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Some months ago, I made my original Quinoa pancakes - that were fabulous.  Here is the thing, I have not been able to make them as good since!  I don't know why.  That first batch was perfection, absolute perfection!

So I decided to make some changes to that recipe.  I reduced the amount of liquid, removed the Xanthan gum, used a non stick pan to fry them - and made sure to cook them longer than usual.  It finally worked.

The other part to this story, is our son Jarrod who lives in Montreal, had sent me some milk Kefir grains.  There are lots of good websites out there explaining the many health benefits of kefir, as well, great instructions on how to make kefir milk.  This is what I did.

Once I received the dry kefir grains, (about 1 tblsp.) I added them to a strainer to strain out the dry powdered milk they were enclosed in.  Then I transferred the kefir to a sterilized jar, and added about 1/2 a cup of fresh Organic Whole Milk.  Put on the screw top lid slightly tightening.  Then I let sit on the counter for 24 hours - swirling the milk 3-4 times throughout the day.

The following day, I strained off the milk, (and threw away) added the kefir grains to a clean jar, and topped up with fresh milk and repeated this process. 

Each day I did the same thing, for about 1 week. Then one day I tasted it.  At this point - clearly it was too early, I almost choked...it was dang nastiness!  So I spoke to Jarrod, and he recommended letting it sit for 48 hours, then changing the milk.  So I did that - for 2 more weeks.  In that time the kefir visibly changed in structure, and size.

Now I am at the three week mark  - I tasted one tablespoon.  It tasted like the sourness of yogurt, with a slightly yeasty flavor.  Quite like the taste of buttermilk.  It was not unpleasant at all, and the milk now has a thicker consistency to it.

Being lactose intolerant, it is recommended to start out slowly in consuming kefir milk.  However, by now, the kefir grains have eaten up all of the lactose sugar. So far my body has been fine with 1 Tblsp. of kefir a day.  (Does anyone have any kefir milk suggestions they would like to share? Or any recipes?)

UPDATE:  It is now one year later, and our Kefir Grains are going strong.  We have given away at least 15 batches of Kefir Grains to people - they grow like crazy!.  We love Kefir.  Once the grains are established, as long as you leave the grains in fresh milk for 48 hours - all of the lactose sugar will be gone.  Yeahhhh!

Today, I decided to use some of the accumulated kefir milk to use in the quinoa pancakes.  They tasted delicious!
Now, onto Kefir Quinoa Pancakes - (Quinoa pancakes revised)

3/4 cup Brown Rice flour
1/2 cup Coconut flour
1 1/2 Tblsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
1 Tblsp. sugar
2 cups Kefir Milk (or any kind of milk)
2 eggs
3 Tblsp. Grapeseed Oil
1 Tblsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
1 cup of cooked Quinoa

Mix all of the dry ingredients in a bowl.  In another bowl, whisk the eggs till frothy, then add in the milk, grapeseed oil, apple cider vinegar and cooked quinoa, whisking to combine.  Pour into the dry ingredients and mix well.
Preheat a non stick pan on medium heat with a little butter.  Add a good ladle full of pancake batter to the pan.  Do not flip until you really begin to smell the pancake, then flip and cook the other side for the same amount of time.
Serve with maple syrup or a nice berry preserve.