Bursting Blueberry Granola Pancakes

With the weekend comes cravings for insanely delicious breakfast foods that are also usually insanely detrimental to our waistlines. Here’s a great recipe for a breakfast classic packed with protein, fiber, and antioxidants to keep you satisfied longer. These pancakes are inspired by one of my favorite brunch spots in Savannah, GA with blueberry “crunchcakes” on their menu. These crunchcakes are packed with delicious granola and studded with warm bursting blueberries. Last weekend (after the 2-for special on blueberries at the supermarket) I decided it would be the perfect time to recreate them for my man to go along with our Berry Smoothies! I use store bought pancake mix to save time (because Saturdays are about relaxing of course!)  Here’s the recipe for 6-9 pancakes:

Follow the box directions for 6 -9 pancakes and mix the batter according to package directions. Be careful not to over mix.. . over mixing=dense heavy pancakes! And no one wants to feel like they need to take a nap right after they finish chewing their last bite of food.

This is where most people would think to add the blueberries, BUT! I find that when you add them in the pancake mix you end up with some pancakes that are loaded and some that just don’t reach the pancake-to-blueberry-quota (and let’s face it, I won’t even eat a chocolate chip cookie that doesn’t have at least 5 chocolate chips showing on top!). So what I like to do is mix the batter and poor it on the griddle, just like you would to make normal pancakes, and then add the blueberries and granola on top. There are two reasons why I think this is exceptionally delicious:

1.       You can control the amount of blueberries that will become warm and bursting with flavor in your pancakes.

2.       The granola (that is already sweetened with naturally delicious honey) actually gets to make contact with the griddle and create a little extra carmelization from the honey! YUM!

I use my favorite brand of granola, the vanilla and almond flavor, with whole almonds in it! (Always a treat to get some of those almonds into the pancakes as well!)

Preheat your griddle on medium-low heat and lightly grease it (my trick here is to just pull the paper back on a stick of butter and just zig-zag the end across the hot griddle to give you just enough butter and nothing more).

Pour your batter on, and then drop your granola and blueberries on—as rustically or artistically as you like.

The rules are the same here as they are for regular pancakes, when you see the bubbles-flip! That’s all it takes to make delicious blueberry granola pancakes!

For a little extra fancy shmancy-ness (and a healthier alternative to processed syrup) serve with honey instead!