Sprouted buckwheat pancakes

I recently wrote a guide to gluten-free baking for goodfood.com where I covered all types of flours, binding agents and tips and tricks you can use if you are starting a gluten-free diet. Not surprisingly, buckwheat came up as one of the most user-friendly, gluten-free flours. 

However, just like many gluten-containing wheat products, and pseudo-grains, buckwheat does benefit from a period of fermentation or pre-soaking to optimise the available nutrients and make it easier to digest. 

This recipe makes this pre-soaking process time-friendly and straightforward. The end result is a fluffy, well-risen pancake. My kids enjoy them with maple syrup and salty butter, but it's worth experimenting with some savoury variants as well - salty ham and reggiano cheese would be a hit, as would tarragon butter and thinly sliced corned beef. 

WHAT YOU WILL NEED - 

2 cups buckwheat flour

1 cup yoghurt

1 cup milk of choice

4 large eggs

1/4 cup softened butter

1/4 cup coconut sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp bicarb soda

coconut oil or butter for frying

Preparation - 

Combine the buckwheat flour with the milk and yoghurt and allow to rest for 2 hours or overnight. 

When you are ready to make the pancakes, add the remaining ingredients into the mixture and stir well. 

Prepare a large fry pan on a medium heat, and add in the coconut oil or butter (or a combination of both) for frying. Add a rough 1/2 cup of mixture to the fry pan and allow the pancake to sizzle for a minute, watching small bubbles form, before flipping over. Repeat until pancake becomes lightly brown, and then remove from pan and serve immediately.