Vegan with a Vengeance

batter. That’s because the gluten in the flour has had some time to relax. Let your pancake batter sit for 10 minutes or so before proceeding. You can even let it sit overnight, covered and refrigerated. If the batter thickens too much, just add a little water to reconstitute it.
    âœ— Use a heavy-bottomed nonstick skillet for even cooking. Or, you can use a castiron pan because it’s naturally nonstick.
    âœ— Make sure the pan is hot enough, but not smoking. Preheat the pan for 2 minutes and that should do the trick. If you flick a couple of drops of water into the pan, the drops should bounce. You can also do a test with a tablespoon or two of batter.
    âœ— Don’t go crazy with the grease. A very thin coating of oil will do it. Use a spray bottle of canola oil for an even coating. Apply a fresh coat every time you start a new batch.

    âœ— To form your pancakes into perfect circles, use the same amount of batter in a ladle every time. Pour the batter out with a slightly circular motion so that it spreads evenly. Don’t just plop it down or the middle will be thicker than the edges. You can also try using a meat baster; just fill it up and squeeze the pancake batter out. You’ll be amazed at the perfect circles this creates.
    âœ— The most important thing is that you don’t give up. Some say the first pancake is always a flop, so just keep trying. You will get the hang of it!

Pancakes
    MAKES ABOUT SIX 6- T0 7-INCH PANCAKES OR TEN 4-INCH ONES.
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    Straight up pancakes, just like at the diner at 2:00 AM.
    1¼ cup all-purpose flour
    2 teaspoon baking powder
    Â½ teaspoon salt
    1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
    2 tablespoons canola oil (any mild tasting vegetable oil will do) plus oil for the pan
    â…“ cup water
    1 to 1¼ cups plain rice or soy milk
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
    Oil a large skillet and preheat over medium-high heat about 2 minutes (see Perfect Pancakes sidebar).
    Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt, and cinnamon, if using. In a separate bowl, combine all the other ingredients. Adding wet ingredients to dry, mix until just combined. Do not overmix or the pancakes will be tough; a couple of lumps are okay.
    Cook pancakes until browned on the bottom and bubbles form on top, about 4 minutes. Turn the pancakes over and cook until the bottoms are browned and the pancakes are barely firm to touch. Transfer to individual plates. Repeat with remaining batter, adding more oil to the pan as needed.
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    VARIATIONS
    Raspberry Lime: Fold in 1 cup of fresh raspberries and 1 tablespoon of finely grated lime zest.
    Blueberry: Fold in 1 cup of fresh blueberries.

Coconut Pancakes with Pineapple Sauce
    MAKES ABOUT SIX 6- TO 7-INCH PANCAKES OR TEN 4-INCH ONES.
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    Coconut and nutmeg are a great combination. To transform your kitchen into a tropical paradise, serve these pancakes with pineapple sauce (recipe follows) which is ridiculously easy to make.
    1¼ cups all-purpose flour
    2 teaspoons baking powder
    Â½ teaspoon salt
    1 teaspoon ground or freshly grated nutmeg (if using fresh, it’s one-third of a whole nutmeg)
    â…“ cup water
    1 to 1¼ cups plain rice or soy milk
    2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract, or use coconut extract if you have it on hand
    2 tablespoons canola oil (any mild tasting vegetable oil will do), plus oil for the pan
    1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
    Oil a large skillet and preheat over medium-high heat about 2 minutes (see Perfect Pancakes sidebar).
    Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients; add the water, rice milk, maple syrup, vanilla, and oil. Mix until just combined, fold in coconut.
    If making large pancakes, use a ladle to pour the batter into the pan; most standard ladles will yield a 6-inch pancake. For smaller pancakes, drop batter by ¼ cupfuls into the pan. Cook until bubbles form on top, about 3 minutes. Turn pancakes over and cook until the bottoms are browned and the pancakes are cooked through, about 2 more minutes. Serve immediately or keep warm on a plate covered with foil while you cook the others. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve with pineapple sauce.

Pineapple Sauce
    MAKES 2 CUPS
    1 (20-ounce) can pineapple chunks in juice
    2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
    3 tablespoons sugar
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    In a saucepan, off the heat, stir the pineapple and juice with the