This post I’d like to focus on making breakfast from scratch. Those of you who don’t have time to make breakfast from scratch in the mornings, keep reading. I have a suggestion for you at the end.

One of my kids’ favorite breakfasts is pancakes. They’d eat pancakes every day, if I’d make them. I used to buy boxes of Bisquick for making pancakes, but I found that a box never lasts that long, not to mention I’d always have really odd amounts of mix left at the end of the box. So I’d either have to buy a new box and combine the mix, or I’d have to toss the extra.

A friend of mine suggested making my own pancakes from scratch. So I tried it, and I’ve never gone back. I use the basic buttermilk pancake recipe from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook.

Homemade Pancake Recipe
Prep time: 15 mins
Cook time: 15 mins
Total time: 30 mins
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 beaten egg
  • 1 cup buttermilk or sour milk (add 1 tablespoon vinegar to 1 cup of milk and let sit 5 minutes)
  • 2 tablespoons cooking oil
Instructions
  1. Mix everything together.
  2. Pour 1/4 cup onto hot, lightly greased griddle.
  3. Turn over when top is bubbly and edges are slightly dry.
Notes

The recipe makes 8 pancakes.

 

Making your own pacake mix and mixing everything together in the morning doesn’t take any longer than mixing up the Bisquick mix.

Spice Things Up

And to spice things up, I often add things to my mix. In the past I’ve added blueberries, apples, walnuts, applesauce, pumpkin, and sliced bananas. (Not all at once, of course)

I’ve also been known to vary the flour, depending on what I have on hand. Instead of white flour, sometimes I’ll substitute some whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour. I wouldn’t recommend substituting all whole wheat flour for the white flour, or your pancakes will turn out too heavy. But substituting part of the flour works well.

And there you have it. A nutritious breakfast for less money than the boxed alternative. And healthier, too, especially if you add fresh fruit and whole wheat flour.

If you don’t have time to make breakfast on weekday mornings, try making up a batch of pancakes on the weekend and freezing them. They freeze well, and they heat up in the microwave quickly.

Do you have any cheap, healthy breakfast ideas? Please share in the comments!

Photo by RC Stanley.