The night before: mix 2 c old fashioned oats with 2 c. buttermilk in a large bowl, cover and refrigerate overnight. When ready to cook, beat in 2 large eggs and 1/4 c. melted, cooled butter. Stir in 3/4 c raisins. In another bowl mix 1/2 c flour, 2 TB sugar or substitute, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp salt. Add to the wet mixture and stir briskly, just until moistened. If practical, let this sit for 20 minutes before cooking.
Heat a lightly greased pan over medium heat. Don't get it too hot, because these take longer to cook due to the dense ingredients Make a test cake with 1/4 c batter, and if the batter seems too thick add some more buttermilk, a TB at a time, until the consistency seems right.... not to exceed adding 3 or 4 TB -- this is supposed to be a very thick batter, it will not 'pour'. Cook pancakes until bubbles appear, turn to brown. You'll probably turn a few times to make sure the interior gets cooked. They are quite dense and take a little longer than ordinary thickness pancakes. The centers should still be moist when cooked, through. If they start to burn before they're ready, your pan is too hot.
Serve with the syrup of your choice ~ cinnamon syrup is perfect for these. Makes about 18 small pancakes or 9 large.
* For those watching sodium, make 'buttermilk' with the lowest sodium milk you have, or any no-sodium coffee creamer. Put it in a cup and add 1 TB vinegar for each cup of 'milk'. Don't stir, let sit for 5 minutes and presto: 'buttermilk'. Use no-sodium baking powder & soda and use unsalted butter. Use the salt or not, it goes a long way.
