Malted Milk Pancakes For Bikepacking

Yes yes, one of the reasons to bikepack is to travel light, fast, and far. But making pancakes in the wild as the sun rises is another reason to get on the bike for an overnight. With a couple of smart pieces of equipment and a rock-solid recipe for pancake mix you can shake up in a water bottle, this culinary adventure can be yours.

The recipe below makes enough for 8 small pancakes (serves 1+)  but can easily be doubled or even tripled if you’re going to be cooking for a crowd. Ghee is used in lieu of butter or oil here, to prevent unwanted greasy spills in your pack.

Malted Milk Pancakes

makes 8 pancakes

Ingredients

To make the pancake mix

•  1 Tbsp flax seed meal)
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons milk powder or coconut milk powder
• ¾ cups (180g) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 Tbsp malted milk powder OR 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

 

To make your pancakes at the campsite

• 1 cup of water, plus more depending on your preferred thickness of ‘cakes
• 2 tablespoons ghee, plus more to serve
• 2-4 packets of maple syrup (such as Untapped Maple) or about 1 cup
• fresh or frozen berries, optional (if you have space in your pack!)
• your favorite granola, optional (if you have space in your pack!)

Directions

Before you leave home:

Combine all of the dry ingredients for your pancake mix in a Ziploc bag or reusable silicone bag before leaving for your campsite.

If you have space to bring berries and granola, seal them in airtight containers – they’ll be fine overnight. Make sure that you also pack water or have a water source on lock, bring a bit of ghee and maple syrup as well as the equipment you’ll need to make your pancakes. 

 

At the campsite

1.  Place your pancake batter in the water bottle and add 1 Tbsp ghee, 1 Tbsp maple syrup, and 1 cup hot water (warmed on the stove.) Shake the bottle vigorously to combine, adding water if necessary to make a nice, spoonable batter. 
2. Assemble the stove. Make sure the skillet is level. Place the skillet on top of the stove, and add 1 Tbsp ghee – then turn on the stove. (Never heat an empty skillet on a propane stove!) Warm the ghee over medium heat in the skillet, then add roughly 1/4-1/2 cup pancake batter (about 4 spoonfuls.) Cook over medium heat until tiny bubbles appear in the middle of the cakes, then flip. Cook until golden on both sides, then repeat with the remaining batter.
3. Serve your pancakes immediately with berries and granola, or simply maple syrup. 

Then ride back home!

Lentine Alexis is a former professional endurance athlete & classically trained chef. The former Culinary Director at Skratch Labs, she uses a real-food philosophy to create recipes for athletes and everyone looking to eat well and adventure better. Find more recipes and info on her upcoming cookbook for athletes at lentinealexis.com, or follow her @lentinealexis.