Sid Post

Traditional pancakes have their place but, as I get older, nutrition quality matters. Plus, the taste becomes an issue as well. Sandwich bread for me is a classic example. Kids typically have a strong affinity for simple plain white bread which lacks what most consider to be good nutritional content. Lots of simple carbs and sugar and missing a lot of what classic bread used to contain. As I got older, my preferences in bread evolved more into heartier breads that were typically browned for more flavor along with more whole grains which is closer to what our predecessors ate before "Wonder Bread". These days, a lot of people are pre-diabetic as well so, a simple pancake with a sugary syrup really has some bad side effects for them. I know as I have gotten older, I do much better with complex carbs and proteins that digest slower and more evenly without spiking my insulin levels. If I go to a hotel 'free' breakfast or diner on the roadside somewhere, I don't have an issue eating a classic pancake stack but, I better add some eggs, bacon, or sausage or my sugar level is going to crash in an hour or two. To only be a teenager again where I could eat anything without a care in the world ... like powdered donuts and various Hostess cakes without a care in the world! These days, if the hotel continental 'free' breakfast has Otis Spunkmeyer muffins, I am apt to put a hurting on them even though they aren't that good for me at my age! In terms of pancakes, I'm looking at them like I do breads where I want something more complex and hearty with a good flavor and without having half the stuff in a commercial chemistry lab in it. I'm not saying I'm against modern food additives, just that I want Banana flavoring to come from Bananas, Blueberry 'nuggets' to come from Blueberries, etc.! I am definitely not in the Chocolate Chip and Funfetti community of pancake consumers! Honey buns and Ding Dongs I parted ways a long time ago as well. This is a big part of what brought me 'full circle' back to the humble pancake and French Toast. Waffles and Crepes are occasionally an option as well in a more full featured breakfast but, I need to be mindful of sugar and simple carb Insulin spikes without enough complex carbs and protein. Hearty bread in an egg wash at home is a nice option but, outside the scope of this pancake thread or any camping/hiking breakfast options.

A bit harsh IMHO. Sure, I could use White bread exclusively for my sandwiches but, a good multigrain is a whole lot healthier and IMHO tastes a lot better. Then there are the issues like getting mustard all over my fingers because the white bread lacked integrity and fell apart where the multigrain held on to the mustard, tomato, lettuce, and deli meat. If you can't tell, I'm not into a super sweet non-nutritional white bread and like a good quality bread. Pancakes may not be sandwich bread but, there are real differences in taste, nutrition, and quality.

When I posted originally, Amazon only had Bob's Red Mill pancake mixes at >$20 per box which was simply unrealistic for someone looking for a reasonable pancake mix. When I can get Kodiak locally for $5/box, there was no way I would pay $27/box for the Buckwheat pancake mix. Today, I found some vendors with 4 boxes per order that were in the mid-$20's so, ~$6~$8 per box which was more 'palatable' for me. I have some Bob's Red Mill Buckwheat and 7/10 grain pancake mix ordered to try out. In the meantime, I found a box of Krusteaz Buttermilk which I brought home from my trip to Lowes in the 'big city' ~35 miles away. I hit several larger stores while I was in town and, the main grocery store chain had no Bob's Red Mill or Krusteaz pancake mix. Walmart was my best source but, they had none of the store brand, one variety of Pearl (aka Aunt Jemima), some Bisquick, and the Krusteaz I bought (only 2 boxes left).

Krusteaz comes up a lot in "best" pancake mix reviews. While I really like the brand generally, I wonder how much is driving by paid reviews, ad spending, and similar revenue based systems.

I'm actually looking for the Bob's Red Mill Buckwheat pancake mix but, ~$35 for ~12oz is unreasonable! I will probably get some of the 'regular' next time I'm in town and it is in stock. Supply chain and stock problems here in East Texas make things like that problematic.

The powdered buttermilk at a Walmart suggests this is an option. My experience with powdered eggs is marginal at best.

Thanks, those look good. Yes, I am open to both. The house makes it reasonable for eggs and milk and a "make at home" option. I have considered that a few time but, getting good quality flour locally has been problematic so, I generally opted for things like Krusteaz or Kodiak occasionally. Camping/backing/hiking, I really need a complete 'all-in-one' option for simplicity and practicality though, I could add some of that powdered buttermilk powder or similar things to a batter.

I have been Googling pancake mixes on the "error'net" but, so many are obviously driven by advertising kickbacks and promoted reviews, I really haven't gained much from what I have read. It started when I stumbled onto a Pearl Milling 'premium' pancake mix that isn't in production any longer, at least for the time being, due to various supply chain constraints (suspected). For convenience, I am thinking complete "just add water" pancake mixes for convenience but, I'm not opposed to adding an egg or milk for something special at home. Cost needs to be reasonable but, not "Walmart friendly" either. I like Buttermilk pancakes and I would like to try some Buckwheat pancakes. All-in-one mixes are important for camping and hiking What are my better options?

If weight and bulk aren't a problem, that sounds like a good solution for pretty cheap.

