Whole Wheat Oatmeal Walnut Pancakes!

I love pancakes. They're light and fluffy and the perfect A.M. treat. What I don't love about pancakes is how you can eat them, and then you're hungry again 30 minutes later. The issue of course is that a traditional pancake lacks fiber and protein. It's time for our pancakes to do more for us! I decided to build a better pancake batter with whole wheat flour, walnuts, and oats. The end result was fantastic, they still came out just like the light and fluffy pancakes I desired- but they were filling and healthy! If you're making these for a crowd that aren't healthy food fans, I suggest not mentioning to them the health factor here. My little brother and his friend gobbled these up, when I told them they were whole wheat walnut oat pancakes they were both surprised- his friend even said "I probably wouldn't have eaten them had I known that, but they were delicious". Winner, winner chicken dinner!

I think these would be great with any kind of nut you may have on hand- pecan, macadamia, etc., and I would love to try them with some blueberries or strawberries or maybe even bananas mixed in! Of course it goes without saying that if you or someone in your family has a nut allergy, just leave those out, they'll still be great.

Ingredients: (Makes about 10 Pancakes depending on how big you make them)

1 1/2 C. Quick Cooking Oats

1/2 C. Whole Wheat Flour

1/2 C. All Purpose Flour

2 Tbsp. Brown Sugar

2 Tsp. Baking Powder

1/4 Tsp. Kosher Salt

1 1/2 C. Milk

2 Eggs

2 Tbsp. Melted Butter

1/2 C. Chopped Walnuts

Step 1: Spray a griddle or large skillet with non-stick spray, heat to medium-high heat. In a large bowl whisk together oats, flours, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt.

Step 2: In a separate bowl whisk together milk, eggs, and melted butter. Stir into dry ingredients until just combined.

Step 3: Fold pecans into batter.

Step 4: Spoon batter by about 1/4 C. onto hot griddle. Cook until little bubbles appear on the top of the pancake, flip and cook until cooked through- about 2 minutes per side.

Note: The batter will be thicker than traditional pancake batter, when I spooned it onto the skillet I spread it out a bit with my spoon to make sure the pancakes didn't get too thick.

Top with butter & syrup - or whatever your favorite pancake toppings may be and enjoy!