Pancakes are a simple meal that even beginner cooks can easily whip up.  And just as easy as making the pancakes themselves, is making a homemade pancake mix from scratch.  In fact it’s so quick and simple that it’s rather a shame that pancake mixes were ever brought to the market in the first place, making all of us think it’s more complicated than it really is.

I had pancake mix on my mind this past week because I’m starting to think about our family’s $5 Christmas gift exchange that we’ve been doing for several years.  Every year I try to come up with a few different things than I did the year before and for the last couple of years now, Aldi has been my source of a new idea.  Last year I bought a bag of red and green tortilla chips at Aldi and gave it with a jar of my homemade salsa.

So what does this have to do with homemade pancake mix you may be wondering?  Well this year I spotted a cute little bottle of 100% pure maple syrup at Aldi and thought why not stir together some pancake mix to go with it  and ~ Ta Da ~ $5 Christmas gift exchange problem solved!  To make my pancake mix, I quadruple the recipe I use when I make pancakes from scratch and it’s the perfect size to fit in a quart canning jar.

I often see pure maple syrups at local craft shows and farmer’s markets and this mix would be a nice compliment to an item like that too if you wish to spend a bit more money.  Or you can just keep it really simple and combine the mix with a small whisk tied to the jar with a ribbon and use it as a quick gift for teachers or neighbors.

And of course this mix doesn’t need to be used only for gift giving.  It’s handy and frugal to keep around the house anytime and it’s tasty too!

HOMEMADE PANCAKE MIX

• 2 cups whole wheat flour

• 1 cup white flour

• 4 tablespoons sugar

• 4 teaspoons baking powder

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon salt

Combine the ingredients in a mixing bowl and transfer to a quart canning jar or other appropriate jar with a tight fitting lid.

You should also add a label to the jar telling the recipient how to make the pancakes.  I made a label with pretty thorough instructions for making pancakes because I didn’t know if a younger or older family member might be getting the gift in our exchange.   The main instructions you want to give are to make the pancakes using 3/4 cup of the mix with a 1/2 cup of milk and 1 egg.  Here’s the instructions I put on my label.

To Make Pancake Batter Combine:

3/4 cup Pancake Mix

1/2 Cup Milk

1 Egg

(More or less milk can be used to make a thicker or thinner batter)

Pour the batter onto a hot griddle or fry pan using about 1/8 cup to 1/4 cup per pancake.  When bubbles start to form on top, flip the pancake and brown on the other side.  Makes approximately 6 to 8 pancakes.

For a larger batch that makes approximately 12 to 14 pancakes, combine 1-1/2 cups of the mix, 1 cup milk, and 2 eggs.

I made a basic label by typing the instructions on my computer using a small font, printing it off, cutting around it with a scrapbooking scissors, and then sticking it on cardstock with double stick tape.  I then punched a small hole in corner and ran a ribbon through it and tied the ribbon around the top of my canning jar.