sunday, monday, pancake days!

for the past few weeks my schedule has worked out as such that mondays have kind of been my sundays before going back to work for the week.  when i was little, sunday was always pancake day.  i used to love waking up to the sound of hissing butter and the scraping of the metal spatula against our cast iron skillet as my mom would cook up heaping stacks for my sister and i to devour.  however glorious it may have been, it was always sad to see them quarantined to one single day each week.  yes.  i love me some pancakes.  i'd love them all the time if i could.  so i've made it my personal mission to develop a tasty breed that loves me right back.

check it out: yummy pancakes...packed with protein, fiber, and nutrients, gluten free, using minimal grains/flour.  really satisfying, really awesome, really healthy b-fast!  protein often ends up being what my body needs most to get me moving in the mornings, and these guys definitely deliver.  they're made using 1/2 can of kidney beans, and if that sounds freaky to you, never fear.  you'd honestly never know it...what with all their cakey characteristics...and even if you did know it (perhaps because you made them using a certain recipe from a certain blog...ahem) i dare say you wouldn't even care!  they taste like pancakes, man!  who isn't into that?
now, i've made these a few times trying out different variations, and i think i can safely say i'm giving you the best, most successful recipe in the history of these beany little imposters.  this particular recipe uses buckwheat flour (which i grind myself using raw buckwheat groats in my little coffee grinder...that's just what i like best, but you could try commercial varieties as well) but i've also tried to make them using quinoa flour, and even tried to go completely flourless in the past...using only flaxmeal.  both alternate methods made for some really tricky (read: endlessly frustrating) pancake making due to the nature of both of the ingredients.  quinoa flour is just too fragile for this recipe without some serious tinkering...i was able to make the pancakes using it, but not without a lot of sticking to the pan and tearing when i tried to flip them.  flaxmeal just ended up being a nightmare to work with.  the cakes just wouldn't stay together...even as they were cooking in the pan.  the consistency was just all off.  really, i'd say buckwheat is your best bet...or if you'd like, i'm sure you could just substitute wheat flour, too.  i've thrown fresh blueberries in as well and that came out really tasty, but you do have to take some precaution if you go that route since the extra moisture can make the pancakes a little more fragile when you're flipping them.
here's the low down:

beanie buckwheat protein pancakes
(or: just cause it sounds healthy, doesn't mean it tastes bad :D)

makes about 4 pancakes (2 servings for me)

• 1/2 can red kidney beans
• 1 T raw buckwheat flour
• 1 T flaxmeal
• 1/4 cup soy (or any) milk
• 2 egg whites
• 1 T light shredded coconut
• 1 ts vanilla extract
• 1/4 ts stevia
• 1/2 ts cinnamon
• 1 ts baking powder

throw all ingredients in your blender/food processor and blend until smooth.  cook them just like you would normal pancakes: spoon a few tablespoons into a greased or oiled skillet/pan over medium low heat and cook until the top starts to get bubbly and puffy.  gently flip with a spatula and cook until the middle is cakey.  mom would be proud :)

a few creamy topping options

 (or: guess how much i love you :D)

if you wanna keep it simple, you could top these off with maple syrup like the real mccoy, or use fresh fruit, honey, fruit preserves, melted peanut butter, etc.  the first time i made these i piled them high with cashew cream which was divine:

cashew cream is one of my favorite treats.  it's absurdly easy to make, too.  it just takes a little foresight and a tiny bit of prepwork.  for a single serving, i'll generally use about 1/3 cup raw cashews.  cover them with water and soak them over night (or at least for a few hours) to soften them up.  when you're ready to make your cream, just drain the water, throw the cashews in your blender with a little splash of soy milk or water and about 1/4 ts of vanilla and blend on low until smooth.  voila.  deliciousity.  if you want to make more cream, just up the amount of cashews.  you can make the cream as thick or as thin as you'd like...just add more or less soy milk or water.  i generally like mine almost like whipped cream, so i'll only add a splash at a time to get it to the right consistency.

but wait, there's more!  lately, i've been really into tofu whip...especially as a topping for these.  this is just as easy, if not more so, since it requires no prep work beforehand.  i just throw about 3 oz (about 1/5 block) of soft tofu into the blender with 1 1/2 T honey and a little dash of cinnamon and blend until smooth, adding a teenie bit of soy if needed.  you could use maple syrup or agave as well...i just really like honey.

now go get in the kitchen and bust out the skillet!  pancake day is officially not just sundays anymore!
 ...just don't tell mom ;)

double feature saturday

so this morning i woke up to a last minute job cancellation.  at first i couldn't help but feel annoyed at the loss of an opportunity...particularly one i had been counting on.  but then i realized, hey, i have a whole day now.  a whole day.  to do.  whatever.  i want.
(!)
a walk in the park, an awesome cardio and bodyweight workout, lots of delicious food making, and mug upon mug of tasty single origin coffee drinking ensued.  hurray for impromptu days off!  especially when they start off with things like this:

...and wind down with things like this:

i'm all, why not share the goods?  so here you go, guys.  thanks to my surprise saturday downtime, we're going back to back with a proper double feature.  and just because i love pumpkin so, so much (and because i still had half a can leftover from the other day) i decided to kick things off with these yummy little pumpkin pattycakes with creamy peanut butter yogurt icing.  half pancake, half warm pie filling, all around awesome topped with creamy fluffy goodness.  booya!

breakfast pumpkin pattycake with peanut butter yogurt icing

makes one pattycake

for the pattycake:

