The Syrup Swap To Consider For Your Next Stack Of Pancakes

Who can resist a fluffy, mile-high stack of soufflé pancakes? We can't, and neither can a quarter of Americans who dine on pancakes every week, according to WMAR 2 News.

Pancakes can be whipped up in no time, and per Taste of Home, the short ingredient list calls for flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, milk, butter, and an egg or two, depending on how big of a batch you're making. Aesthetically, pancakes look simple and humble, but they're the epitome of comfort food for breakfast. They also pair exceedingly well with chocolate chips, fruit, whipped cream, butter, and of course, syrup.

Syrup and pancakes are like peanut butter and jelly or grilled cheese and tomato soup. The two are a match made in heaven, as the pancakes absorb the sweet, sticky syrup like a sponge. But if you're looking for a change in your traditional syrup ways, we've got a swap that will subtly sweeten the regular ol' pancake deal.

Okay, brown rice and syrup are not literally combined together. Rather, the syrup is extracted from the brown rice, in a sense. Let's explain: So Shafi Gluco Chem discusses how brown rice must first come to a boiling point before being introduced to natural enzymes. These rice starches are then made into sugars like maltose, maltotriose, and glucose. This is then boiled and reduced, which yields organic and all-natural brown rice syrup.

You can also call this rice malt syrup or maltose syrup and use it in place of high fructose corn syrup in many recipes, via Sweetener Products. Heck, you even pour some over homemade ice cream, into a mug of coffee or tea, or atop a stack of pancakes, per The Spruce Eats.

Like regular syrup, you can drizzle this sweet stuff on pancakes sans any prep work. It kind of tastes like butterscotch with some subtle sweet and nutty notes. Bakerpedia adds to this by stating that brown rice syrup has a "low to medium" sweetness level and has way fewer fermentable solids than sucrose. In other words, this is a tasty choice for those who don't want cloyingly sweet pancakes.

If you're not ready to part ways with your beloved bottle of maple syrup, we understand. But if you want to put a subtly sweet spin on a stack of pancakes, try a drizzle of brown rice syrup.