When I decided to write this recipe post about my dad for Father’s Day, I knew it had to involve pancakes. As a child, I always looked forward to Saturday mornings, because those were the special mornings when my dad would make us pancakes.  Every Saturday morning without fail, my dad got up early with us while my mom was still asleep and made breakfast. Even to this day, my mom says he still makes pancakes for her every Saturday. I love it when I visit my parents’ house and get to enjoy these familiar breakfasts made by my dad. It’s become such a comforting routine for me, and so I’ve carried on with my own children.  What would Saturday morning be without pancakes?

My dad loves the morning. He gets up, goes out for coffee and comes home again before anyone else has stirred from their beds. I remember when I used to have early morning choir practice, he would get up early with me and take me out for breakfast first. I look back fondly on those early morning breakfasts with my dad. The world seemed so much calmer before dawn, as though time slowed down just a little. And while most people were still fast asleep, we could enjoy our thoughts and surroundings without interruption, without distraction.  We could just…be.  I see why my dad likes mornings so much.

As much as I appreciate my dad’s love of mornings, I have to admit that I’m not much of a morning person. I’ve become one only by necessity because usually the baby gets up early and needs me. Apparently no one else will do.  The plus side is that I get to have time with my kids when the world is still slow, when maybe they’ll stay kids a little longer, and I can make them pancakes just like me dad did for me.

These are pretty delicious pancakes with oats, apples, and a hint of cinnamon and vanilla. They fill you up and keep you full for a long time. You can make them at night and keep the batter in the fridge until you’re ready to make pancakes in the morning. It’s great not to have to fuss with making batter when you first get up.

I only had one critic for these pancakes. Cole was in a grumpy mood and didn’t want to be in the photo, which is fine, I only post photos of him when he’s okay with it. I was testing this recipe out for lunch on a weekday when the boys were home from school because of the teacher’s strike, but Ayla was at daycare. That left only Bennett to be my critic. As you can see, he approved!  I did too, and so did Ayla when she tried them after daycare. I think Cole actually liked them, but didn’t want to admit it. He ate quite a bit of them.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 cup large flake oats
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp ground flax seed
• 1/2 cup chopped apple

Instructions

1. In a mixing bowl, whisk together milk, egg and vanilla.
2. In another bowl, combine oats, flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and flax.
3. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until combined. Fold in apples.
4. You can use the batter right away to make pancakes, or keep it refrigerated overnight and use it for pancakes in the morning.

I made syrup for the pancakes, just like my dad used to. When my brother and I were kids, we couldn’t get enough of my dad’s syrup, and we actually preferred it over maple syrup.  I didn’t realize how incredibly easy it is to make! All you do is pour 1 cup of boiling water over 2 cups of sugar, and mix in 1/2 tsp of Mapleine (imitation maple flavor).  That’s it.

Happy Father’s Day on Sunday to all the dads out there!

If you’d like to learn more about my dad, visit his webpage: On the Patio.