Paleo Lavender Lemon Pancakes

Last Updated on January 24, 2018

I left for work this morning in weather reminiscent of April rather than January. It was warmish, rainy, the ground steamy and ghost like. Still dark, as I leave well before the sun comes up, I drove through the veil of drops and arrived to work nearly unaware of the trip. Sixty miles on autopilot. Happens a lot. 

My attention was on a podcast. This one was an interview with a cookbook author who’d spent over 20 years living in Provence. Daydreaming of Julia Child’s kitchen with its pot outlines and all, I imagined what life would be like if I could do what I love for a living. I like torturing myself with listening to how others are living and as if by osmosis, I could slow down and embrace a lifestyle of that sort.

It’s not complicated really, the emphasis being on quality over quantity. Essentially the message is: “stop buying shit you don’t need, focus on the every day moments of life, cook more, appreciate simplicities, etc”. Do little things that bring you joy. Have a plant on your desk, burn a candle now and then, diffuse oil…that sort of thing. And then that got me thinking about how much I love diffusing oil…lavender on my mind, again. 

My mother in law recently got me a tub of culinary lavender from a lavender farm near her house. It was one of the greatest gifts I ever received. The way to my soul is always through food and wine! This lavender farm is magical. To get there, you have to make your way though the steep hills of a wooded mountain side. Doubtful that such a place could exist at the end of such road, there was a clearning and we’d arrived. A wide open space, rows and rows of lavender and an overwhelmingly beautiful view. The type of place that makes you sigh. Then there is the gift shop, loaded with everything lavender. The day we visited, I stocked up on several lavender products but completely missed the culinary lavender which she so gracelously got for me. 

I was in need of a new pancake recipe and decided to play around with lavender and see what happens. Lemon and lavender pair very well together so it became obvious. I would be making lavender lemon pancakes. Two of my favorite ingredients in one little cake. The trick is to not go overboard on the lavender and just use enough to give the food a hint of lavender. 

I make a big batch and save them for the whole week. They reheat well and can be topped with anything you want from maple syrup to honey or whatever else suits you.  

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paleo lavender lemon pancakes

• prep time: 5 minutes

• cooking time: 20-25 minutes

• makes: 12 small pancakes

Ingredients: 

• 4 room temperature eggs

• 1 cup cashew, almond or coconut milk at room temperature

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• zest of 1 lemon

• 1 tbsp melted coconut oil

• 1.5 tsp culinary lavender (you can find it here)

• 1 tbsp maple syrup

• 1 tsp vanilla

• 1/2 cup coconut flour (I use this one)

• pinch of salt

• coconut oil for cooking

Equipment:

• mixing bowl

• whisk

• non stick pan of your choice

Directions: 

Combine all ingredients in bowl and whisk until fully incorporated.

Preheat pan on medium and add about 1/2 tsp of coconut oil. Add roughly 1/4 cup of batter and cook for 2-3 minutes per side. You should be able to cook about 3 cakes at a time in a regular sized frying pan. 

Yum