Good Eats: Protein Oatmeal Pancakes (Banana or Pumpkin)

 The laziest man I ever met put popcorn in his pancakes so they would turn over by themselves.
W. C. Fields

I love food. Not going to deny it. No, I am not a foodie. I don’t really spend time trying out new recipes or hitting up every new restaurant that pops up. I just like to eat. The end. I typically like to compare myself to a goat. Like a goat, I will anything. I am dead serious. I will try just about anything that you put in front of me. And I will eat it. Then I will decide if I want to eat it again. Sometimes yes. Sometimes no. But I will never turn away food. 😉

Now, I am also a creature of habit. I could eat the same thing every single day and pretty much never get bored. Okay, so maybe that is not exactly true. Although I do eat eggs every morning for breakfast, I will add different things to my egg scramble….chicken one day, turkey burger the next, ALWAYS a crap load of vegetables. Maybe cheese. Maybe not. Fruit varies – strawberries, grapefruit, melon….whatever we may have in the fridge. But it is always eggs. On the other hand, my husband TRULY does eat the same.exact.thing.every.day. Eggs with pepper jack cheese and peas. Bagel and cottage cheese. EVERY.SINGLE.DAY. The only reason we change our lunches every few weeks or so is because of me. I can eat roast chicken and vegetables for lunch for about a month straight and then I need a break. He could eat them indefinitely and never get bored. It works for him. And that’s why he stays so lean and mean. 😉

But every now and then on Sunday, I like to indulge. My indulgence? Wait for it….PANCAKES!!! Protein oatmeal pancakes to be exact. Banana or Pumpkin…I love both. I found an awesome recipe online from Cookie & kate that I use each time (creature of habit – found a recipe that works and won’t look at anything else.) for my pancakes. I tried grinding my oats and using pre-packaged oat flour and I definitely prefer grinding my own oats for the oat flour. I like the texture of the pancakes better. I also started substituting pumpkin for the banana when I did not have bananas one morning. Delicious. If I am feeling feisty, I will add chocolate chips on top to my pancakes when they are on the griddle. I also like to add a scoop of protein powder to the mix. It doesn’t change the consistency too much for me so I keep the wet ingredients the same. If I want to make just 4 pancakes, I simply cut the recipe in half. I get 8 pancakes with the recipe as a whole. You may prefer bigger or smaller pancakes so don’t be afraid to experiment.

Here is the recipe from Cookie & kate (Writing in bold are my own additions):

Ingredients:

1. In a small-ish bowl, stir together the mashed bananas or pumpkin, coconut oil (or butter), lemon juice and honey (or maple syrup).
2. Beat in the eggs or egg whites. If your coconut oil goes back to its solid state like mine did at this point, just warm the mixture for short 30 second bursts in the microwave, stirring between each, until it is melted again.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the oat flour, baking soda, salt and spices.
4. Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. With a big spoon, stir just until the dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened. Do not overmix or you’ll run the risk of getting tough pancakes!
5. Let the batter sit for 10 minutes. The book notes that you may want to thin out the batter a bit with a touch of milk or water, I did not.
6. Heat a heavy cast iron skillet (or nonstick griddle) over medium-low heat. If necessary, lightly oil the surface with vegetable oil or cooking spray.
7. Once the surface of the pan is hot enough that a drop of water sizzles on it, pour 1/4 cup of batter onto the pan. Let the pancake cook for about 3 to 4 minutes, until bubbles begin to form around the edges of the cake.
8. When the pan is just beginning to set, flip it with a spatula and cook for another 90 seconds or so, until golden brown on both sides. You may need to adjust the heat up or down at this point.
9. Serve the pancakes immediately or keep warm in a 200 degree Fahrenheit oven.

I like to eat my pancakes with Siggis plain yogurt too. Packed full of protein and awesome goodness, Siggis is the bomb when it comes to yogurt. Spread it over those pancakes, make a nice big, cup of coffee and add some fruit to your meal and you have yourself one tasty Sunday breakfast. Of course, bacon would be the icing on the *cough* “pancake.” 😉

Enjoy!