Pancakes

[Dan @ Durston Gear]

I think pancakes are a great meal idea for hiking trips. You can buy the mix that only requires water (watch out for the ones that require oil and egg).

I'm making pancakes at home right now and I mixed up 1 cup of mix with 2/3 cup of water. I weighed 1 cup of mix at 159g (5.6oz) which makes a pretty decent amount of food. It looks like I'm going to get 6 decent sized pancakes out of this.

That might be a bit light for 2 people but it's a feast for one. You'd probably want about 3/4cup/person for a nice meal. Maybe less for a smaller person.

UPDATE: My wife and just ate the pancakes. I had 4 and she had 2, we are both full but could probably cram 1 more down each. This confirms my suspicion that 3/4 cup (120g or 4.2oz) is a good amount per adult male. Besides the mix, you'd probably want an ounce or two of maple syrup and a bit of oil to cook it with. Total meal weight is likely around 7oz.

I'm not sure how good pancakes are nutritionally, but under 1/2 lbs for a hearty meal that is cheap and easy to plan is great.

[Dan @ Durston Gear]

It looks like this meal doesn't provide a ton of calories. The pancakes seem to be around 300-400 calories and that rises by a few hundred more with the syrup depending on how much you slather on.

One cool thing about pancakes is that they're a great way to use berries that you forage.

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

They also make great "bread" for snacks during the day – cook, cool and carry in a clean sandwich bag. Then slather on nut butter!

[David Drake]

4.2 oz. of dry mix should be ~420 Cal. or a bit more if the water-only mix has some fat incorporated to make up for the oil you don't add. Good rule of thumb I learned is carbohydrates (sugars, starches, grains, pasta, flour, crackers, etc) = 100 Cal./oz.; protein = 100 Cal./oz.; fats and oils = 240 Cal./oz. I figure if the food is pliable (like bread, tortillas, salami, or jerky) there's usually some water content, so the calorie density is a bit less than whatever the dry components are. Nuts are great, tho'–high oil content, so sunflower seeds for example are 176 Cal./oz. I'm still doing a lot of reading in these forums and elsewhere to try to get a good nutritional balance, in addition to high calories.

I don't cook in the backcountry (just boil and rehydrate) but pancakes with pinenuts and huckleberries fried in ghee sounds mighty tasty.

[Delmar O’Donnell]

What small/lightweight/solo pan can you recommend for cooking pancakes?

[Andrew F]

Thanks for the idea Dan. I'll have to try and see if I can pull off anything resembling an edible pancake in my MSR Titan kettle using Esbit. I've been getting really tired of standard "backpacking food" and have been trying to bring more palatable options. I packed in an entire large combo pizza a few weeks ago… That was a resounding success.

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

I have used a number of pans over the years for pancakes – think ultra slick, non-stick and a LOT of oil. Also, a stove you can dial down as needed. As well, I often hold the pan just above the top of the stove to regulate heat if needed.

Having said that…I love the MSR skillet.

[Delmar O’Donnell]

MSR skillet…nice! 9 in diameter, 7 oz, ouch!

Anything in the 5" skillet range?

[Gary Dunckel]

Here are 3 options that Evernew offers:

http://www.evernewamerica.com/ti_ns_frypan.htm

[Sarah Kirkconnell]

In all honesty, you can use the lid to many pans – if it is also a "fry pan lid". I have 3 kids so yeah, a 7" skillet is like tiny.

;-)

[Lee Oz]

Pack a handful of chocolate chips and dump them in the mix.

[Delmar O’Donnell]

Sorry, I can't leave this topic alone. I love the idea of back-country pancakes. What toppings are packable? Syrup/molasses does not seem ideal unless you have a bomb-proof container that won't leak. And you're still carrying liquid. Does the whole "dry/dehydrated" ethos work for pancake toppings?

[Bob Gross]

Carry in some freeze dried blueberries, some sugar, and a tiny bit of corn starch. When in camp, simmer together the blueberries in water, then add the sugar and corn starch. After a while and it is all warm, take it off the heat. It will thicken slightly as it cools, and then you apply it to the pancakes.

I've tried it with other f.d. fruits also, but blueberries seem to work best.

–B.G.–

[Delmar O’Donnell]

That's a grand idea, Bob. Excellent, thank you.

[Bob Gross]

I used to use another recipe for group breakfast. Prepare something like a pancake, except that it is more like a crepe, or an egg crepe. Meanwhile, you prepare the hot fruit filling. This is made from some air dehydrated fruit cocktail simmered in water with some sugar and some corn starch. Plus, a tiny bit of the secret ingredient is added. Once that is hot and sticky, you plop the finished crepe on a bowl and spoon some of the hot fruit filling onto it, then fold the crepe over the filling. It is sort of like a taco for shape.

