Coconut Oatmeal Pancakes

Growing up my mother always ground her own whole wheat flour for her pancakes and always added chocolate chips to the batter. She spoiled my husband, who now will only eat pancakes with chocolate chips ...and his favorite shredded coconut too.

With the oatmeal, whole wheat flour, and flax meal, these pancakes are healthier than most and when you add the chocolate and coconut you will include all the food in the food pyramid that we need to sustain life! You know that a day without Chocolate just isn't complete.
This coconut syrup has got to be the BEST way to eat any pancake! Try it. You're going to love it.

Coconut Syrup:
7-8 Tablespoons butter
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon coconut extract

Combine butter, buttermilk, and sugar in a sauce pan. Heat until butter melts and sugar is dissolved. Boil one minute. Remove from heat and add baking soda and extract. It will foam up...just continue to stir. Let set a few minutes for the foam to reduce before serving.If you make the syrup and then the pancakes, the syrup will be ready to serve when the pancakes are done.

Oatmeal Pancakes

3/4 cup rolled oats
1 Tablespoon packed brown sugar
1 1/4 cup skim milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
Wisk together milk, vanilla, and egg. Add brown sugar and rolled oats to the liquid mixture and set aside.(I like to chop the rolled oats in my food processor slightly to reduce the size of the flakes)

Heat griddle to 375 degrees.

In a bowl combine:
1 cup flour (I like to use Whole Wheat Pastry flour)
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/3 cup flax meal

Stir milk and oatmeal mixture into the flour mixture and stir just until all ingredients are moistened.

Add:
1/2 cup chocolate chips*
1/2 cup shredded coconut*

For each pancake, pour scant 1/4 cup batter onto griddle and cook 1- 1/2 minutes or until bubbly. Turn and cook 1 minute longer or until browned.

Serve with Coconut Syrup

*Chocolate chips and coconut can be optional. This syrup is divine on just regular pancakes too.