Whole Wheat Orange-Cardamom Pancakes

These 100% whole wheat pancakes, lightly spiced with cardamom and heavily spiked with orange (juice, zest, and extract), are the kind of thing both five-year-olds and their parents can agree on. If cardamom is too much for your kids’ palette, leave it out or replace it with a pinch of cinnamon.

Whole Wheat Orange-Cardamom Pancakes: Ingredient Notes

Orange Extract. If you don’t have orange extract, leave it out. It’s one of those ingredients that my parents have in their suburb-sized kitchen but I definitely don’t keep in my prewar, Queens pad. The recipe will be slightly less citrusy, but no less delicious.

Whole Wheat Flour. According to America’s Test Kitchen, 100% whole wheat pancakes can be fluffier than white flour pancakes because of their low gluten content. When you mix the gluten in white flour with a liquid, the gluten strands tighten up and cause the pancakes to become flat and dense. Whole wheat pancakes, on the other hand, have less gluten so you don’t have to worry about tightening strands when you mix the batter. You can mix with abandon.

Orange zest. Yes, it makes a difference! Not only does it add a slightly floral note that plays well with the flavor of cardamom, but there’s also a visual benefit: Flecks of zest scattered throughout toasted-brown pancakes is one reason this recipe is so special.

Orange juice. Replacing the liquid in pancakes (which is usually milk) with OJ adds extra flavor and natural sweetness. This recipe starts with 1 1/2 cups juice per 2 cups of flour. Feel free to add more if the batter is too dry — the consistency should be thick but somewhat pourable.

Neutral oil. Canola, vegetable, refined coconut, or other neutral oils have a higher smoke point than butter, so they are better for frying up pancakes. Whenever I use butter, I find that it ends up burning and smoking by the second batch. If you still want that butter flavor, heat a combo of butter and neutral oil in the skillet.

Sugar. There is no added sugar in these pancakes because I intend to drown them in maple syrup, and OJ adds a decent amount of natural sweetness. If you prefer a sweet-on-its-own pancake, add about 1 tablespoon of sugar to the batter.

What to do with leftover Whole Wheat Orange-Cardamom Pancakes

Leftovers can be frozen in a ziplock bag for a quick and easy breakfast during the week. I especially like them re-heated in a toaster or toaster oven and slathered with creamy almond butter.

More pancake recipes (clearly my favorite breakfast)

The Best 100% Whole Wheat Pancakes

Fluffy Blueberry Pancakes