People are eating that and loving it, and then I ask them what the secret ingredient is. Nobody can guess. Everybody says that it is good, but they can't quite figure out what the secret ingredient is. It always gets finished to the last speck, but they still can't guess.

==Almond extract==

Few people associate almond flavor with egg crepes, so they taste it, but they can't guess it. It takes very little of the almond flavor to do it. It's just enough to confuse the palate.

–B.G.–

[Ben H.]

Trader Joe's (and other places) sell maple sugar. Just mix it with a little water for syrup. The quintessential pancake topping with all energy and no water weight.

Nutella is another great energy dense pancake topping.

[Mark Ries]

I do not live by a trader joes so i had a friend pick me up some maple sugar. A clerk told her that they will no longer be handling this product so she bought like 8 bags for me. It expires in April 2014 so I got extra if anybody wants some

[Larry De La Briandais]

The biggest problem with pancakes is having to drag along the pan to cook them in. I have made many, but always on short trips where weight isn't a big deal. I used the syrup packets from Packit Gourmet. However, I do like the blueberry receipt above. I am going to try that sometime. :)

[Delmar O’Donnell]

> The biggest problem with pancakes is having to drag along the pan to cook them in.

True that. I'm trying to get the necessary cooking gear weight down: a simmering alc stove and a small aluminum nonstick pan.

Simmering stove: 1.2 oz.
Cast aluminum nonstick pan: 4.8 oz. The pan is functional; not a lightweight "burny" pan.

That's a lot of weight, so it's only going on short trips.

[Backpack Jack]

@ Delmar,

I have an Imusa fry pan I bought at Walmart and took the handle off, it weighs 3.5 oz and is non stick, I think it's around 5.5-6" This is what I always use to cook my pancakes, using Krusteaz pancake mix.
I never have pancakes left over no matter how much mix I bring, and like Sarah said you can make extra and eat them later cold on the trail.

I think this is the one

http://www.kmart.com/imusa-egg-pan-casserole-with-handle-6.3-inch/p-9990000029729011P

Jack

[Delmar O’Donnell]

And mine's only 4-1/2" wide. Looks like you found a better pan for packing, Jack. I'll see if I can locate one, thanks.

[Backpack Jack]

I think the top is 6" and then it tappers down to 5.5" still the best pan I've found for my needs.
Jack

[BER —]

We like to use the MSR Flex skillet (same as what Sarah recommended)when camping with our boys or another couple and it nests well with our larger group cook kit. We use the smaller Quick skillet 7" when alone. It nests with our smaller couples cook kit and is listed as 5.9oz with the removable handle. A little bit heavier than those listed above by others, but works very well for pancakes, smaller sized tortillas, or fried fish. Granted, most of our camping is via canoe and a few extra ounces here and there are less of an issue.

Bisquick makes a biscuit mix pouch that just requires water in a couple different flavors. Cheesy garlic good for with dinner. The honey butter mix is good as pan biscuits or pancakes (if thinned out with extra water) and are sweet enough not to require syrup…though that would be good too…

[Delmar O’Donnell]

Pleased to report, have been able to successfully make pancakes on an alcohol stove, a Packafeather XL. Maybe 'cakes on alcohol stoves is common, but it's new to me, and I'm tickled pink.

I've been using Kodiak Cakes Flapjack Mix (found at Stater's). Start the stove on high and let it warm up, maybe a minute, then throttle back about 3 or 4 turns of the flame control to a low flame. I found Jack's Imusa pan (at Kmart), which works wonderfully, and have been cranking out beautiful flapjacks with a lightweight kit…soon to get very lightweight as soon as I replace the pan's heavy handle. (A handle replacement is a must, because it's so big and heavy, it drags the pan off the stove if you don't hold it in place.)

Thanks to all for the hints and how-to's. Being able to flapjack in the backcountry is a BIG DEAL for me. Will provide welcome variety from the oatmeal-every-morning routine.

[Marko Botsaris]

I'm sure that this link has been posted to BPL in other places, but have you seen this from Mike Clellands website:

http://ultralightbackpackintips.blogspot.com/2011/02/muffins-with-ul-stove-set-up.html

I'm more of a muffin person than a pancake person, and this was an eyeopener to me. Yet another thing to possibly add to your breakfast repertoire.

[Author]

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