Mixed Review: Stonewall Kitchen Blueberry Pancake and Waffle Mix
When it comes to pancakes, I've always scoffed at boxed mixes such as Aunt Jemima and Bisquick. With a basic formula of flour, sugar, baking powder, milk, and eggs, why not just make them from scratch on your own? And don't even get me started on artificially-flavored maple syrup—I'm from New England, where that stuff is practically illegal.
But recently, in my quest to find mixes with a bit of magic—ones that taste like the real thing, cut down on kitchen time, and are inexpensive—I came across Stonewall Kitchen Blueberry Pancake and Waffle Mix ($10). The Stonewall Kitchen company is based Maine, a.k.a. land of blueberries. If ever there was a pancake mix out there with all the flavor of homemade, I figured this would be it.
The label on the side of the canister listed enriched flour, blueberries, and yellow corn flour as the first three ingredients. I found this encouraging, as it seemed healthful and all-natural. To make the pancakes, all I needed to add was an egg, 3/4 cup of milk, and a tablespoon of melted butter.
Getting to Work
Mug of coffee in hand, I set to work on Sunday morning. The first thing I noticed when I dumped the mix into a bowl was how small the blueberries were. They looked like dried up, little blue peppercorns. Hmm. Maybe they would plump up when I poured in the milk? No such luck. Even after letting the mix marinate for a few minutes, the blueberries remained like tiny pebbles, floating in a sea of starchy goo.
No matter. Surely they would be delicious when cooked up inside a fluffy, buttery pancake. I scooped two ladles onto a hot griddle, where they immediately began to spread out, bleeding toward the edges of the pan in awkward, irregular shapes. Where were the perfectly round, pillowy pancakes I had been expecting?
Batch after batch, the same thing happened. My pancakes were flat as tortillas, and refused to hold a circular shape. When I ran out of batter, I sat down with a stack drowned in (pure) maple syrup. They tasted alright, but they were more like crepes than pancakes. I thought they would have been better folded around some jam. As for the blueberries? Their flavor was almost nonexistent. While the dried fruit did offer a little sweetness, I found myself longing for the big, juicy burst only fresh berries—dropped into each homemade pancake individually as it cooks—can provide.
About the author: Lucy Baker is a graduate student in the writing program at Sarah Lawrence College. Before returning to school to pursue an MFA, she was an assistant cookbook editor at HarperCollins. She lives in Brooklyn and is currently obsessed with all things fennel.
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25 Comments:
This is why I hardly ever give mixes a try in my kitchen, you never know what you're going to get, even if it comes in a pretty package.
Carosone at 4:13PM on 07/06/08
Better to put your $ into some interesting flours, like buckwheat, for instance, and add a bit to your own homemade mix, than to expect to be transported by any pre-made mix..
If that's not already in the Book of Proverbs, it should be.
moibec at 4:33PM on 07/06/08
I'm not crazy about the Stonewall Kitchen mixes for pancakes, but I use the plain mix (farmhouse) and the chocolate mix - half-portion of each - together for some excellent crispy waffles. You can smell the malt in the mix while they're cooking.
Thomas6 at 5:07PM on 07/06/08
This is why you should always go out to eat this sort of thing. Making it at home is a fool's game.
I just tried to heat a pizza at home and what thanks did I get?
A house full of smoke.
redfish at 5:48PM on 07/06/08
Oh, redfish, that's not the attitude that's good for you! Going out to eat is fine for some things, but what do you do when it's blizzarding and freezing and you're snowed in and a stack of steaming, fluffy pancakes are just the thing to go with that hot cuppa coffee? Hmm?
I encourage you to develop some survival techniques for when the cooking muse strikes you. Pancakes are so worth the effort.
Then you can go out and shovel and not drop dead.
moibec at 7:32PM on 07/06/08
grannybunt are my favorite mixes. They are an institutional supplier, but you can order direct.
In addition to being good:
Grannybunt products are proudly made at ARC-Diversified in Cookeville, Tennessee.
ARC-Diversified, a wholly owned, non-profit subsidiary of The Advocacy & Resources Corporation, is the first non-profit agency in the country to operate a USDA approved (PL No. 47-011-02) facility for the production of manufactured goods sold to the feeding programs of the US Government and prviate industry. ARC-Diversified utilizes the manufacture of food items to create opportunities for the development of work skills which transfer to local industry, and provides the following vocational services:
work adjustment
evaluation
supported employment
on the job training
job coaching
transition from school to work
srhcb at 8:26PM on 07/06/08
Just thought you'd like to know: your pancakes turning out as flat as tortillas was probably not the fault of the mix, but probably because you let the mix "marinade" for too long. Baking powder's chemical reaction begins to produce CO2 as soon as the "wet" ingredients are added (much like baking soda and vinegar), and its leavening effects will wear off if you let it sit too long before cooking it.
This would happen with a from-scratch recipe as well.
dwagner at 9:05PM on 07/06/08
I received a can of this mix in a gift basket a few years ago. No comparison whatsoever to homemade blueberry pancakes, even if you use frozen berries, which we often do. Completely underwhelmed.