I have a bad cheap cooktop that doesn't heat evenly which is a secondary thought because I do have cast iron and heavy stainless pans to use. My real quest is to find a "flame tamer" or whatever you want to call it for use on a camping stove that is a bit of a blow torch. I'm not looking to cook gourmet meals but, I also don't want a have scorch marks and raw ingredients either. I think I want an aluminum disc a ~1/4" thick but, I am receptive to other materials as well. The smallest I need is a 5" diameter and the biggest is 7". TIA, Sid

Regional availability is a good start I guess.

I found some South of Waco, TX which was >$2.50 a pound. Better than nothing I guess. I still don't understand why Coarse or Kosher salt is so expensive and in short supply. I would like to find some Diamond Crystals myself but, Morton Kosher would be good too. Still a little surprised about such low availability online. For example, Walmart and Target around me has nothing except really expensive pink Himalayan salt crystals. Some Diamond Crystals or Morton's Kosher for $1/lb sounds good right now!

I'm in East Texas and can find normal iodized table salt everywhere pretty cheap but, Kosher salt is AWOL. Why is Kosher or Coarse salt so hard to find? The online sources I found all want pretty high shipping rates on salt >$0.25/oz. What is going on these days with coarse Kosher Salt? TIA, Sid

They stopped US Mail service here in Texas where I live. I drove into town and bought some groceries without any issues. 😢 My new headphones and headphone amp are sitting in Dallas for two days now so, no high quality music from my cellphone until after this weather moves through. After the cluster@#$%! from last years ERCOT failure, people locally are acting like the next ICE AGE is here and all the "dinosaurs" are going to die.

At least you got a refund. Mine wasn't refunded even though it was insured but, that is a story for a different day on a different forum. I did score the pot I wanted on Amazon that was out of stock at Fissler.

A lot of products with the SAME ingredients taste really different. Bread and Beer are two obvious ones to me. Beer brewed with the German Purity law have the same base ingredients but, in my experience over there vary in taste and mouth feel significantly. German bakeries use common ingredients but, the variety of bread is enormous.

Regarding Walmart generally and Walmart.com specifically, there is no pasta available from "Great Value", "Sam's Choice" or, Barilla Collezione though I saw some Tortellini once on the shelf. The "LOCUSTS" seem to really scarf up all the pasta round here in East Texas.

Regarding the size, with a lot of the Italian imports I see different sizes available with Bucatini. Regarding Barilla, I find it to be better than Skinner and American Beauty but, that is like saying I prefer it to the pasty glue we had in grade school! With a ~20 cent premium over the common mass market pasta brands I guess my expectations are a bit high. To be honest, in back to back personal tests of Barilla and Great Value (Walmart store brand) I find so little difference I'd call them the same personally. Taste and texture to me of these two is basically the same and Great Value is about 40 cents cheaper on a 1lb box.

I'm looking forward to a trip to a town at 45 minutes away to go to a Kroger store and buy some of the pasta so highly recommended here.

There aren't any Safeway stores in my state. Sounds like it might worthwhile to see if I can find some when I go to see my sister in another state.

Any comments on Colavita versus De Cecco versus Kroger Private Selection? Those are the main "premium" brands in the <$4 range that I have reasonable access too (reasonable quantity, reasonable shipping, or reasonably close). I looking for quality at a reasonable price. Assuming they were all three the same price, which would you get and why? Is one better for long noodles and another better for shapes? I'm probably going to get a few shapes in addition to a few long noodle shapes to "test drive" and I want to focus on the better options initially.

👍 Yep, trying to avoid mushy overcooked spaghetti from the common grocery store options. Overly watery mush (random store brand pasta with Prego/Ragu might as well be in a blender jar with a straw) is terrible IMHO.

Fusilli Bucati look interesting. I have tried the braid and various twists which work pretty well in salads and soups but, with sauces I find them a bit irksome on the plate. Farfalle, shells, and elbows also work pretty well for something like Mac'n'Cheese. Cavatapi (sp?) is one I tried once in some soup which was a fun shape but, a bit messy with the soup. I'm looking for a noodle to work better on a plate with a thin sauce. For more meat based sauces, I like a heavier noodle. The "hollow spaghetti" shape looks like a good choice for this application, though short hollow spirals might be a good option too.

Thanks! The Kroger Private Selection looks really good and is definitely on the lower end of the price range. Bronze cut and Italian makes it a really good option for me right now. Their Gnocchi looks really good too!

What is the difference between these two? Apparently, Bucatini is in short supply because some wackos think they make great straws! 😯 Then "Big Pasta" got US Customs to block the importation of one brand because they didn't add enough "iron" to their pasta to be legal for importation from Italy! 😲 Looking for some good pasta, I came across Colavita in these two styles as I don't want flat pasta or one of the other shapes. It looks like these names are used interchangeably but, they are different pasta shapes. How are these different from each other? Is the hole size different? Is one thicker than the other? In the $2~$3 per pound range, where do I get good "dry" pasta? What brands and shops are the better ones to shop at? Amazon can hook me up with 20 pounds of Colavita for a reasonable price in today's inflated market but, other brands and sources might be a better option. I am looking for quality pasta, not cheap mass-market pasta from the local grocery store that carries bland mushy Skinner and American Beauty. TIA, Sid