If you’ve been on the healthy eating and weight loss path for a little while, there’s a good chance you’ve come across ‘buckwheat’ as a listed ingredient in a variety of different recipes. You also might have noticed buckwheat pasta on the shelves of the health food aisle at your local supermarket. But just what is buckwheat and why is it suddenly so popular? 
Buckwheat falls into the ‘ancient grains’ category of foods which means that it’s been around for a very long time though only been rediscovered recently. One of the reasons that these types of food are gaining in popularity is due to the way they are generally well tolerated by our bodies as we have been eating them for such a long time. The other big selling point is that they often come in their rawest form and need little processing, meaning we are able to benefit from all the nutrients of the whole grain.
Though many people consider buckwheat a grain with the same properties as wheat, it’s actually a seed. This means that it’s a great choice for people with sensitivities to wheat or gluten. Low GI and packed full of health benefits, buckwheat is a great addition to your diet, especially when trying to lose weight.
This is largely due to it’s extremely high protein content (higher than rice, wheat and corn) along with it’s heavy concentration of essential amino acids and antioxidants. Recent research has also found that buckwheat is actually able to reduce and stabilise blood sugar levels during and after eating a meal.
This means the sudden spike and fall that comes after eating a meal (especially one with a high sugar content) can be negated by including buckwheat in the mix. This is not to say that by eating buckwheat, we can also eat lots of sugary foods! But swapping out some of our diet staples for the buckwheat varieties can be a great move for weight loss and general health and wellbeing.
These buckwheat pancakes are simple to make pack a much healthier punch than some of their cousins. You’ll find yourself feeling very full after one or two of these dense discs, as opposed to the sugar rush you might get after eating the white flour/heavily processed version. You can top your pancakes with whatever you like though fresh fruit and honey is always a favourite around here!
Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup buckwheat flour
• 3 tsp gluten free baking powder
• 1/2 apple grated
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 cup milk (dairy/rice/almond)
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup almond meal
• Butter, coconut oil or olive oil for frying

Directions

• Combine all dry ingredients (including apple) in a large mixing bowl
• In a separate bowl, combine eggs and milk
• Gently fold egg mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well to combine
• Refrigerate for 10-15 minutes while the mixture sets and activates
• Once time is up, heat a frypan over medium heat
• Add butter or chosen oil and swirl around the pan to coat well
• Dollop batter into the frypan carefully, depending on how big you want your pancakes to be
• Allow to cook on one side until bubbles form then flip to cook other side. Both sides should be golden brown
• Continue with remaining mixture
• Serve with your choice of topping.