Melinda at 9:07PM on 07/06/08
Sturdiwheat is actually very good. The fluffiest pancakes I've ever made. You can get a free sample by calling 800-201-9650.
thesu at 9:27PM on 07/06/08
10$ for pancake mix? What a rip off! Especially since pancake are pretty much the cheapest (and easiest...) thing to make. Tasty with 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 unbleached flour, with real maple syrup of course.
PeanutButter at 9:28PM on 07/06/08
My from scratch pancake mix: I mix the dry ingredients in a large jar and store up it to several weeks. When I want pancakes or waffles I have my "mix," and just add the wet ingredients.
johnettinger.com
myspicekitchen.com
myspicekitchen at 9:48PM on 07/06/08
Martha White or White Lily. Never go wrong that way
JerzeeTomato at 10:39PM on 07/06/08
@ redfish - I find that perspective so interesting - it's precisely the opposite viewpoint I hold! I think it's so silly to pay for pancakes when they're so easy to make at home, not to say that I don't do it every once in a while. I suppose I see the benefit though, since there's invariably a gigantic mess to deal with every time I tackle pancakes at home - not to mention the first batch that always seems to fall victim to my incapacity to properly regulate the temperature of the pan...
Shelby at 10:41PM on 07/06/08
I really like the Carbon's Golden Malted mix. (http://www.goldenmalted.com/) I have good luck with it as pancake and waffle starter.
iahawk89 at 12:10AM on 07/07/08
Pancakes - bleck! There is no such thing as a good pancake in my book. My poor now ex-Swedish boyfriend never could wrap his mind around the fact that I will lump American pancakes, crepes, and his beloved svedich pancakes into the same category. All are gross. :X
feriorrenna at 12:30AM on 07/07/08
That first-batch syndrome happens almost every time, even when I use my big electric griddle, which otherwise is perfect for pancakes, even for just the two of us. (This way the cook gets to eat, too!) It's just the nature of things, I think.
lemons at 12:33AM on 07/07/08
If it was that runny, sounds like you screwed up the recipe, either by accident or on purpose.
("I don't think tall pancakes, so I added extra milk", or, "I don't like eggs, so I left them out", or, "it doesn't need that much oil/butter, so I put in half as much", or, "I don't have a griddle, so I used a non-stick pan, and I didn't want to get it too hot since I have a parrot").
peekpoke at 3:29AM on 07/07/08
Lucy Baker, what is your favorite from-scratch pancake recipe?
HeartofGlass at 5:32AM on 07/07/08
I like food. I like to cook. I'm a damn good cook. I like Aunt Jemima pancake mix. Am I a bad person?
ohmygod at 9:32AM on 07/07/08
Stonewall's Blueberry Pancake mix may be sub-par, but their blueberry sauce is a joy to drizzle over your favorite batch of homemade waffles or pancakes!
veggieout at 10:39AM on 07/07/08
@ohmygod: I think not. I really prefer Bisquick. And seriously, I live in the maple syrup belt, but will only dress my pancakes with the fakest of fake: reduced calorie, fake butter flavored amber-colored goo. I only eat pancakes and french toast in the privacy of my own home...I would probably be judged and banished if I asked for that stuff at the local breakfast joint.
Kerosena at 11:05AM on 07/07/08
Oh my. Could you imagine if you made waffles how awful they would have been? Thank goodness you stuck to pancakes.
@ohmygod: I hear ya! Same with me-and I like Aunt Jemima too. They make great pancakes.
Did anyone happen to watch the episode of Good Eats where Alton Brown discussed mixes for pancakes and waffles? He said they are not one in the same (my mom used to say the same thing)...That said, I have a problem with anything that says it's a pancake/waffle mix. They are not the same. When I use a mix, it's for pancakes only. And I never have problems with Aunt Jemima :)
Butrflygirly at 11:11AM on 07/07/08
I tend to use Bisquick mix and add a few extras - usually a bit of baking soda to add a little air. This trick helps a lot with multigrain pancake mixes or if you use soy milk which can otherwise make the pancakes heavy and dense. And a wire whisk is a must for making fluffy pancakes. Whatever mix I'm using, I like to use 2 small frying pans simultaneously to cook the perfect size pancakes - then put them in a casserole dish wrapped in a towel to keep them hot and not soggy. I also prefer homemade pancakes with real maple syrup and fresh fruit.
SMDNY at 1:58PM on 07/07/08
I make my own pancake mix and store it in the fridge for many pancakes in the future. I use wonderful ingredients in the dry mix: such as two or three different kinds of flours, buttermilk powder, wheat germ, etc. And when I make the pancakes themselves, I add more wonderful ingredients: egg, various liquids (depending on what's on hand), melted butter, sometimes a grated apple, and of course fresh bluberries when available. My daughter-in-law really appreciates it when I give her a big can or jar of this mix. When you have this great mix on hand, why would you ever use any of those commercial mixes with their additives and chemicals?
SavtaShayna at 5:33PM on 07/07/08
My parents were on a road trip to Indianapolis a while back, and I had found a place called Clifton Mill, in Ohio, that seemed to be up their alley. They brought back some pancake mix, and my girlfriend and I enjoyed it quite a bit. So, if you're wherever this place is in Ohio, I can't help but recommend it:
http://www.cliftonmill.com/
LiveFreeOrDine at 8:41PM on 07/07/08