February 28, 2017

Don’t let pancake day crepe up on you. Our ambassador Lindsay Benson aka Lean Bean has discovered some simple ways to transform your traditional stack of white floured, syrup drizzled and sugar loaded pancakes into a healthier form and they will still be delicious too! Here’s how Lean Bean does Pancake Day…….

“I love breakfast, absolutely love it, it reminds me of ultimate comfort, cozy warm mornings, wrapped in thick woolly socks with a coffee in hand and if you’re lucky pancakes. Nothing beats pancakes and there’s a whole day dedicated to the food item. Pancake day, every year it lightens the post-Christmas slump, when i was a kid i’m pretty sure i ate the same pancake every year. Thin, flat like crepes smothered in sugar and lemon. Whilst they tasted delicious i’m sure my parents could have done without the hyper child aftermath. This isn’t necessarily the healthiest way to enjoy pancake day, why not try a few of the suggestions below”.

Drizzle your pancakes with CherryActive Tart Cherry, BlueberryActive Blueberry BeetActive Beetroot or PomegranateActive Pomegranate for added colour and fruit or vegetables.

Vegetable Pancakes

Try vegetable pancakes, adding squash or parsnip puree or grated carrots to the batter mix. These are a delicious addition and add sweetness to your pancakes. Eat the rainbow try these simple, nourishing and nutrient dense, spinach pancakes.

Ingredients

1 2/3 cup of Old fashioned oats
1 Medium banana
1 cup Spinach
1 cup Unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or cows/soya/hazelnut milk)
1 tsp Coconut oil (for cooking)
Toppings:
Blueberries, Honey, Scrambled egg

Method

  1. Add 1 and 1/3 cup oats to a blender and blend into flour.
  2. Add the banana, spinach, and almond milk to the blender and blend until everything is mixed.
  3. Add an additional 1/3 cup oats (not oat flour) to the blender and mix for a couple seconds.
  4. Heat your non-stick frying pan on medium low with 1 tsp coconut oil
  5. spoon the batter onto the frying pan. Wait about 2-3 minutes, then flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes.

Banana Pancakes

Try banana pancakes, these are super easy and healthy pancakes: –

Ingredients

2 Bananas
2 scoops protein powder (optional- I used Apple Crumble Flavour)
2 Eggs
Splash of almond milk (only add if you’ve added protein powder to your pancake mix)
1/2 tsp baking powder (makes them fluffy)

Method

Pour in the pan. Allow to spread naturally and leave… Be patient. Do not fiddle!! On a low to medium heat bubbles will slowly form on the surface. The baking powder is doing its thing.

Try Different Flours & Milks

Try switching up your flours; wholemeal, oat, spelt, coconut, rye, buckwheat or even ground almonds. These all make a healthier alternative to traditional white flour. Also why not swap your whole milk to skimmed milk or any of the amazing nut milks that are available such as almond milk, coconut milk or hazelnut milk. Whilst your changing flour and milk why not try healthier toppings, such as; bananas, blueberries, Greek yoghurt, nuts, seeds or even nut butters!

50g Quinoa flour
85g Greek yoghurt
1 tsp Baking powder
1 tsp Vanilla extract
40 ml Milk (semi/ skimmed/ almond/ hazelnut/ soya/ coconut)
30g Ground linseeds
1 Egg

Method

  1. In a blender, add all of the above ingredients.
  2. Blend on full power until fully combined and smooth.
  3. If the mix is too thick add a little more milk, alternatively if the mix is too runny add more ground linseed.
  4. Add coconut oil to a frying pan and melt on a medium heat.
  5. Pour on the pancake batter and wait until you see bubble forming on the surface.
  6. Flip your pancakes and cook for a further 1-2 minutes until golden.
  7. Serve warm and enjoy!

 

Add Some Protein Powder

Try adding some protein powder to your pancakes. Add to sweetness of pancakes with an extra hit of protein. Protein is an essential macro nutrient required for good health, it helps build, repair and maintain lean muscle mass. Protein in your diet can come from whole-food source or from supplements in the form of protein powders. Try this recipe: –

Ingredients 

45g Oats (blended to form oat flour)
30ml Almond milk
25g Protein powder
1/2 tsp Baking powder
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1 Egg
Handful of blueberries and cranberries

Method

  1. Add all the ingredients to a bowl and blend to form a thick yet runny pancake mix
  2. In a saucepan melt 1 tsp of coconut oil
  3. Pour the mix into the pan (Medium/low heat), allow bubbles to form on the surface
  4. Flip and cook for a further minute
  5. blue

Be Creative with your Toppings!

Be creative with your toppings! Why not try Greek yoghurt, banana, berries, nut butters, nuts, seeds, banana ice cream, honey, granola, CherryActive dried cherries or go savoury and try spinach pancakes and scrambled egg.

Make sure you visit new look Lean Bean Nutirition website for more great recipe ideas like this and lots of information on diet and nutrition www.leanbeannutrtion.com