Easy No Flour High Protein Pancakes

Who doesn’t love pancakes? Thin or thick, high-stack or scattered medallions, pancakes continue to be a breakfast favorite and evoke happiness and celebration. With more and more people focusing on what they put in their bodies and following low carb, low fat, no sugar, gluten free diets, can pancakes really be a healthful breakfast option? The answer is YES, and you probably already have the key ingredients in your fridge and pantry.

While some healthier pancake recipes call for something other than bleached all-purpose flour, such as wheat flour or even cassava flour, the recipe below uses oat “flour”, something you can make yourself by throwing old fashioned oats (not instant) in a food processor or blender and processing them into a powder.  Eggs and Greek yogurt provide protein, making these pancakes a great post workout meal, and with no sugar added to the batter, you can go a little heavier on the fruit garnish and glugs of maple syrup.

• 2/3 cup oat “flour”
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2/3 cup plain full-fat Greek yogurt (avoid nonfat as it will make the batter runny)
• 2 large eggs
• 1-2 Tbsp coconut oil or other oil with high smoke point
• Sliced fresh strawberries, bananas or blueberries for garnish
• Maple syrup or honey

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients and stir until incorporated.
2. Add yogurt and, using a spatula, mix into the dry ingredients until a paste forms. Crack in the two eggs and stir, mixing thoroughly until you no longer see the yellow yolk.
3. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and add one tablespoon of the coconut oil. Make sure the pan is hot before adding the batter.
4. Using a 1/4 measuring cup, pour several dollops of batter into the skillet, careful not to crowd the pan, and cook 1-2 minutes per side.  Pancakes should be browned on each side and tender in the middle.  Add more coconut oil to the pan as you go through all of the batter.
5. Serve with fruit and syrup or honey. Makes two servings.

TIPS:

• Try to not flip the pancakes too early. Let them cook the 1-2 minutes without checking underneath. You will see the edges bubble when they are ready to be flipped.
• The pan may smoke a bit, so be sure to have your fan on or a window open.