Breakfast with s Smile

One of the best things about getting pancakes at a diner is the whipped cream smiley face. There’s something about a steaming hot stack of smiling pancakes that just makes kids want to squeal with delight.  This month we’re reinventing the smiling pancake stack by cutting the flour in half and replacing it with oats and using baked in fruit instead of the whip. This smiley-faced reci-pea is guaranteed to warm the house and belly even if there is a blizzard outside!

 Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup quick cooking oats

¼ tsp cinnamon

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp of salt

2 cups milk

1 Tbs maple syrup

1 Tbs lemon juice or vinegar

3 Tbs canola oil

½ tsp of salt

An assortment of sliced fruit for the pancake faces (bananas, strawberries, kiwi and blueberries make the best faces and taste great in the pancake batter.

Method:

Pour milk into a bowl. Add lemon juice or vinegar and set aside for 5-10 minutes.  (This is a simple and inexpensive way to make buttermilk).

Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Stir in all wet ingredients (including the buttermilk that was just made) taking care not to over mix.

Preheat a large skillet on medium heat. Lightly coat the pan with canola oil. Pour about ¼ cup batter into the pan for each pancake. Cook about 3 minutes, or until bubbles form on top and sides are a little dry. Place your fruit into the pancake to create a silly face. Flip, and cook another minute or until pancake is cooked all the way through.

Makes 6-8 pancakes

Heart Healthy Hotcakes

Here's a nutritious twist on an all-time kid favorite: pancakes! These nutty, fluffy flapjacks might just become your household's Sunday morning favorite.

Buckwheat supplies magnesium, which is critical in bone growth and in the function of metabolism, nerves, bones and muscles. Buckwheat is also a great source of lysine, a building block of protein, which is particularly important in a vegetarian diet.

Be sure to sift the dry ingredients (to distribute the baking powder) to ensure that these wholesome hotcakes come out nice and fluffy. Serve these pancakes with warm applesauce or apple butter or any fruit in season.

• 1 cup buckwheat flour
• 1/3 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/3 cup all purpose flour
• 2 Tbs sugar
• 1 Tbs baking powder
• 1/2 tspn salt
• 2 large eggs, separated
• 2 Tbs melted butter or vegetable oil
• 1 cup milk (substitute soy or almond milk)
• 3/4 cup buttermilk or plain yogurt

In a large bowl sift together flours, sugar, baking powder and salt. Using an electric hand mixer, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. In another bowl, beat egg yolks and butter/oil until light in color and thick like mayonnaise. Slowly whist in the milk and yogurt until foamy, a couple of minutes. Add milk mixture to flour mixture and stir prudently; but do not over-mix. Fold in egg whites just until the white streaks are mostly gone; a few small lumps are fine.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat until a few drops of water dance on its surface. Spray pan with non-stick spray and spoon the batter into the pan. Cook until bubbles form and pop, about 2 minutes. Carefully flip pancakes and cook until well colored on other side, another minute or two more.

Stir-ins: Add up to 1/2 cup of a cooked grain like quinoa, brown rice, steel-cut oatmeal or millet to the batter before folding in egg whites. Replace up to 1/2 cup of any flour(s) with an equal amount of cornmeal, rolled oats, oat bran or wheat bran in Step 1.