook your pancakes in a dry pan. If not, add a little bit of cooking oil so they don't stick. Ladle batter a 1/2 cup at a time into pan & sprinkle with a bit of toasted pinon. When the batter begins to bubble on top and the underside is golden, flip and cook for a few more minutes on the other side. Repeat process until all the batter is gone. 
Serve with your best REAL Maple Syrup and Fruit