They say April showers bring May flowers, and May flowers just happen to be the perfect gift for Mother’s Day—well, flowers and flapjacks, of course. Mother’s Day is the perfect excuse (as if you needed one) to take some time out of your busy schedule to sit down with mom and wish her a happy Mother’s Day and let her know just how much of an impact she’s had on your life.
This may come as a surprise to many of you, but Kodiak Cakes wouldn’t be where it is today without the vision and commitment to real food of our co-founder Joel’s mother, Penny Clark. In fact, you could say Penny was something of a pioneer in the real food revolution. Using her family’s whole grain “hotcake” recipe, Penny ground whole wheat by hand to make her young family healthy, whole-grain pancakes for breakfast. The sweet, wholesome smell of mom’s pancakes cooking on the griddle is something Joel will always remember from his childhood. Penny’s pancakes were more than just a great-tasting breakfast; they were also healthy and didn’t leave you feeling uncomfortably full like pancakes made with highly refined white flour.
Needless to say, Penny’s whole-grain pancakes were a staple in the Clark household and quickly became popular in the neighborhood as well. So popular, in fact, that neighbors actually started to request them. It was then that Penny sent her 8-year-old son, Joel, around the neighborhood with his little red wagon, stacked with brown paper lunch sacks full of whole grain pancake mix, to fulfill all their neighborhood deliveries.
As a special Mother’s Day tribute, we sat down with Penny and Joel to wish her a happy Mother’s Day and talk about some of their favorite mother-son moments together. The pair reminisce about their family’s original recipe that eventually lead to the creation of Kodiak Cakes Whole Wheat Oat & Honey Flapjack and Waffle Mix. We even discovered who the “OG” of Kodiak Cakes really is—watch the video to see for yourself!
There’s no denying that moms deserve their own special day, so we decided to give you a few ideas to help make Mother’s Day extra memorable. Instead of only wishing your mom or spouse a simple happy Mother’s Day, why not surprise her with breakfast in bed using one of our original flapjack and waffle mixes? Crafted with 100% whole grains and convenient to cook, our flapjack and waffle mixes are easy enough to make even the kids can help cook mom breakfast in bed this year. Nothing says, “Happy Mother’s Day, Mom!” like a tall stack of pancakes fresh off the griddle.
If you’re looking for something a bit more heartwarming to surprise mom with this Mother’s Day, our Tuscan Vegetable Soup & Cornbread Recipe makes a delicious dinner the whole family can enjoy together. In total, the recipe takes just 60 minutes to cook from start to finish, making it a great recipe if you already have a lot planned for mom’s big day. Not to mention, the recipe even calls for a side of our protein-packed Cornbread—serve with a dab of butter and drizzle of honey before wishing mom a happy Mother’s Day!
We hope learning more about the lasting impact one mother had on Kodiak Cakes has inspired you to do something special for all the moms in your life this Mother’s Day. And if you do take the time to cook your mom or spouse a tall stack of flapjacks next to a bouquet of flowers, be sure to share the moment with us on Instagram and Facebook by tagging @kodiakcakes and #kodiakcakes. Happy Mother’s Day from your Kodiak Cakes family!
