Health monster pancakes

Health Monster Pancakes!

My son has been asking for pancakes for 3 mornings straight, and I remembered having made these for him as a toddler!  Pancakes are such a common breakfast in this country, most homes have the store bought version in their freezers!  They are a fantastic staple for those extra busy mornings, when the whole family is on the run, pop a pancake in the toaster or microwave, and you're good to go...  but there's one problem...  they are expensive, highly processed, and terrible for you.  Here's the solution:  Low-fat, low sugar, high fiber, high nutrient homemade pancakes!  Now, I have to give a disclaimer...  these are a different taste and texture.  Picture the texture of oatmeal cookies, and a rich, nutty, warm cinnamon flavor.  They are so delicious, just a different flavor.

Start by making your oat flour.  It's really simple, just toss a few cups of rolled oats into a blender or food processor, and whirr until you have a nice fine texture!  (It won't be quite as fine as a white wheat flour, because of the fiber, but it does the trick!)  The reason I use the whole oats, is because they have slightly different nutrients than whole wheat flour, and still have a huge amount of fiber!

Now, you need two medium sized bowls.  One gets wet ingredients, the other gets dry.  Let's start with the wet:

1 medium extremely ripe banana (I keep them in the fridge, then thaw, they break down much better)

1 1/4 cup of whatever milk or milk substitute you like

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. lemon juice or vinegar

1 egg

Mix together, and start on your dry:

1/2 c. whole wheat flour

3/4 c. oat flour

1/2 c. rolled oats

1 Tbs. baking powder

1 Tbs. ground flax seeds (optional, but they pack a nutrient punch!)

1 tsp. cinnamon (optional, but it goes so well with the nutty flavor of the whole grains)

Mix the dry slowly into the wet.  This is best done with a 4 year old booger to help!  Don't worry if you don't have one, but kiddos are so much more likely to enjoy healthier foods if their hands helped with the cooking!  Now let this soupy mix sit for a good 15 minutes.  It will thicken, and the whole grains will soften as they drink up the wet mix.  The batter will also get bubbly, as the acid from the lemon juice or vinegar reacts with the baking powder.  This allows for a much moister pancake.

Now comes the pan preheat.  I use a medium low heat with our stove top, but the best way to test the pan's heat is to make the notorious "first pancake".  I make a tiny one.  When the pan is ready, I start pouring!  I like to use a measuring cup, and make each pancake about 1/4 cup, and you have to smear them out a little so they aren't too thick to cook through.  Once the edges are dry, and there are large bubbles popping in the center, they are ready to flip!  When serving, I like to do a large dollop of blueberry yogurt in place of maple syrup...  but that's because i have a weird aversion to syrup.  Do whatever sounds best to you!  These pancakes will keep you full and satisfied straight through to lunch!

Another little tip that I always use is to freeze any leftovers, or even double the batch to have leftovers to freeze!  This makes it so easy to have nutritious and convenient breakfasts for those crazy mornings!