Making small changes to our routine can be easy but intimidating at the same time. This post will hopefully show you how to turn a simple pancake mix into a healthier meal by making one or more small changes. Instead of buying frozen commercial pancakes, make them from scratch on the weekend and freeze for breakfast during the week.
- Step 1: Make your pancakes with your favorite mix. Follow their directions but cut your flour mix by 1/4 and substitute with equal parts of a whole wheat flour or buckwheat flour. This change will not make a huge difference in the taste of your pancakes. Start small and gradually increase the proportions until you reach a taste you and your family will love.
- Tip: DO NOT ADD SUGAR to make fluffy cakes. This is a common mistake. If you want fluffy pancakes, decrease the liquid.
- Tip: If you want a secret for sweetness, add about a 1 tsp of vanilla extract. You can even substitute coconut oil instead of canola oil for added sweetness.
- Tip: Use milk instead of water for added calcium and vitamin D.
- Step 2: Add a nutritional enhancer (Chia seeds and/or flaxseed meal). I usually add both but you may want to start out with one. The Chia seeds will add a slight crunch. I usually add about a 1/4 cup of each. Chia seeds and flaxseed meal will increase the fiber and add healthy Omega 3 fatty acids.
- Step 3: We always have frozen local blueberries in our freeze for the winter. I take out about 1 cup and cook them on a low heat until they are nice and bubbly.
- Tip: Too many blueberries will make your pancakes stick to the pan due to their water content. I make this mistake all of the time as I LOVE blueberries!
- Step 4: I gently swirl/mix the berries into the batter. I do not mix too much because it turns the batter grayish blue and I like the look of the swirl in my finished product.
- Step 5: Follow the cooking directions on your mix for cooking.
What are you going to put on your pancakes? Have you tried vanilla yogurt or honey? You can also add a little blackstrap molassas to your syrup, honey, or yogurt for added iron but make sure you buy the correct brand as they are not all created equal. We buy House of Herb because it is 70% the RDA of iron. Enjoy!
Click here for my pancake roll up with vanilla yogurt and fresh strawberries.
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