What is your favorite pancake mix?

This. Takes a little longer to make them from scratch, but it’s quite simple, and I’ve never had issues with this recipe (though i will add water sometimes if it’s too thick, but i do that with any pancake batter). The addition of butter also adds a very nice taste, in my opinion. I haven’t used any store-bough batter since I found this a year or so ago.

Self made.
– 1 litre of Milk
– 5 eggs
– ½ Pck. of Baking powder
– 300g of flour
– 1 pinch of Salz
Oil to fry it in the pan
depending on your taste you can also add sugar and cinnamon, raisins, nuts, etc.
Making pancakes is a piece of cake, npi. Why would I want to use a baking mix, that has countless additives?

@ragingloli uh, just to ask, what’s milch? and Salz? and how much is a pck. of baking powder?

If I’m going to make pancakes with a mix, I usually buy Bisquick just because you can also do other things with it (like make garlic cheese biscuits!).

However, once I tried making pancakes, waffles, and biscuits from scratch, I never bothered with the mix again. There are plenty of easy recipes on www.allrecipes.com and the ingredients are things people usually have on hand. Flour, baking soda, baking powder, butter, milk, eggs. When you make them from scratch, you can also make them healthier by using whole wheat flour or substituting applesauce for the butter/oil.

If you stock up on the basic ingredients, you’ll have what you need to make pancakes whenever you want for months and months at a time. I bake a lot, and a box of baking soda or baking powder lasts for several months.

@BhacSsylan
I meant milk. And Baking powder comes in small 15 gram packages (pck.), therefore ½ pck. is 7.5g.

Buttermilk, eggs, flour, baking soda, salt, sugar, vanilla.

@ragingloli Ah, okay. May try them at some point. I’m always looking for better pancake recipes. It seems like it makes a lot, though, with 5 eggs. How many pancakes do you usually make?

@MissAusten Agreed on the substitutions. I haven’t tried switching out for applesauce yet, but I changed to whole wheat flour recently and I have to say I think i prefer the taste to white. It’s heartier.

@BhacSsylan
Oh it was a lot. I did not count them though. Depends on the size of your pans, too. The last batch lasted about 2 days, I live alone.
The page where I got the recipe from says it produces 15 portions.

What pretty much everyone else has said, my favorite “mix” is the one I make myself.

Thanks all. Off to the store. I’m going to try your recipe @ragingloli, but add in @dpworkin‘s buttermilk and a dash of vanilla.

I had to review these first though – having no idea the differences:
http://chemistry.about.com/cs/foodchemistry/f/blbaking.htm
http://homecooking.about.com/od/cookingfaqs/f/faqbuttermilk.htm

@ipso
You may add more flour if the batter is too thin for you.

My husband says the Hungry Jack Complete Lighter and Fluffier mix is best.

I used to buy a frozen batter that was his favorite, but I cannot find it where we live now. I don’t remember if it was Aunt Jemima or what?

I make them from scratch sometimes, it isn’t much harder than just using a mix. But, I have not found a recipe that is as good as his favorite pancakes in a particular restaurant we used to go to.

Since I don’t like pancakes, it’s hard for me to figure out a great recipe. Maybe I will try one that is above. Thanks for the question.

They are too easy to make from scratch to fool with a mix. I have used a mix but felt like it was expensive for what it was.

Mix ? They aren’t hard to make from scratch. I prefer crepes though.

Wait! I left something out! I add some actual melted butter to the mix. You need some fat for the pancakes to turn out nice, and I find that melted butter adds a distinct dairy flavor. Be sure it is unsalted.

Once you begin to read the ingredients in mixes, you see how you make the mix easily from scratch if you just have basics in your cupboard—flour, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, salt. Adding milk and eggs is usually what you have to add anyway. Much more fun, fresher, and more happy to do it yourself.

This.

Well, the ..mixed results are in:

My first pancake tasted rather like…like, basketball, and the thick center burned while the thin edges were still gooey; which is strange. I suspect I have to do a better job mixing the powders and using lower heat than I do for regular cakes. Not sure why. I guess egg/milk/butter burn with lower temp than powders.

It all started off bad. I forgot the buttermilk at the store; probably because I was so mesmerized by the baking soda. At home I stared at it for a while. I have never in my life owned a box of baking soda.

I’m pretty handy making all-grain homebrew, steak, and fried chicken, but it’s astounding how little else I know about cooking. I remember my first week at college calling my mother as I had absolutely zero idea how to cook a potato so you could eat it.

Well I have all the stuff. I’ll try different pancake mixes as I go along.

Thanks all!

@robmandu that bacon-cake looks GREAT!

make sure that the size of the pan fits the size of the stove plate.

What kind of pan were you using, and do you have a gas or electric stove? I have a flat, non-stick griddle pan and an electric stove. I start out with the temp set to medium, and after the first batch I usually turn the heat down just a bit so the pancakes don’t brown too fast but not cook in the middle.

Which recipe did you end up using? Maybe we can offer some suggestions as well. Not having buttermilk isn’t going to ruin the pancakes. I almost never use buttermilk. Tip: You can make your own buttermilk by combining 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar with enough milk to equal one cup, then let it stand for a few minutes.

Believe it or not, the plain, generic kind from Wal-Mart. Simply called “Buttermilk Pancake Mix”, you just add milk or water and mix. I prefer the cheap pancake mix from Wal-Mart over the more expensive, brand name kinds because the pancakes made from them do not have that odd candy-like flavor that I find with more expensive pancake mixes. I never liked pancakes in the past because of their usual “artificial candy-like taste”, but I’m starting to like them because of the cheap Wal-Mart mixes.

