Pancake Day the vegan way

Whether you take pancakes with bacon, syrup, sugar or simply plain, one thing is for certain – Pancake Day is one of Britain’s best-loved Christian traditions.

David Carter,pictured above and below, a tutor at Nottinghamshire’s School of Artisan Food, at the Welbeck Estate, has created a vegan recipe that matches any traditional method.

David, who was once a solicitor before taking a two-day bread-making course at Welbeck and falling in love with cooking, designed a recipe with the “perfect traditional balance” of sugar, salt and flour as well, but with the twist of dairy- free milk, psyllium husks and white rice flour – and no eggs.

He wanted to create something “different and fitting with the times”, and chose an option which was gluten free and vegan so it was suitable “for everyone”.

He said: “I wanted to devise something that was a bit unusual and, at the moment, the things that are on trend are vegan foods.

“I thought a pancake would be a bit of a challenge because you can’t use eggs or milk, and I like a bit of a challenge.

“Also I wanted to do something gluten-free because again, it is something in the public eye, and because my wife has been diagnosed coeliac so, as a baker, I thought it would be nice to develop something that she can have too.

“I wanted it to be ingredients people could get easily, as there is nothing more frustrating than being presented with a recipe and not being able to get some of the ingredients.

“The flours I use are both ready available in the ‘free from’ sections, salt and sugar is obviously available and there is one slightly less known ingredient called psyllium husk.

“This is a natural product and is used instead of eggs, which gives colour, helps to bind the batter and is perfect for gluten-free cooking.

“This is again readily available in health shops and Asian supermarkets.

“I don’t think it is more difficult than a normal pancake mix and is very similar in the method, it cooks well and has a bit of a nutty taste to it.

“To eat the traditional way of pancakes with some granulated sugar and fresh lemon can’t be beaten.”

To find out more about David’s work and the School of Artisan Food, visit SchoolOfArtisanFood.org.

Your Chad’s Verdict

Reporter Andrew Topping pictured above inset, said: “As a proud carnivore I was sceptical to say the least about the prospect of a Vegan pancake.

“Going into the taste test I hadn’t heard of a number of the ingredients including psyllium husk and questioned whether the lack of an egg would mean a strange texture.

“I was wrong.

“The pancake tasted amazing and to be honest if someone had put it in front of me blind I would have just said it was a regular pancake, and David was right when he said there is a slight nutty taste.

“To say it is gluten free and dairy free I really couldn’t tell the difference and, with a bit of sugar and orange zest, it was the perfect pancake.

“As a healthy option I would definitely recommend.”