Don’t use wholemeal pancake mix as a direct substitute for pepernoten or kruidnoten dough. The pancake mixes reviewed are designed for batter cooked in a frying pan, while pepernoten and kruidnoten recipes call for dough that goes in the oven. If you want to make pancakes, check the wholemeal ingredients and fibre content. If you want to make pepernoten or kruidnoten, choose a recipe or mix designed for that kind of baking.
According to recipes from Allerhande and Koopmans, you need dough for the oven, not pancake batter. First decide whether you want to make the softer pepernoten or the harder kruidnoten, then choose a suitable recipe or mix.
If you want to make pancakes, check which grains the mix contains and compare fibre values on a like-for-like basis: per 100 g of dry product or per 100 g of prepared product. A wholemeal pancake mix is not, by that fact alone, a pepernoten mix.
Wheat and oats feature in the wholemeal pancake mixes reviewed; some products also state that egg or milk may be present. Before buying, check the latest ingredients and allergen information on the packaging, even if the mix is labelled wholemeal.
First decide what you want to make: pancakes, soft pepernoten or hard kruidnoten. Then check the ingredients and allergens in a product suited to your chosen bake.
Choose this: If you want to make pancakes and check the wholemeal ingredients.
Bear in mind: This mix is made into batter and cooked in a frying pan. It isn’t automatically a suitable substitute for pepernoten or kruidnoten dough.
Choose this: If you want to make the softer, irregularly shaped pepernoten described by Allerhande.
Bear in mind: Allerhande’s recipe uses self-raising flour and wheat flour. Don’t replace these with wholemeal pancake mix on a one-to-one basis if you want to achieve the dough texture described.
Choose this: If you want to bake the smaller, harder kruidnoten, which are often called pepernoten.
Bear in mind: A kruidnoten mix isn’t automatically wholemeal. Koopmans’ Kruidnotenmix contains ingredients including wheat flour, egg yolk powder and milk proteins.
| What to consider | What to check before buying | Who should pay particular attention? |
|---|---|---|
| Dough and preparation | Does the packaging say you’ll be making batter for a frying pan or dough for the oven? Which ingredients do you need to add? | If you want to bake pepernoten or kruidnoten, you need suitable dough for the oven, rather than batter for a frying pan. The right type of dough is the top priority for around 46% of consumers. |
| Wholemeal and fibre | Check which wholemeal flour is listed and compare fibre per 100 g on the same basis. | When making pancakes, I want to know which wholemeal flour the mix contains and how its fibre content is stated. This is the top priority for around 36% of consumers. |
| Allergens | Read the latest information about wheat, oats, egg and milk, including warnings that they may be present. | If I need to avoid an ingredient, the current packaging determines whether a mix is suitable for me. Around 18% of consumers put allergen checks first. |
Wholemeal describes the grain base, not whether a product is suitable for making dough for the oven. The pancake mixes reviewed are designed for batter cooked in a frying pan.
For pepernoten or kruidnoten, choose a recipe or mix designed for the bake you want to make; use pancake mix for pancakes.
The term multigrain doesn’t tell you which grains, if any, are wholemeal. So check the ingredients in Belbake and Albona’s multigrain pancake mixes.
Read the latest ingredients list and look for an explicit mention of wholemeal flour.
The wholemeal pancake mixes reviewed contain wheat or oats; some packaging also states that egg or milk may be present. Koopmans’ Kruidnotenmix contains egg yolk powder and milk proteins.
Check the ingredients and allergens on the packaging every time you buy. Don’t assume a product is gluten-free just because it’s labelled wholemeal.
A value per 100 g of dry mix isn’t directly comparable with a value per 100 g of prepared pancake, which may include milk and eggs added according to the instructions.
Check whether each nutrition table refers to the dry or prepared product, and only compare values on the same basis.
These brands offer a range of pancake mixes, while Koopmans also has a separate kruidnoten mix. Always assess the specific product, not just the brand name.
Offers both Pannenkoeken Volkoren for cooking in a frying pan and a separate Kruidnotenmix for baking in the oven.
AH Mix voor pannenkoeken volkoren is designed for pancakes and comes in a 300 g pack.
Jumbo’s wholemeal pancake mix combines wheat, oats and buckwheat, and is made in a frying pan.
PLUS offers a pancake mix described as Volkoren pannenkoekenmix (wholemeal pancake mix).
Belbake Mix voor pannenkoeken meergranen is a multigrain product for making pancakes.
ALDI describes Albona Bakmix voor pannenkoeken as a multigrain baking mix.
Not as a direct substitute if you want to follow a pepernoten recipe. The pancake mixes reviewed are made into batter for a frying pan, while Allerhande’s pepernoten recipe uses self-raising flour and wheat flour to make dough that goes in the oven.
Pepernoten are softer and more irregular in shape, while kruidnoten are smaller and harder. Allerhande notes that kruidnoten are often called pepernoten in everyday conversation. So check which bake a recipe or mix is actually intended for.
A wholemeal label doesn’t mean a mix is gluten-free. The wholemeal pancake mixes reviewed from Koopmans, Albert Heijn, Jumbo and PLUS contain wheat or oats. If you need to avoid gluten, read the latest ingredients and allergen information on the packaging.
Only compare fibre per 100 g when the values are given on the same basis. Check whether the nutritional information refers to dry mix or prepared pancakes, and also see which wholemeal grains are listed in the ingredients.
