The classic pancake has been called into question nutritionally in recent years. It’s come under fire as not particularly nutrition-dense. And high in empty calories. But now, researchers are working on ways to rehabilitate the humble flapjack…
About the only ingredient one can point to, in standard pancakes, which might conceivably be considered ‘healthy’ is the flour. And only if it’s a whole-grain 0r traditional buckwheat blend…
Then, there’s the toppings
… Which add a whole separate dimension of nutritional excess guaranteed to produce frowns from the white-coat crowd.
But researchers were determined to drag the traditional breakfast – kicking and screaming, if neces-sary – into the 21st Century have come up with a few guidelines and suggestions for evolving it into something healthier, yet still familiar.
“Generally, pancakes are made with refined flours, contributing to empty calories,” explains Girish Ganjyal, a professor and food processing specialist at Washington State University (WSU)’s School of Food Science. “We wanted to see if it’s possible to make tasty pancakes with whole grains that add some fiber and protein.”
What they did
“We started with a small level of replacement flours, then kept increasing them until it wasn’t prac-tical,” Ganjyal said.
The scientists used the same recipe for all the pancakes. The different flours were the only variable, and the recipe’s leavening system and other ingredients such as sugar, oil, flour, and salt remained constant.
The recipes with the different flours and percentages were compared with the control pancakes, which were made with the usual refined flour and all of the same other ingredients.
What they found
The main factor that complicated matters was the varying compositions and gluten levels of different alternative flours. Another was totally objective: What flavours did taste testers consider ‘not appro-priate’ for pancakes? But those are issues, the researchers say, for another day and another line of investigation.
The initial experiments focused on the basics: which flours was it even possible to make acceptable pancakes with?
“With millet flour, for example, we found that it basically just crumbles; there was no binding,” Ganjyal says.
Maggie notes: That confirms my own findings about certain flours I’ve tinkered with. Corn flour, for example, requires a ridiculously large addition of regular flour just to ensure it holds together in baked goods. Even classic Corn Bread or muffins. In fact, various flours vary widely over vast ranges in how they perform under ‘standard cooking practices’.
The takeaway
Ganjyal and his team hope to modify various flours so their textures become indistinguishable from the refined version in standard cooking scenarios. More research is obviously required to get to that point.
But Ganjyal has the ongoing support of a multi-disciplinary team of plant breeders, nutrition experts and food scientists. Together, they hope flour manufacturers will be able to use the results of their research to produce healthier products.
My take
Bravo for Ganjyal and his research partners. I, for one, have been avoiding pancakes for exactly the reason he cites – empty calories. But lately, researchers have amplified their negative emphasis on added sugars, fats and other common baking ingredients. And I’ve come, grudgingly, to shun not just pancakes, muffins and the like, but all baked goods that might be classified as ‘recreational’.
It would be refreshing (not to mention tremendously gratifying) to discover, even if it is down the road some distance, that there’s a solution to my conundrum…
~ Maggie J.