Pancakes for Days

Are pancakes not the ultimate comfort food?! Every Sunday my husband and I take time out to make breakfast (let me pause here to take a moment as writing husband is still exciting to me, only married a week here!). We love experimenting in the kitchen and breakfast is essentially our most favorite meal. It’s super important to pick a day of the week and give yourself time to really enjoy the whole process of preparing and eating a meal! Loving the art of nourishing your body is important as most people don’t take the time to sit down and really enjoy the taste of their food and appreciate the work that went into it!

Pancakes are delicious and they certainly seem like a treat BUT there’s a way to make them healthier without compromising taste or your brain’s need to indulge! So let’s get started as I share FIVE ways to make FIVE different and scrumptious types of pancakes!

The base of all of my pancakes is Gluten Free Bisquick mix (the regular one works too but as I have Celiac I have to opt for the gluten free one). I love using this mix because it already has all of the ingredients in the proper proportions. PLUS it makes the whole process move much more quickly. There is no need to measure out flour, baking soda and a million other things when you have a convenient mix already available! Work with what you have!

Most of my recipes center around one important ingredient, FIBRE. If you have read any of my other blogs you will know that fibre is so important in our diets and it’s also one thing that the majority of people do not get enough of. I never use maple syrup as a topping either. I always use low calorie vanilla yogurt as a topping because it tastes like icing and I usually sprinkle a Tablespoon of Chia seeds over the top for extra fibre.

So….let’s get on with the delicious recipes shall we…

Carrot Cake Pancakes (my personal favorite:))

Ingredients:

Pancakes

• 3/4 cup Bisquick
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
• 1 cup Milk (almond/soy)
• 1 cup grated carrots (I use a cheese grater)
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp canola oil

Cream Cheese Icing (or Vanilla Yogurt for a lower calorie/lower fat option)

• 1/4 cup low fat cream cheese
• 1 1/4 cup icing sugar
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

*Follow the box instructions adding the grated carrot in last and cook on each side for approximately 2 minutes.

Banana Chocolate Chip

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup Bisquick
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
• 1 cup Milk (almond/soy)
• 1 large banana
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips

*I leave the oil out of this one as banana is a fat replacer and it decreases the fat overall

**Follow the box instructions adding the mashed banana in last and cook on each side for approximately 2 minutes.

Pumpkin Flax

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup Bisquick
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
• 1 cup Milk (almond/soy)
• 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 egg

*I leave the oil out of this one as pumpkin is a fat replacer and it decreases the fat overall

**Follow the box instructions adding the pureed pumpkin in last and cook on each side for approximately 2 minutes.

Double Chocolate Strawberry

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup Bisquick
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
• 1 1/4 cup Milk (almond/soy)
• 1/2 cup chopped strawberries
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips (in batter or melted over the top)
• 3 Tbsp cocoa
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp canola oil

*Follow the box instructions adding the chopped strawberries in last and cook on each side for approximately 2 minutes.

Blueberry Flax

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup Bisquick
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
• 1 cup Milk (almond/soy)
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp canola oil

*Follow the box instructions adding the blueberries in last and cook on each side for approximately 2 minutes.

So there you have it. Some amazing recipes to spice up your weekends! ENJOY!

Signing off,

Adrianna Smallwood, Registered Dietitian and Nutrition Expert