One of my favorite games as a kid was telephone. I can’t tell you how much enjoyment I got out of sitting in a circle in grade school and waiting patiently until the person next to me whispered the telephone message in my ear. Because I’m hard of hearing (no joke…just ask anyone), I’m about 85% sure that the true message ended with me every time. Yes, I may have been responsible for breaking numerous telephone games (by no fault of my own). What would begin as, “the white cat sat on the porch” turned instantly into “stingrays pee in the ocean.”
Sourdough starter reminds me of a great game of telephone. It can be passed along for generations and it changes slowly over time. You may already know I absolutely love edibles that are cultured, fermented, and alive. Sourdough fits the bill! Where did One of my co-workers asked me if I wanted sourdough starter and I hopped, skipped and jumped at the offer.
I had been meaning to bake sourdough bread ever since I heard it contains less gluten than regular bread. The active culture in sourdough starter feeds off of the gluten in flour, rendering it lower in gluten (though not gluten-free!). My co-worker got his starter from a friend who got it from a friend who lives in San Francisco, the sourdough capital of the U.S.
I’m not sure where my sourdough starter’s point of origin is, but ever since I acquired my starter, I’ve been dreaming up tales of where it came from, where it has gone, and the exact route it took to get in my hands. I wonder about its sourdough brothers and sisters. I wonder if they will ever meet at a bake sale. I certainly hope so.
You don’t need to have a co-worker with a bounty of sourdough starter in order to get your sourdough on. You can follow Stephie’s instructions from Eat Your Heart to make your own sourdough starter and also check out all of her delicious sourdough recipes! If you’re new to sourdough, I highly recommend reading Stephie’s sourdough posts – the girl knows her stuff!
Given my love for pancakes, the very first thing I did with my sourdough starter (before even feeding it) was make sourdough pancakes with fresh cherries. I used mostly buckwheat flour for the pancakes to keep the level of gluten low, and they turned out great (albeit not as fluffy as you would get if you used all-purpose flour)! They have a nice sourdough flavor and the cherries caramelize while the batter is cooking, making these hotcakes all sorts of wonderful. Now go ferment yourself some batter!
Buckwheat Cherry Sourdough Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 cup sourdough starter
- 1 egg
- ½ cup full-fat canned coconut milk*
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon agave nectar optional, or sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup buckwheat flour
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ cup cherries pitted and quartered
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the sourdough starter, egg, coconut milk, vanilla extract and agave nectar.
- Add in the salt, buckwheat flour, all-purpose flour and baking soda. Stir until the batter is smooth.
- Allow the batter to sit for a couple of minutes in order to allow the sourdough starter to react.
- Fold in the chopped cherries.
- Heat a large skillet to medium and add enough oil/butter to coat the bottom.
- Measure ¼ cup of batter and pour it on the hot skillet (depending on the size of your skillet, you should be able to cook 2 or 3 pancakes at a time).
- Cook until the sides of the pancakes firm up and bubbles rise to the top.
- Flip and cook an additional minute or two until pancakes are cooked all the way through.
- Serve with butter and pure maple syrup or agave or honey.
What happens if you use all buckwheat flour?
Hi Randi! I haven’t tested the pancakes with all buckwheat flour but my assumption is they wouldn’t be quite as fluffy – I believe they would turn out flatter and spread out more. I think it would still work, but I’m assuming they just won’t fluff up a whole lot. 🙂
I had some starter left over today so I tried these, without the cherries since I didn’t have any. They were delicious! I used maple syrup since I didn’t have agave nectar, but still fantastic. We enjoyed them with frozen fruit on top, warmed up with a bit of vanilla and thickened with cornstarch on the stove top. Thanks for a great recipe!
I’m so happy you made and enjoyed them, Shelley! Your topping sounds amazing! Hope you had a great weekend, and thanks so much for the sweet note!
Oh man I just got so excited!!!! When I was visiting my boyfriend in Wisconsin, we had these AMAZING cherry sourdough pancakes at this little cafe in Madison. I’ve been dreaming about them ever since and even emailed the owner to see if he could share the recipe, but no dice. I am DEFINITELY putting these on my list to try!!
I don’t hear well either, so I do a lot of smiling and nodding! I’m a little (quite) envious of your starter. I’ve heard of European families that have had the same starter for like a hundred years; kinda weird and kinda cool!
I’ve had a bag of buckwheat flour sitting in my pantry for a few months now (actually, I think it’s the one I won off your blog – ha!) and I’ve had no clue what to do with it! Going to try these out for sure!!!
LOL, make pancaked out of it, sister! They’re tasty! 🙂 Have a great weekend!
I love the use of cherries in these delicious looking pancakes! Wonderful recipe, Julia!
Thanks, my dear! The cherries add a lot of spunk to the pancakes 🙂
Yay pancakes are back!! What a great way to use cherries, love it. I gotta see Stephie’s starter tips!
Yay! love that pancakes are back! I also adore sourdough anything. How often do you have to feed your starter? I guess I should hop over to Eat Your Heart out and find out!!! thanks for the recipe!
Hey my dear! I feed my starter once a week and I think Stephie does the same. You can feed it every couple of days as long as you can use it…or else you’ll end up with an overflowing supply of sourdough starter! Definitely check out Steph’s how-tos. She has some great sourdough tips and recipes!
We are pancake fans in my house, always looking for a new recipe. These look great! Thanks for posting this 🙂
I about jumped out of my chair when I saw this post! You know about my pancake love and combined with my sourdough obsession (you know this all started with Stephie and I reading a book about a baker and her sourdough starter. What nerds we are), AND my loooove for bing cherries, I’m all over this post! Ever since she posted her sourdough bundt cakes, I’ve been wanting to substitute our starter for anything buttermilk. You need to move to the midwest so that the three of us can create in the kitchen together! Breakfast is on me!
Stephie has definitely inspired me in the sourdough realm….I always thought it would be too complicated to make homemade, but it’s ridiculously easy. I can’t wait to try all of her sourdough recipes. Looking forward to the day that we can all sit down to breakfast together and enjoy a few stacks of pancakes! 🙂
Wheeeee, make ALL the things sourdough!!
Seriously, though. Do it.
{Thanks for the mention, love bug!}
You got it! You’ve been my number one resource when it comes to figuring out what to do with my starter, so thank YOU, lady!
These sound so yummy! And now you have me wanting to play a game of telephone. hmm. Do adults play this??
Sourdough pancakes!! Get out of here! That is awesome! Sourdough is on of my family very favorite flavors, but making sourdough pancakes has never crossed my mind. I so to make these tomorrow morning! Have a great weekend!
Thanks m’lady! Sourdough is definitely delicious! Hope you enjoy the pancakes!
I am totally intringued by the ‘sourdough starter’. Would love to find out more. And who can beat you at pancakes…I can safely say that I find the best pancake recipes here! Healthy and delicious. And the cherries in the background look amazing..I can imagine how well they will compliment the other flavours in the pancakes.