Four Ingredient Banana Bread Pancakes

This is probably one of the simplest breakfasts I make. While I do still love my other pancake recipe, this one is truly my favorite. Not only is it easy to make and incredibly delicious, it's gluten-free and totally healthy! The pancakes are soft and fluffy and taste remarkably like banana bread. Bananas are the sugar-free vegan's savior, because they're so sweet that you almost never need to use an additional sweetener (for example, banana ice cream - way better tasting than any non-dairy ice cream you can buy, and all naturally sweetened). I usually add chopped walnuts and occasionally chocolate chips, but feel free to add a spoonful of any nut butter, different types of nuts or candies, or really anything you can imagine - it's a good recipe to experiment with! Eating these pancakes is the perfect way to start the day! 

Four Ingredient Banana Bread Pancakes 

• 1 medium banana
• 1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• optional: 1 tablespoon each nuts, chocolate chips, carob chips, etc.

1) In a small bowl, mash the banana with the back of a fork until it's as smooth as you can possibly get it. Stir in flaxseed, vanilla, baking powder, and optional fillings until combined.

2) Lightly oil a non-stick frying pan and warm over medium heat. Pour batter into three pancakes (or you could try cooking one giant one, but it won't flip well) and cook for 5 to 6 minutes, until the underside is cooked. Flip and cook for several more minutes. 

Post-Valentine's Day Crepes with Nutella

 

I had meant to post this on February 15th, when I made these crepes, but I never got around to it. I'm not much of a Valentine's Day person. I neither love nor hate it; for me, it really just seems like any other day, only with a better excuse for eating large quantities of chocolate (shout out to my lovely mother for buying me a chocolate bar on Thursday!). My Valentine's Day consisted of chocolate, a seitan roast, and a Lost marathon. Not too bad in my opinion! 

 

But the next day, I decided to make something sort of Valentine's-ish, and made some crepes. Actually, these crepes are really Ployes, which are a type of pancake. It comes as a pancake flour mix (the only ingredients are buckwheat flour, wheat flour, baking powder, and salt), sort of like much healthier version of Bisquick. To make the pancakes, all you do is mix in some water (no eggs or milk required!), and cook in a pan for a minute or two. It's almost ridiculous how simple they are to make. You don't even need to flip them while cooking! They're surprisingly low in calories, with three 5" pancakes equaling only 95 calores. Ployes are fantastic, not just for dessert, but for dinner too. I often serve them with curry dishes, as they soak up the flavors so well.  Anyway, to make the crepes, I added just a tiny bit of sugar to the batter, cooked them, and served them with raspberry jelly and some vegan Nutella, which I made using this delicious recipe by Chocolate Covered Katie (actually, I used a mix of pecans and cashews because, let's be honest, no one just happens to have hazelnuts on hand). Ployes are made by a local company and probably can't be found outside of New England, but if you ever happen to come across some, I'd really recommend buying a bag (or order it online here).

Single-Serving Pancakes

I almost let another full week go by without posting anything here, but thankfully these fantastic pancakes I made this morning prevented that. I really don't know what's gotten into me. I promise I won't let my lack of blogging go on for much longer!

Anyway, this recipe is really pretty superb. As in, I would it eat every day if I could. Keep in mind though, this is not a particularly low-calorie food, especially if you're like me and you like to drown your pancakes in maple syrup. They brown a little better if you include the oil, but they won't taste drastically different if you substitute it for more nondairy milk. I served mine with syrup (of course!), strawberries, and a mixture of ground up walnuts and flaxseeds (which has a surprisingly good flavor?). 

Single-Serving Pancakes

• 1/4 cup + 3 tablespoons flour (white whole wheat, all-purpose, or a combination of both)
• 1 tablespoon organic sugar or stevia sugar substitute 
• 1/2 tsp Ener-g egg replacer (if you absolutely hate Ener-g, you can leave it out, but it's really much better if you use it)
• 1/8 tsp baking powder 
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup + 3 tablespoons nondairy milk
• 1 tablespoon canola or other mild-tasting oil (or more nondairy milk for a lower fat version)
• 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
• drop of almond extract

In a bowl, combine dry ingredients. Add liquids and whisk until combined. Pour batter onto a greased non-stick skillet and cook over medium heat for several minutes, until bubbles appear. Flip and cook for several more minutes, until both sides are a nice shade of golden brown.