Gingerbread Pancakes

People keep asking me if I'm ready for Christmas. Um, YES! It helps when you start getting ready somewhere around the first of November, and take a break for Thanksgiving. If I started after Thanksgiving, I have no idea how I'd be ready in time. And rushing around the week before Christmas is no fun! The Geologist is off work all next week, hooray!! We kicked off our Christmas vacation today with a trip to the community center pool. It has a dragon water slide and a pirate ship. We'll be spending a lot of time there the next two weeks. :) And I will be eating leftover pancakes for dinner this evening. 

Gingerbread Pancakes (inspired by Averie Cooks)
Printable Recipe

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 Tb packed dark brown sugar
2 Tb granulated sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 rounded tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla
3 Tb molasses
1 Tb vegetable oil

Whisk together the flour, sugars, spices, salt, and baking powder and soda in a large mixing bowl and set aside.

In a separate bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, vanilla, molasses, and egg. Whisk till smooth. 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry, stirring until just combined. Don't worry if it's a little lumpy!

Heat a griddle pan or a cast iron skillet to medium heat. Use a 1/4 cup to measure out your pancake batter. Cook until bubbles pop around the edges and don't immediately fill in. Carefully flip over and cook till nicely browned on both sides. After you flip these they can scorch quickly, so take a peek underneath every few minutes! Serve immediately.

You know I'm obsessed with gingerbread. I had to have gingerbread pancakes this year!! The recipe took a little bit of tweaking, but now they're perfect! And so easy to whip together, always a plus. The Geologist is a bit of a purist when it comes to pancakes, and prefers straight-up buttermilk over just about any variation. (Except chocolate chips) I think these are just about the greatest pancakes ever, and he said, "I can tell that if you really liked gingerbread, you'd think these were awesome." Better than nothing, right?

They're light and fluffy, with rich brown sugar and molasses deliciousness, and tons of warm, spicy, scrumptious holiday spices. Yum yum yum!! Perfect for a Christmas morning breakfast!