Pumpkin Spice Pancakes

  We are entering my favorite season: baking season. Between two grocery trips I have managed to stock up on canned pumpkin, cranberries, cream (for making scones), chocolate, and buttermilk. I would love nothing more than to spend an entire weekend in the kitchen, stocking my freezer and padding my thighs for the cold weather to come. Alas, I am fresh out of entire weekends. So I'll settle for one of our favorite Saturday morning breakfasts: pancakes. Pumpkin pancakes.


Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon each nutmeg, ginger, and ground cloves
• 1 beaten egg
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 2 tablespoons cooking oil
• non-stick cooking spray

Directions

1. Preheat griddle to medium heat or to the pumpkin setting or to 350 degrees (depending on your griddle!)
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and spices.
3. In a small mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, canned pumpkin, and oil.
4. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry and stir with a spatula just until blended.
5. Spray the griddle with the non-stick cooking spray. 
6. Pour batter into 4" pancakes, spreading them lightly with the back of a spoon or ladle as necessary to avoid super thick spots.
7. Cook on the first side until the top is slightly dry and the bottom is a light golden brown and then flip. Remove from the griddle when the second side is a golden brown. The extra moisture in the pancakes makes these take slightly longer than normal to cook. Don't get antsy and turn up the heat or you will have scorched dough!