• 1 TS rolled oats or quick oats
• 1 TS unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 TS flaxmeal
• 1/4 cup unsweetened 100% pumpkin puree
• 1 TS raisins
• 1/4 apple finely diced
• 1 ts honey or agave
• 1/4 ts vanilla extract
• 1/4 ts cinnamon
• dash of nutmeg
• pinch of sea salt

throw all your ingredients into a bowl and mix into a mushy mash of sorts.  at this point, you have a choice to make.  if you'd like something a little more on the creamy side (more like a warm custard), add a little more pumpkin or 1 TS of unsweetened applesauce to the mix.  if you'd like something a little denser and more like a desserty version of a latke in consistency, add another TS or so of oats.  or you can just try it the way it is and tweak it in the future if you'd like.  the recipe above is kind of a nice middle ground.  not too mushy, not too dense.  just keep in mind that these are not pancakes in any sort of traditional sense...they're much more like thick pie filling or an undercooked cookie in consistency: soft, warm, and delicate.  mmm.
heat a pan (nonstick definitely helps) with a little oil or cooking spray on medium low and empty the pumpkin mash into the pan.  form it into a patty with a fork and let it brown a bit on one side before carefully flipping it with a spatula and reshaping it back into patty form.  these often will come apart while you cook them.  it's just the nature of the beast.  just mush them back together with your fork or spatula and you're in good shape.  cook and reshape on either side until starting to brown

once thoroughly warmed to your liking, shovel onto a plate and get your icing ready.

for the peanut butter yogurt icing:

• about 1/3 ripe banana
• 1-2 ts unsweetened peanut butter
• around 1 TS greek yogurt

break the banana into chunks.  melt the peanut butter over the banana in the microwave for up to 30 seconds.  mush them both together into a gooey jam.  mix in the greek yogurt and add a dash of cinnamon or a little touch of sweetener if you'd like.  i find that this is plenty sweet on its own from the banana, but you might like it more so.  dollop on top of your pattycake and add raisins, fruit, walnuts, or whatever you'd like!

if you'd like something a little less creamy to try with these, they're also really awesome with this honey nut streusel business, which is just as easy to make as the icing.  yay!

just take a small handful of peanuts (i think i used 1 TS or 2) with about 1 ts of sunflower seeds and grind into a coarse meal.  i just use an automatic coffee grinder that i've set aside for things like this and it works great.  just make sure you clean it out really well both before and after if you have used it for coffee in the past and/or plan to use it for coffee in the future.

empty the meal into a bowl, add 1 ts of honey, maple syrup, or agave, 1 ts of oats, a sprinkle of cinnamon and i like to add a dash of fenugreek as well.  mix it together until crumbly.  that's it!

now, fast forward to dinner: italian spiced socca pizza.  i've been meaning to try this out for a while now.  i've made socca several times before in the past and experimented with different flavors and toppings and have always had really amazing outcomes.  socca pizza was an idea that practically made itself...i've really just been waiting for an opportunity to throw this bad boy together.  i'm so glad it finally all worked out tonight.  this will definitely be happening again.  i mean really, how can you go wrong with pizza?

first, i should probably explain what socca is if you don't know already.  socca (also called farinata) is a gluten free mediterranean flat bread made with garbanzo bean flour that is often served with different spices cooked into it.  i believe traditionally it's made with salt, rosemary and savory herbs, but i've made this with cocoa or used juice in place of water in the past for a lightly sweet socca and love, love, loved it.  it's texture is light, and almost like a thick crepe with a sort of creamy center because of the garbanzo bean flour.  it's incredibly diverse, crazy adaptable, really healthy, and excellent for clearing out your fridge.  there's really no end to what you can serve socca with or how you can flavor it.  it's super quick and easy too!  i've seen a lot of different recipes floating around with different proportions, temps, and cook times, but i generally follow one basic one and adapt it as i see fit.  here's what i'm currently using:

basic socca

• 1 heaping cup garbanzo bean flour
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 to 1 ts sea salt
• 1 TS olive oil
• 1 TS unsweetened applesauce

whisk all the ingredients together and pour into a 9 inch pan that's been sprayed with cooking spray or lightly greased.  bake in the oven at 375-400 for about 30 minutes or until the top is dry and starting to crackle.  you can take it out and gently flip it at this point and cook for another 10 minutes if you'd like to brown both sides, or you can just leave it on one side.  again, totally adaptable to whatever you're going for.  for this round, i added some garlic powder, rosemary, oregano, and basil to my batter before pouring it into the pan and just cooked it on one side for 30 minutes at 375.  then for the pizza parts, i just added some fresh tomato slices, mushrooms, chopped spinach, black olives, artichokes, a little fresh parsley, fat free feta, and nutritional yeast and threw it back in the oven for another 12 minutes until the tomatoes were soft and the cheese was warm.  i spread a little bit of hummus and greek yogurt on mine as i ate it, too, and that turned into a pretty fancy feast...very mediterranean and very satisfying.  this was soooo yummy and fresh tasting.  super delicious pizza without all the grease and heftiness.  hell.  yes.
all in all, i'd say this was a pretty perfect ending to what ended up being a pretty awesome day.  i hope everyone else had an awesome saturday, too!  feel free to carry the awesome into sunday by breaking out either of these recipes for some weekend wiles tomorrow.  or, for bonus points, why not both?  pancakes and pizza in one day?  you better believe it...

double feature, baby.  that's just how we roll.