Blueberry Pancakes

I think it's fair to say that I am a huge pancake lover. They are the perfect weekend guilt-free treat that will keep you going throughout the morning. I've been wanting to make blueberry pancakes for a while now, but every time I buy them, they're the first item I pick out of the shopping bag to snack on and before I know it, they're all gone. This week, I resisted the temptation and was able to make these little pancake beauties.  Blueberries  have one of the highest antioxidant levels of any food on the planet which are essential for good health and supporting your nervous system. They also have a low glycaemic index (G.I), which helps to maintain balanced blood sugar levels. They've also been proven to lower fat levels and just one serving contains 25% of your daily required vitamin C intake. 

The blend of the bananas with the oats and flax makes each pancake deliciously thick and squishy in the middle. Every now and then you'll get a blueberry explode with its juicy goodness in your mouth that combines beautifully with the warm cinnamon and the sweet maple syrup. They're quick and super easy to make and topped with a generous dollop of natural yoghurt, they'll be devoured in minutes.

Makes 1 batch of 5 pancakes

1/2 cup of organic oats

2 heaped dessert spoons of milled flaxseed

1 ripe banana

1 handful of blueberries

1/4 cup water 

1/4 cup milk 

1 dessert spoon of pure maple syrup 

1 heaped teaspoon ground cinnamon

small knob of butter (or coconut oil) for frying

Toppings

Natural yoghurt (I like alpro soya) 

Handful of blueberries

Pure maple syrup

Sliced strawberries

Sliced Banana

Method 

- Put all the ingredients apart from the blueberries into a blender and blend until smooth.

- Once the mixture is smooth, stir in the blueberries. The mixture should turn out thick, not too runny. Add a dash of water if it's too thick. 

- Place a large saucepan onto the heath for a minute of two until really hot then grease with the butter. 

- Then place 5 heaped dessert spoons of the mix into the pan in pancake shapes, using the spoon to shape them. After about a minute, check the bottom of the pancake, if it has turned brown, flip it over and allow the other side to cook for another minute. If your pan isn't large enough to do them all at once, just cook them separately.

- Stack the pancakes with some blueberries in between each layer.

Have a wonderful day!

The Ultimate Banana & Chai Seed Pancakes

OK, so I've been wanting to post 'the ultimate' breakfast pancake for a while now and I think this is it! I decided upon three key ingredients that are essential to make 'the ultimate' breakfast pancake. These include: oats, bananas and chai seeds. They also had to have the same consistency as the traditional American pancakes which are perfectly thick, warm and squidgy in the middle. Finally, they needed to be very quick and easy to make but also delicious and fulfilling. These banana and chai seed pancakes certainly hit the nail on the head. 

The blend of the rolled oats with the soft almonds and sweet banana creates that thick, squishy, melt-in-your-mouth texture. The alluring runny honey or pure maple syrup gives them the added sweetness it needs to make you keep on coming back for more. Topped with a generous dollop of natural yoghurt, fresh strawberries, cinnamon and goji berries, it really does make these pancakes the ultimate breakfast treat. The reason I love these pancakes is not only because they're scrumptious, but they're also super healthy. 

Chai Seeds are a super food which are the perfect addition to any diet. They are in fact the highest plant based source of omega 3 fatty acids, which are essential for a healthy heart, lowering blood pressure and cholesterol and reducing your risk to cardiovascular and heart disease. They're a great source of fibre, and release their energy slowly which will keep you feeling full. Their ability to keep you feeling full is heightened by the fact that they can absorb up to ten times their weight in liquid, once eaten. Finally, they are fantastic sources of protein and minerals including iron, calcium, magnesium and zinc which are essential for a healthy body. 

Bananas are a great source of energy, fibre, vitamins and minerals. Did you know that just one banana supplies 35% of  your daily vitamin B-6 requirement that is essential for the production of new cells?!

The humble Goji Berry is a nutritional powerhouse. They are unique amongst many other fruits because they contain all essential amino acids and boast the highest concentration of protein of any fruit. They're also loaded with vitamin C, have twenty-one trace minerals, are high in fibre and contain more carotenoids than any other food. If you thought that was impressive, check out their iron content! They contain fifteen times the amount of iron found in spinach, as well as zinc, calcium, selenium and many other important trace minerals. 

The oats and almonds are perfectly fulfilling so that you really can't eat one hundred - although you may want to considering how good they taste! 

Cinnamon has proved effects on lowering blood sugar levels and therefore a great addition to many breakfasts for people with type 2 diabetes as it improves the cells abilities to respond to insulin.

Every ingredient in these pancakes has some sort of nutritional benefit, so you can indulge on these banana beauties without worrying about the consequences.

