Recipe: healthy breakfast pancakes

Blueberry protein pancake

Get the day off to a healthy start with these protein pancakes packed with oats and egg whites


A NEW Year’s resolution was to make sure my nine-year-old daughter was having her five portions of fruit and veg every day.

Sometimes that is harder to achieve than it sounds, particularly when kids seem to love cereal or toast for breakfast, a sarnie for lunch and pasta or pizza for tea.

So I decided to start at the beginning of the day and introduce more variety – and fruit and veg – into her breakfasts.

Simple ideas so far have included mushroom omelette, mushroom and cheese toastie, healthy oat and raisin muffins and porridge with sultanas, cinnamon and grated apple. Fresh fruit smoothies are a hit too.

But the favourite, by far, has been this protein pancake, made with blended oats, egg white, fat-free yoghurt and a great big handful of blueberries.

There is no fat or sugar in the pancake, so I am relaxed about pouring a small capful of maple syrup over the top.

Despite the lack of flour, this puffs up and cooks just like an American pancake, thanks to the baking powder.

We have used raisins rather than blueberries and they work just as well.


Blueberry protein pancakes

This makes one large pancake (cooked in pancake/omelette pan)

I use a small coffee cup (which holds about 75ml) as my measure


Ingredients

1 cup of raw porridge oats

¾ cup of egg whites (about two egg whites from medium eggs)

1 cup fat-free Greek Yogurt (or cottage cheese)

½ tsp cinnamon

½ tsp baking powder

few drops of vanilla extract (optional)

1 cup of blueberries or raisins/sultanas (with extra for sprinkling over top if desired)

Drizzle of maple syrup or honey (optional)


Method

Pour all ingredients except fruit into a container and blend until smooth (should be like a pancake batter). Add fruit and stir.

Heat pancake or omelette pan (add a bit of butter for colour or if not using a non-stick pan)

Pour in batter and cook on one side until lots of bubbles appear on the top of the batter and the base firms and turns golden brown.

Flip over using a fish slice and cook until base is golden brown.

Lift onto serving plate, top with more fruit and a drizzle of maple syrup or honey if desired.