@ipso One important thing is not to over-mix the wet and dry ingredients. There should be dry lumps in the batter. This keeps the beating from activating the glutens in the flour, which toughens your pancakes.

@ipso, did you cook them in butter or oil? Butter would cause it to burn. Mabe you also had the flame too high. You should flip them over when they start to bubble evenly, and best to only flip once or they can stiffen up. It takes making them a couple of times to get he thang of it. Maybe you can watch a youtube or something on a cooking channel? There is nothing like watching someone make a recipe, just reading it is a little tricky, unless you have significant experience in the kitchen and can estimate how things will turn out. Even then, most times it takes making a recipe twice to really get it.

@dpworkin I think you nailed it. I under mixed the powder, but then over compensated on the final wet mix and mad zero-lump plastic surface looking pancakes that were kind of hard and rubbery.

I went with that first link/post ^
1.5 cups flour
3.5 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 Tbl white sugar
1.25 cups milk
1 egg
3 Tbl melted butter
(I added maybe only 4 drops of vanilla and I was going to swap milk for buttermilk, but didn’t.)

I don’t think flour goes bad, but maybe that’s the taste problem. I’ve had some in the freezer for a couple (few?) years and just used that. Looked fine (i.e. no weevils). I have an electric stove and have always used my 10” Calphalon non-stick jobber on medium heat for regular Krusteaz. I’ll use a quarter ($) sized piece of butter in the center of the pan once it’s hot and when that spreads out I’ll pour the mix on top. Usually 6” cakes. One at a time. I’ll let it bubble up over about a min and then tap the pan with my spatula to pop the bubbles and then flip for another min.

But with the new recipe above – probably over mixed – I had very few bubbles, and using the same heat I’m used to using, the bottom was turning dark brown way before I was able to flip it.

Who knew making a pancake could be so complicated.

@MissAusten – thanks for buttermilk info too

I make my own mix. Milk, one cup flower. One egg, two teaspoons oil. Nothing else added. I also do not use any oil in frying them. Get the cast iron skillet hot but reduse heat as the pancakes cook.

Its my favorite pan cake recipe !!!

Ingredients

* All Purpose Flour – 2 Cups
* Wheat Flour – 1 Cup
* Finely Ground Almonds – 1 Cup
* Coffee Powder – ½ teaspoon
* Baking Powder – 2 Tablespoon
* Milk Powder – 3 Cups
* Sugar- ½ Cup
* Salt – 1 Tablespoon

Storing The Pancake Mix

It is advisable that you store your cake mix in airtight containers or re-sealable plastic bags. Moreover do not store the mix for too long. The above-mentioned recipe will yield about three batches of pancakes so plan according to your requirement.

To Make the Pancakes

* Making pancakes is very easy when you have your homemade mix. All you need to do is add 1¼ cups water, 1 egg, and 2 tablespoons vegetable oil to the pre –made pancake mix.
* Preheat your nonstick pan or the cast iron skillet to 375 degrees F. If you want an easier way to get the temperature right, sprinkle drops of water on it and when the drop of water skitters across the pan, you know it is the right time to start making your pancakes
* Next, you coat the hot pan with the oil or butter according to your taste. In case you are hesitant to use too much of oil, better use an oil spray.
* In order to test whether you’ve got the temperature right, make a mini-pancake and see that it does not burn and depending upon the result adjust the temperature.
* Once you have got the temperature right, ladle in the pancake batter according to the space available on the pan. Make sure you leave enough room between two pancakes so that it enables comfortable flipping.

Ingredients
All Purpose Flour – 2 Cups
Wheat Flour – 1 Cup
Finely Ground Almonds – 1 Cup
Coffee Powder – ½ teaspoon
Baking Powder – 2 Tablespoon
Milk Powder – 3 Cups
Sugar- ½ Cup
Salt – 1 Tablespoon
Storing The Pancake Mix

It is advisable that you store your cake mix in airtight containers or re-sealable plastic bags. Moreover do not store the mix for too long. The above-mentioned recipe will yield about three batches of pancakes so plan according to your requirement.

To Make the Pancakes
Making pancakes is very easy when you have your homemade mix. All you need to do is add 1¼ cups water, 1 egg, and 2 tablespoons vegetable oil to the pre –made pancake mix.
Preheat your nonstick pan or the cast iron skillet to 375 degrees F. If you want an easier way to get the temperature right, sprinkle drops of water on it and when the drop of water skitters across the pan, you know it is the right time to start making your pancakes
Next, you coat the hot pan with the oil or butter according to your taste. In case you are hesitant to use too much of oil, better use an oil spray.
In order to test whether you’ve got the temperature right, make a mini-pancake and see that it does not burn and depending upon the result adjust the temperature.
Once you have got the temperature right, ladle in the pancake batter according to the space available on the pan. Make sure you leave enough room between two pancakes so that it enables comfortable flipping.
Variations

To add variety to your pancakes, you can switch a few ingredients to change the flavor of the pancake. For instance instead of almonds you can use cashew nuts, pistachios, walnuts or even hazelnuts. Moreover if you want a substitute for coffee, you can use cocoa powder to have delicious chocolate pancakes as well. Or if you like just the simple basic ones, you can do away with any other flavors.