Makes 2 batches of 5 pancakes:

2 bananas
1 cup of oats 
2/3 of a cup of ground almonds
1 cup of water
1/4 of a cup of ground flaxseed
2 dessert spoons of pure maple syrup or runny honey
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp of chai seeds
a pinch of salt 
a knob of butter or coconut oil for frying

Toppings

1 handful of goji berries
2 tbsp of natural yoghurt
a handful of strawberries
drizzle of pure maple syrup
1 banana, chopped 
2 tsp cinnamon
a handful of blueberries

Method

- Blend all the ingredients together in a food processor until smooth. The mixture should turn out thick, not too runny. 

- Put a large pan on a low-medium heat, grease with some of the butter and to a trial run with a teaspoon of the mixture to check the heat isn't too hot!

- Then place 5 heaped dessert spoons of the mix into the pan in pancake shapes, using the spoon to shape them (you should have used half the mixture by now). After about a minute, check the bottom of the pancake, if it has turned brown, flip it over and allow the other side to cook for another minute. Then remove the first batch of pancakes, add another knob of butter then start on batch el numero dos!

- To serve, put the sliced banana in-between each pancake layer and add the toppings. 

Have a beautiful day!

Savoury Pancakes with Avocado & Feta

Like a dog isn't just for Christmas, a pancake isn't just for pancake day. It was one of those days, when you look into the fridge and get that despaired feeling - how on earth am I going to make dinner with any of this? I always have plenty of eggs from my chickens and in the fridge I managed to find an avocado, one spring onion, some feta and a pint of milk. Great, so now what -  Scrambled egg? Omelette? In the larder, I found two more ingredients: flour and a large pot of sun dried tomatoes. Hey presto, savoury pancakes it is!

Savoury pancakes really are the ultimate dish to make when you look into an empty fridge or you simply just want to use up that last knob of cheese or that sad-looking spring onion. They're so fantastically simple and quick to make and best of all, they're so delicious. You can use the pancake mix as a base, then literally add any savoury topping you want. Whether it be ham and cheese, chorizo and onions or feta and avocado, I'll guarantee you it'll be delicious. 

This avocado and feta pancake is super healthy too! Avocados are one of the healthiest foods on the planet as they contain in excess of 25 essential nutrients. They also have some pretty awesome anti-inflammatory properties which have been well documented to help a range of illnesses caused by excess inflammation. On top of this, they help to increase nutrient absorption of other foods, they're high in fibre and provide a great dosage of vitamin K, essential for good blood sugar regulation. Needless to say, just the avocado alone makes these pancakes super heathy!

Feta is a healthy alternative to many other types of cheese, such as cheddar as it's lower in calories and fat. Spring onions naturally contain more plant-derived antioxidants and dietary fibre than onions and shallots. They also are packed with essential vitamins and are in fact one of the richest sources of vitamin K. I could go on for ever about the health benefits of these pancakes but I think it's about time we start cooking!

Makes 1 large pancake 

Pancake mix 

1 free range egg

15g wholemeal flour

15g plain flour 

100ml/3.5 fl.oz of milk

salt & pepper to taste

tiny knob of butter

Topping

50g of greek feta 

5 sun dried tomatoes, sliced

1/2 avocado

1 spring onion, finely sliced

Method

- In a large bowl, beat the egg. Add the flour and beat again. Then add milk and a light seasoning. 

- Put a large frying pan over high heat until very hot. Add the knob of butter and grease the pan to ensure the pancake doesn't stick. Then put the pan over a medium-low heat. Pour the batter mix into the pan and immediately tilt the pan side to side to get a thin, even layer of batter covering the base of the pan.

- Cook for about 30 seconds or until the underside is golden and flip with a palette knife. 

- Immediately add the toppings and fold the pancake in half, then half again. Slide the pancake onto a plate to serve. 

Top tip: If you have a very large pancake and struggle flipping it without breaking it, just leave it for 20-30 seconds longer, add the toppings, fold then serve. I had to do this and it still tasted great!

Enjoy!

10 Minute Banana & Blueberry Pancakes

After the great success of my coconut, maple and chai seed pancakes, I've been craving pancakes ever since. I was listening to Jack Johnson's album and one of my favourite songs of his came on, 'banana pancakes'. I've always thought it was such a ridiculous thing to sing about and that he had gone slightly mad…but how wrong I was. Let's have a look at some of the lyrics to his song: 

' waking up to early, maybe we could sleep in, make you banana pancakes, pretend that it's the weekend now.' 

Oh JJ, marry me?! He has just got it completely right. Wake up early, make banana pancakes and forget about the rest of the world. That is exactly what I did and how I came up with this recipe. Never did I think I would get recipe inspiration from a song. 

