Single Serving Blueberry Oat Flour Baked Pancake

I started making these because living alone, I found it hard to halve or quarter traditional pancake recipes and also hated having to stand around and watch them closely. This pancake recipe is great for when you want to treat yourself to pancakes, but don't want to waste time standing at the pan cooking them. It's a take on a Dutch Baby, but since we're adding fruit it doesn't puff as much as a Dutch Baby would, but it is still fluffy and delicious! This one pancake is a single serving with a whole egg, fruit, milk, carbs from oat flour, and is quick to whip up and cook. You mix everything in a measuring cup, pour, bake, and 12 minutes later you have one large delicious pancake! 

Since we are baking this, once you have it in the oven, you have time to get your coffee or tea made, open a yogurt, or microwave some bacon to go with it. Or even, dare even I say, wash up the whisk and measuring cups... No, save the dishes for later :)

If you use gluten-free oat flour, this is also a great gluten free pancake!

Ingredients:

• 1/4 Cup Milk
• 1 Egg
• 1/8 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1/4 Cup Oat Flour
• Pinch of Salt
• Dash of Cinnamon (Optional)
• 1/4 Cup Blueberries (about 15-20 Blueberries depending on size)
• 1 tsp Butter or Oil
• 1 tsp Sugar or Honey (Optional)

Tools:

• Toaster Oven
• Oven Mitt
• 6 inch Cast Iron Pan, or Oven Safe Pan
• Liquid Measuring Cup
• Small Whisk
• 1/4 Cup Dry Measuring Cup
• Measuring Spoons
• Spoon

Preheat your toaster oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit with oven-safe cast iron pan inside. You may use any small oven safe pan, but I like the cast iron as it has a thick base so the bottom won't burn before the inside is done. If using a thinner pan, you may want to preheat at 400, and for a very thin pan like a pie pan, you may not want to not preheat the pan at all.

In your liquid measuring cup, measure 1/4 cup of milk, then add the egg and vanilla extract. Most measuring spoons don't have a 1/8th teaspoon on it so for the vanilla, just eyeball half of the 1/4 teaspoon. Whisk well.

Once your egg is whisked, add your oat flour, salt, and a dash of cinnamon if you like and whisk till smooth. If you want it a little sweeter you may add a teaspoon of sugar or honey, but I like mine without because the berries are usually sweet enough for me. Once your dry ingredients are well whisked, remove the whisk and mix in your blueberries with a spoon.

Once everything is mixed, your toaster oven is probably preheated and your pan is hot and ready. If your oven isn't preheated yet, wait until it is. Take out your pan with an oven mitt and add your dab of butter or oil, swirl to spread over the bottom of the pan.

Pour in your batter. You may need to poke the berries around a bit the spoon to evenly distribute them.

Place your pan immediately back in the oven and reduce your toaster oven temperature to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and set timer for 12 minutes. If you have a hotter toaster oven I would recommend checking after 10 and it may take up to 15 if you have a slightly cooler oven. You are looking for a golden brown top.

Once your pancake is golden brown, take it out and enjoy! Your pancake should slide right out onto your plate and remember, your pan is hot!

Optional Substitutions: You can use any soft fruit or berry you like, I really enjoy this with sliced bananas as well. I pour just enough batter to cover the bottom, then lay about a 3rd of a banana, sliced to about 1/4 inch thickness or smaller, then cover with the rest of the batter. I have also substituted out 1 tablespoon of the flour, and added in 1-2 tablespoons of nut flour. Two tablespoons of Walnut flour goes great with the bananas. Although I haven't tried it myself, I'm sure you could also use oat, soy, or other dairy milk alternatives. Make it your own!