While oatmeal is my breakfast of choice I do occasionally crave a pancake. I started making my own years ago using a recipe from the Good Housekeeping cookbook I received as a wedding gift. That recipe contained white flour, sugar, and oil so of course I had to find something healthier. Here are two that I have enjoyed recently:
Peanut Butter Pancakes
These pancakes feature PB2 powdered peanut butter which is one of my favorite products. Yes, it’s technically a processed food but just slightly so. The peanuts are pressed to remove much of the oil and dried into a peanut flour which is high in protein but lighter in calories. I love to stir it into oatmeal and use it in smoothies. It can be reconstituted with a little water and used as a spread or to flavor Thai inspired sauces for noodles, etc.
There are other brands of powdered peanut butter out there but I’ve found them to contain more added sugar than PB2.
Here is the recipe.
Ingredients
1 Tablespoon ground flax seed meal
3 Tablespoons water
1 cup whole wheat flour
½ cup PB2 peanut butter Powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 cup milk (any kind will do, I used almond milk)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons sweetener (I used honey but you could use white or brown sugar or a smaller amount of stevia, etc.)
1 Tablespoon peanut butter
Combine flax seed and water in a small bowl. Set aside for at least 5 minutes. Combine the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and stir together. In a separate cup or small bowl combine the milk, sweetener, and peanut butter. A whisk is really the best way to do this.
Whisk the flax mixture into the wet ingredients until well incorporated. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and whisk until the batter is smooth. You may need to add more milk or water to get it to the right consistency. (Pancake batter should be just thin enough to pour; if it’s too thick you will get a heavy pancake that doesn’t cook all the way through.) Heat a small non stick fry pan over medium heat. You can spray with cooking spray or brush on a little oil but I found that I didn’t need either with my pan. Measure out a 1/4 cup of the mixture and drop onto the pan. Cook until the bubbles in the center of the pancake start to pop.
Flip and cook for about one minute on the opposite side. Serve with pure maple syrup or sliced bananas. Next time I make these I might try mashing some banana and adding it to the batter. These were good!
Oatmeal Pancakes
Oatmeal in a pancake is the best of both worlds for a dedicated oatmeal lover like myself. I used this recipe from Food.com and didn’t change a thing. I talked about making oat flour in a recent post. It’s so easy. Here I used my small food processor but I think the high speed personal blender works better.
Here is a close up to show just when pancakes are ready to flip. See the bubbles in the middle? when they start to pop it’s time to turn them over.
I mixed some cinnamon into organic, low sugar applesauce and used that to top my pancakes. A sprinkle of sliced almonds was perfect finishing touch.
I hope you will try these recipes the next time you decide to make a flap (jack).