Gluten-Free Buttermilk Pancake mix

Pancakes are tricky in the gluten-free world.  There are a few mixes that make whole-grain flavored pancakes, heavy on the sorghum flour.  I really missed that perfect buttermilk pancake taste, and the gluten-free bisquick was expensive enough to make pancakes an occasional treat.  I'm very picky about "substitutes" actually having the same taste and texture as the thing they're substituting for.  I don't want an unsatisfying "something vaguely like what I'm craving."  I want the real thing. 

So JD set out on a mission to find the perfect from-scratch gluten-free buttermilk pancake mix.  He's finally calling it good and letting me post the recipe.

He starts out with our gluten-free flour mix, which he measures by volume by pouring the flour into the measuring cup.  Since different flours compact differently, you should never scoop it: you'll end up with a slightly different amount of flour every time. 

4 parts white rice flour

3 parts potato starch
2 parts sweet white sorghum flour

Whisk these together thoroughly, then place in an air-tight container and shake well.  We use a glass container with a stopper, and it keeps just fine on the shelf for months. 

From that, he makes up a batch of pancake mix he can store in the cupboard for weeks and make into pancakes whenever he'd like.  For 6 cups of dry pancake mix, you'll need:
 
3 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour (recipe above, or your own)

1-1/2 cups buttermilk powder  (NOW brand is gluten-free and available on Amazon if you can't find it locally)
1-1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup shortening

Mix all the dry ingredients, then cut in the shortening with a pastry cutter, pair of knives, or food processor until it's crumbly and evenly distributed.  This will store on the shelf for at least two weeks. 

To make the mix into pancakes:

1 cup dry pancake mix

1 egg
1/4 cup milk

This makes plenty for two people.  JD does silver-dollar size pancakes by dropping the batter by tablespoons onto a buttered nonstick pan.  They can be made with water if you have a casein allergy, but they won't be as fluffy.  I'm assuming that since the proteins in the milk are responsible for the fluffing (they form a surface to trap air bubbles in the batter) that you could use any protein-containing milk substitute.  If you use a sweetened milk substitute (like vanilla soymilk) you may want to adjust the sugar in the mix.