It’s been almost a year since Dylan drove me and my loaded Subaru 2,000 miles from Bay City to Reno. It took four days. We picked up I80 in Indiana, made it through Chicago, across the plains, and over the Rockies. We passed through Laramie, blocks from where he was born and where I was for six years that county library director. Under a dramatic sky that lay 4,300 feet closer than Michigan’s, we crossed the Utah/Nevada desert to Reno. A week later, Dylan and his co-workers spent the better part of a day moving me into a bright south-facing unit at Vintage Hills Senior Apartments. In the year I’ve lived here, never have I seen a move-in anything like those young men, on a 100-degree day, cheerfully transporting the contents of two U-Haul cubes into the lobby and up the elevator to my second floor space. Ann had provided a nice chest of drinks and eats. It was quite an event in a place where we residents are all over sixty.

I’ve spent the past year exploring busy Reno, population half a million, adjusting to major highways crisscrossing town and twisty mountain residential streets. I’ve been getting to know my kids, now ten minutes away, and filling my apartment with art and plants. Retired at last, I’ve been cooking. I brought only one of my seven shelves of cookbooks, so I often turn to the internet, which is where I discovered these “Fluffy Buckwheat Pancakes”. 



Best Whole Grain Pancakes
Reliable, versatile, delicious, and forgiving, this recipe for whole grain pancakes is my favorite of all time. No matter what I substitute, they never disappoint. Yesterday, I used oat flour. I’ve also used whole wheat, rye, or buckwheat. To make them vegan, I sub sunflower or olive oil for the melted butter and use oat or soy for the milk. Leftovers freeze beautifully, popping out of the toaster crispy and tender.
 I fry my pancakes on a versatile electric pizza maker I found for a buck years ago at a Bay City yard sale. I’ve also used it for French toast, tortillas, quesadillas, grilled cheese, even eggs. I used to van camp with my dog for a month or two in Florida, and it and an electric kettle sufficed.

In a 1-quart measuring cup or bowl, mix 1 1/4 c. dairy or nondairy milk with 2 Tbs. lemon juice or vinegar. Let stand for at least 5 minutes, then whisk in 1 large egg, 1 tsp vanilla extract, and 1/4 c. melted butter (or sunflower or olive oil).


In a medium bowl, whisk together 1 cup whole grain flour (buckwheat, whole wheat, rye, or oat) with 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, 1 TB sugar, 3/4 tsp baking soda, and 1/2 tsp salt.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the milk and egg mixture.

Heat the griddle to medium heat until a drop of water dances over the surface. Drop in the batter a quarter cup at a time. Drop a few blueberries (if using) onto each pancake. When bubbles form, turn and cook the pancakes for a few more minutes.


Serve the pancakes with (nondairy) butter and maple syrup. Freeze leftovers on a cookie sheet and store in a plastic bag. Reheated in the toaster, frozen pancakes are even better than fresh!