Kids Recipe: Whole Wheat Apple Pancakes for Breakfast or the Plane

This probably sounds strange, but when my daughter was a toddler I packed tons of moist, organic, high protein, whole wheat apple pancakes as healthy snacks or meal replacements during long haul flights. I’ve been meaning to post this tip for flying with kids for a while. Since I was asked to cover a kid-friendly recipe as part of my #FinishMoms program, the time is now.

I could not locate my original recipe, but after some experimentation and this one below is pretty darn close. Ingredients include whole wheat flour, oatmeal, and yogurt.

Why Whole Wheat Pancakes as a Travel Snack?

As hunger can be a reason why kids fuss during travel (or any other time), feeding them protein throughout the journey is key to keeping them full and happy (or happier).

Every kid is different but, for some reason, this handheld snack (no syrup) worked for us and it’s obviously terrific as breakfast for the entire family (with syrup). However, I advise adding only apples, bananas or other fruits that won’t make a mess if taking it on the go. Bananas keep the pancakes especially moist but tossing in a few chocolate chips is tasty.

I added ground flax, too, since my daughter could handle it.

Healthy Whole Wheat Apple Pancakes

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Ingredients

• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup quick oats
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup of milk or almond milk
• 1/2 cup flavored yogurt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• fruit to add in or chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Whisk together dry ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Whisk egg, milk, yogurt and vanilla in a smaller bowl.
3. Add in fruit, if you like. We often add it while the pancake is on the griddle because everyone in the family likes something different.
4. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Fold in but do not over-mix!
5. Cook on a greased griddle over medium heat. Flip when the edges start to look dry and bubbles form.
6. We use the pancake molds from Williams-Sonoma. Spray with baking spray on top of the griddle. Let these get hot before pouring batter into them. Jiggle the pancake loose when the edges dry and flip.

My husband’s main criticism of my cooking is that I use to many dishes in the process. I say who cares because they’re just going in the dishwasher to be cleaned… and this includes all of my daughters dishes, too, from the time she was a baby. I do buy BPA-free, dishwasher-safe kid dishes but if you’re washing it with a harsh detergent, this sort of defeats the purpose. Finish Power & Free was designed to be less harsh and to be used with baby products like Nuk, a partner of Finish. We loved their straw sippy cups.

Tip: If using a Nuk flip-up straw cup (or any other brand) in the airplane, squeeze the straw open during take off and landing to eliminate pressure inside the cup so it doesn’t explode all over you. We learned this trick the hard way.

Make sure to download a Finish coupon before heading to the store. I’ve been pretty happy with it so far and will say that popping in a capsule is much easier than using liquid or powder detergent.

*This post is sponsored by Finish Power & Free.