Sweet & Savory ~~ "Poppy's Pancakes"

Truth be known, I've never been much of a pancake fan no matter where they were prepared or served until my husband fired up the recipe below.  Then I became a believer!  The reason that I disliked pancakes prior to this time is because most of them were too heavy or tasteless.  There is a key ingredient that makes these as light and fluffy as can be in addition to being heart healthy. Perhaps I should qualify that last statement.  The "heart healthy" would probably depend upon how much butter and syrup you applied to each one.  So, please accept my challenge and plan to prepare this recipe for anyone you know who does not order pancakes from the restaurant menu or declines your weekend breakfast invitation.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 extra large egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/8 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 Tbsp. pure maple syrup
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 2/3 cup old fashioned oats (not the quick cooking variety)
• 1 1/3 cups buttermilk
• 3/4 cup white whole-wheat flour
• 1/2 cup blueberries, optional - to be served on top of cooked pancakes
• 1/4 cup walnuts, optional - to be served on top of cooked pancakes

DIRECTIONS:

• Preheat griddle to 400 degrees.
• Combine oats with buttermilk and let stand in small bowl for 12 minutes.
• Spoon flour into a measuring cup and level with a butter knife.
• Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon, stirring well.
• Lightly beat extra large egg in small bowl.
• Add the maple syrup and vanilla.
• Stir this into the oat mixture.
• Combine the oat mixture and the flour mixture, stirring until just blended.
• Using 1/4 cup measuring cup, pour batter onto preheated griddle.
• Cook about 3 minutes until bubbles appear on top of the pancakes and the edges look somewhat dried out.  Using pancake turner, flip the pancakes to the other side and cook for about 2 minutes.
• This recipe yields about 6 medium sized pancakes.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS:

• Serve with other fruits such as bananas, cranberries, peaches, etc.
• I like to butter the pancakes, apply a small amount of pure maple syrup, and then add the blueberries and heart healthy walnuts on top.
• These make great snacks or leftovers.

SECRET INGREDIENT:

• The key to this entire exercise/project is the white, whole-wheat flour.  It is sold as pastry flour in some stores, but please check the label to make sure it reads, "white, whole-wheat flour."  What's in a name? Well, it depends on the name.  And in this case, that's the exact name.

Happy Dining!

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Sweet & Savory Tuesday - Nutritious Breakfast Cookies

INGREDIENTS:

• Shortening
• 1/2 cup butter, softened at room temperature
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (I use crunchy style)
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt, optional
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 cup rolled oats, non-instant variety
• 1 cup dried fruit such as apricots, bananas, cranberries, etc.
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

DIRECTIONS:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Grease cookie sheet with shortening.  (If you're using a stoneware pan, you don't need to grease it.)
• Place butter in large mixing bowl and beat until creamy.
• Add brown sugar and mix until well blended, scraping sides if necessary.
• Add eggs and vanilla.  Mix on medium speed until combined.
• Add the peanut butter and mix until well blended.
• Place the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Stir with a wooden spoon or small whisk.
• Stir flour mixture into the egg mixture.
• Stir in oats, fruit, and chopped nuts.
• Drop dough 2 inches apart onto baking sheet.
• Cook for 13-16 minutes or until cookie edges begin to brown. 

HELPFUL HINTS:

• I double the recipe and freeze the extra cookies if I have any left over.
• These are great to eat during your morning commute or pack in your lunch.
• This is a fun recipe to experiment with by adding additional dried fruits, nuts, seeds, etc.
• I especially like the peanut butter addition.
• Other types of flours can be substituted for the whole wheat; however, you would need to experiment as to determine exactly how much to add.

Here's to a Healthy Breakfast which is the most important meal of your day!

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Sweet & Savory Thursday ~~ Breakfast In A Pint Jar

                                                   
                                                          BREAKFAST IN A PINT JAR


INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup uncooked rolled oats - non instant variety
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 and 1/2 tsp. chia seeds
• cut up fruit of your choice such as 5 prunes
• additional 1/4 cup fruit such as blueberries
• 1/4 cup yogurt
• 3/4 cup water OR 1 cup milk
• 1/2 tsp. honey
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil

DIRECTIONS:

• Stir the oatmeal, cinnamon, and chia seeds together in bottom of jar.
• Layer the remainder of the ingredients in pint jar in above-listed order.
• Stir all ingredients inside jar before placing in refrigerator in order to get the olive oil thoroughly mixed into the other ingredients.
• Refrigerate overnight.

HELPFUL HINTS & SUGGESTIONS:

• The chia seeds will expand a little bit during the refrigeration process.
• You won't be able to taste the olive oil when eating this oatmeal concoction.
• It is usually the perfect consistency when you open the jar the next morning and prepare to eat your breakfast.
• The oatmeal does its magic inside the pint jar overnight in the refrigerator as it absorbs either the milk or the water.

The above picture reflects what the refrigerated mixture looks like the next morning when you prepare to enjoy your breakfast!

This recipe is taken from the official Sheila Fabulous Collection.

Happy Reading & Healthy Eating!

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Sweet & Savory Friday ~~ Blackberry Crisp

Blackberry Crisp

Ingredients:

• 2 - 1 lb. bags of frozen berries or 6 cups fresh berries                 
• 2 cups brown sugar                                                                        
• 2 cups oatmeal  (not the quick cooking variety)                                                                         
• 2 cups white flour
• 1 tsp. salt, optional
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 sticks butter (1 cup)

Directions:

• Spray a 10 inch pie plate or a 9 x 9 inch square baking pan lightly with cooking spray. 
• Place berries in pan.  
• Mix dry ingredients in a bowl and blend in butter with a fork or pastry blender.
• When mixture is crumbly, spread it thickly over the berries. 
• Bake at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until hot and topping is browned.

Helpful Hints:

Serves 6 and can be easily doubled.  Blackberries may be substituted with a variety of other fruit or berries.  I have an old 10 inch round Corning Ware® oven pan with 2 inch sides that I use to make this recipe and it works very well.  Since I like to make it with a lot of “topping”, I use a pan with “tall enough sideboards”, so to speak, so that when the crumble mixture is initially placed on top and before it sinks down a bit during the cooking process, it does not fall over the sides of the cooking container and onto the counter.

Serve warm with Cool Whip® or ice cream!  Enjoy!  

From the Official Recipe Collection of “Sheila Fabulous”

I would enjoy hearing from you if you try the recipe and like it or if you have a variation of this same basic recipe with some other helpful hints!

Happy Reading & Eating.

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