Gluten-Free Banana Oat Pancakes

Ingredients

• 3 small bananas (9.5 ounces), mashed
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil or butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice (about 1 small lemon, juiced)
• 1 teaspoon honey or maple syrup
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup oat flour*
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

Instructions

1. In a small mixing bowl, stir together the mashed bananas, coconut oil (or butter), lemon juice and honey (or maple syrup).
2. Beat in the eggs. (If your coconut oil goes back to its solid state like mine did at this point, just warm the mixture for short 20 second bursts in the microwave, stirring between each, until it is melted again.)
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the oat flour, baking soda, salt and spices.
4. Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. With a big spoon, stir just until the dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened. Do not overmix!
5. Let the batter sit for 10 minutes. You may want to thin out the batter a bit with a touch of milk or water.
6. Heat a heavy cast iron skillet/non-stick pan over medium-low heat, or heat an electric griddle to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly oil the surface with coconut oil, butter or cooking spray. (If you're using a non-stick electric griddle, you might not need any oil at all.)
7. Once the surface of the pan is hot enough that a drop of water sizzles on it, pour ¼ cup of batter onto the pan. Let the pancake cook for about 3 minutes, until bubbles begin to form around the edges of the cake.
8. Once the underside of the pancake is lightly golden, flip it with a spatula and cook for another 90 seconds or so, until golden brown on both sides. You may need to adjust the heat up or down at this point.
9. Serve the pancakes immediately or keep warm in a 200 degree Fahrenheit oven.

Notes

Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking.
Yields about 8 pancakes.
A note on the gluten free: These pancakes are gluten-free, so long as you used certified gluten-free oat flour or certified gluten-free old-fashioned oats.
*How to make your own oat flour: To make oat flour out of old-fashioned oats, simply pour one cup of oats into a food processor and process until it is ground well. One cup before and after grinding measures just about the same, believe it or not! That's a fun little tip I picked up from the King Arthur cookbook.
Preparation tips: This whole grain batter is thicker than most, so it's more difficult to gauge when the pancakes are ready to flip. I learned that it's easier to go by the timer: set it for for 3 minutes for the first side, then flip and wait another 90 seconds for the other side to finish. The time will vary depending on your temperature setting, but that's about the time it should take for pancakes that are fully cooked and golden on each side.
Freeze it: These pancakes freeze well. (I've never met a pancake that doesn't.) Commenter Megan had good luck making the batter the night before, refrigerating it overnight, and proceeding with the recipe the next morning (add a splash of milk to thin out the batter).
Make it dairy free: Just use coconut oil instead of butter.