Fluffy Pumpkin Pancakes

Two weekends ago, I went to the mall — the Bath & Bodyworks store at the mall to be precise. If you’ve never been to this store in the fall, I highly encourage it. Bath & Bodyworks is a little bit too strong for me concerning their hand lotions and body sprays. BUT THEIR CANDLES ARE AMAZING.

I have a thing about candles. My dad never let us have them in the house growing up except for 1) power outages 2) birthdays on cake. I’ve only recently discovered the joy of the seasonal-scented candle in my home. Now I have at least 5 in each living area of my house, lit or unlit, making it always smell fantastic.

So back to Bath & Bodyworks. I went in, and I smelled so many lovely candles. From “Leaves” which smelled like the outdoors, a bit smoky, and kind of like rain, to “Flannel” which smelled like cologne and wet man (actually a rather unpleasant smell, I don’t recommend it).

After having a really hard time making the call between a few fall-scented flavors, I went with Pumpkin Pecan Waffles — which smells like exactly what it sounds like. And somehow they’ve bottled the essence of a dessert disguised as a breakfast food. It’s warm, pumpkin-y, sweet, with some maple/vanilla notes.

When I got home, I lit the candle, not realizing the absolute torture it would be to smell Pumpkin Pecan Waffles, without actually getting to EAT Pumpkin Pecan Waffles.

Hence, this recipe!

The next morning, I got up, and tweaked my favorite pancake recipe, but made it pumpkin-y. All fall, I usually keep a couple cans of unsweetened pumpkin puree on hand for when the inevitable urge to create pumpkin baked goods strikes.

I also love and highly recommend the Trader Joes Pumpkin Spice spice mix, which is essentially an amalgam of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, lemon. You COULD make your own, but I think it’s well-worth the investment for a spice you can use in coffee, cookies, breads, etc.