Your “Sneak Attack” of Healthy Breakfast Deliciousness
– Guest Blog by Lauren Lobley
If you’re a parent - especially one who’s in charge of feeding your children - this recipe is going to save you a lot of time and headaches.
After all, it can be a full time job trying to feed your little ones - and yourself!
Add in the goal of making meals nutritious so your children get the minerals, vitamins and other nutrients they need in order to thrive, and it can sometimes border on overwhelming...
As a trained chef and cookbook author, even I have trouble keeping up with all the cooking and feeding of myself, my husband, my infant son, and my preschool aged daughter. It’s enough to make me want to rip my hair out, and many days, I find myself wanting to melt into a puddle of stressful tears on the floor in my too-small-to-make-so-many-meals kitchen.
But here’s one thing I’ve learned over the years:
Planning is always key.
I do my best to make meal plans, grocery lists, and a weekly schedule that guides when I will make what meals. It’s not a perfect science, but I know this for sure:
During the weeks that I manage to make and stick to a meal plan, my stress level goes from a 10 to about a 4 or 5 (it’s never a 1 or a 2 - and if it is for you, please, tell me your secrets!)
Beyond meal planning, my favorite trick when it comes to feeding myself and my family is to cook foods that can be reheated and repurposed throughout the week. It’s a cook-once-for-the-week kind of plan.
Veggie burgers, soups, lasagnas and casseroles are all great candidates for this kind of cooking. But what about for breakfast?
Pancakes!
I know what you’re thinking: pancakes aren’t healthy! Aha, but you would be mistaken, my friend, because it’s all about the “packaging.”
You can put all sorts of amazing ingredients into a bowl and shape them into circles and call them “pancakes” and suddenly your kids think you’re a hero.
Sure, you might have to include some pure maple syrup in the mix, but if a little spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, well, why not?
Truth be told, this recipe isn’t the absolute healthiest on the planet because it does contain processed gluten free flour, but... I still get to use it as a vehicle to get my daughter to ingest her probiotics.
That’s right, I add in a few capsules of Just Thrive Probiotic to make me feel great about feeding them to my daughter for breakfast. I’m working on adding in spinach and other nutrients, but she’s too smart for that now. At some point soon, I’m going to have to get a little more creative. For now, I’ll take the dose of probiotics as a huge win!
Also - score! - these pancakes keep all week in the fridge, but can also be frozen and available at your convenience whenever you need breakfast in a pinch.
They are also great travel companions not just for their portability, but also because of how clean they are: just eat them like a cookie!
Enough rambling - here is the recipe!
“Sneak Attack” Plant-Based Probiotic Chocolate Chips Pancakes
Ingredients:
- ¾ cup paleo flour (I like Bob’s Red Mills)
- ¼ almond flour
- 1 tbsp arrowroot
- 1 tbsp tapioca starch
- 2 tsp guar gum
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2-3 capsules of Just Thrive Health probiotics (just the powder)
- ¼ cup coconut sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 ½ cups coconut or other non dairy milk
- Coconut oil
- Optional: Dark chocolate chips (I use dark chocolate morsels from Enjoy Life)
*Pro tip: Double the recipe so you have more than enough for the week.*
Directions:
Preheat a pancake griddle or pan to medium heat.
- Mix all the dry ingredients together in a bowl and make sure to get all the lumps out (coconut sugar can be a tad lumpy).
- Add in the wet ingredients. Stir to combine.
- Melt down some coconut oil over your griddle or pan. Take a ¼ measuring cup and use this to portion out the pancake batter onto the pan. Repeat until the pan is full. If using chocolate chips, sprinkle on about 5-7 chocolate chips onto each pancake and press them down gently. If you prefer no chocolate chips, or some other topping like blueberries, you can add these here.
- Once the batter starts to bubble, flip the pancakes over and cook for another minute or two.
- Cook all the pancakes, serve as is or else with pure maple syrup, sliced bananas, or whatever your family likes, and enjoy!
Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Alternatively, freeze them in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Enjoy :)
ALSO: If you're looking for more recipes from Lauren Lobley, you can find them at www.delectableyou.com or visit her YouTube channel for cooking videos. She will also be posting new recipes up on her new website, www.themomfeed.com, so be sure to check that out too. Follow her adventures in cooking and mom life on Instagram @laurenlobley and @themomfeedpodcast