Banana's are a great source of energy, fibre, vitamins and minerals. Did you know that just one banana supplies 35% of  your daily vitamin B-6 requirement that is essential for the production of new cells?! Blueberries are also a great superfood. Not only are they packed with fibre, vitamins and minerals but they also contain several phytochemicals that we never hear about which give blueberries a load of heath benefits. This recipe is simple, quick and easy to make and requires so few ingredients. All you need are oats, nut butter, a banana, blueberries and water. It's the definition of simple goodness. 

Makes 5 small pancakes (serves 1)

1 ripe banana

30g blueberries

50g organic oats

1/4 cup of water

2 teaspoons of nut butter (I used almond butter)

1 dessert spoon flaxseed (optional)

pinch of salt

knob of butter or a little coconut oil to grease

Method

- Set aside 20g of the blueberries and 1/2 a banana. Put the oats, 1/2 banana, 10g of blueberries, water, nut butter and salt into a food processor and blend for about a minute until smooth. Stir in the 20g of blueberries and leave for a couple of minutes to allow the oats to absorb some of the moisture. 

- Heat up a non-stick frying pan until really hot and grease with the butter or coconut oil. Using a dessert spoon, place the mixture into the pan. You may have to do a couple of batches. Cook each side for about 1-2 minutes or until brown. You can tell the first side is done when you can start to see the mixture bubble. It's really important you don't flip the mixture too early. 

- Serve with a drizzle of maple syrup and the remaining 1/2 banana. 

Enjoy!

Coconut, Maple & Chai Seed Pancakes

 I don't know about you, but I can't remember the last time I had pancakes. They're the perfect breakfast or brunch treat and they're just too good. When it's pancake day, I get so excited and try and grab every pancake topping out of the larder and cover the table in the assortment of sweet delights. My pancake topping list was endless: nutella, maple syrup, bananas, nuts, strawberries, lemon, honey, sugar…oh shrove Tuesdays, I'm glad you exist.  However, these are pancakes with a difference. They're a healthy alternative to the usual pancakes, packed with fibre, vitamins and minerals and do not need to be covered in the usual unhealthy sweet toppings as they're flavoursome enough by themselves! Just a teaspoon of maple syrup, a handful of fruit and a generous dollop of natural yoghurt is all you'll need to enjoy these pancake beauties. 

So how are these pancakes so healthy? 

Chai Seeds are a super food which are the perfect addition to any diet. They are in fact the highest plant based source of omega 3 fatty acids, which are essential for a healthy heart, lowering blood pressure and cholesterol and reducing your risk to cardiovascular and heart disease. They're a great source of fibre, and release their energy slowly which will keep you feeling full. Their ability to keep you feeling full is heightened by the fact that they can absorb up to ten times their weight in liquid, once eaten. Finally, they are fantastic sources of protein and minerals including iron, calcium, magnesium and zinc which are essential for a healthy body. 

Wholemeal Flour is used to replace plain, white flour. The word 'whole' refers that all of the gain is used and nothing is lost in the process of making the flour. Therefore, it has a higher content of protein, vitamins and minerals compared to white flour which is high in sugar and carbohydrates. 

Cinnamon has proved effects on lowering blood sugar levels and therefore a great addition to many breakfasts for people with type 2 diabetes as it improves the cells abilities to respond to insulin. 

The list goes on, but take my word for it, they're a lot more healthy than the high sugar, carbohydrate and fat content present in the traditional pancake. So go on, treat yourself to these pancake delights without worrying about the consequences.

Makes 5 small pancakes - Serves 1

1 tbsp Wholemeal plain flour

1 tsp chai seeds

1 dessert spoon desiccated coconut

1 tsp baking powder

1 tbsp maple syrup

1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

2 tbs (Oatly) milk

1/2 tsp butter (for pan)

Toppings 

1/2 Banana

Handful of strawberries

1 tsp desiccated coconut

1 tsp maple syrup
1 table spoon natural yoghurt

Method

- Simply mix all the ingredients together until a smooth, medium thickness mixture is formed. 

- Place a large saucepan on the heat for a minute or until really hot. Add the butter and using a paper towel, grease the whole of the pan. If you have an Aga, leave the lid off the medium ring for a couple of minutes and grease the hot plate as no pan is needed. 

- Put 5 heaped dessert spoons of the pancake mixture onto the heat and turn over once you can start to see tiny bubbles form on the mixtures surface. They should take no longer than 1 minute each side.

- Serve and add the toppings. I like to put sliced strawberries in between each layer then decorate with the fruit, coconut and maple syrup on top. 

Top tip: I always do a trial run with the pancake mix before I do the bulk of the mixture. Therefore, add 1 tsp of the mixture to the heat for a mini pancake trial run to check the pans temperature isn't too hot. 

Have a lovely day and enjoy!