Multigrain Pancakes

I tend to get made fun of for my pancakes.  Not by my kids, but by my loving husband.  He eats them, but claims they are too thick to be called pancakes.  Forgive me for not making the flapjacks you'll find in most restaurants.  For those who know me, you know I am going to cram as much nutrition into every bite I can.  Nutrient dense foods are the only way to go.  You never know what the kids will choose to eat sometimes.  So, I intend to make the most of each bite.  Besides, I think they taste better too.  We all benefit from it!  Pancakes are just one example where I have shunned the mixes in order to add my own healthier (okay, fiber rich) ingredients.  We use pancakes for both breakfast and dinner (when we have breakfast for dinner nights).  I usually couple them with heated frozen fruit that I mash up a bit as an alternative to maple syrup.  Once in a while, the kids will go for it.  If I know the fruit "syrup" will be a harder sell, I will also serve fresh fruit as a tray so there are many choices from which to choose.  They will ALWAYS go for that!

Before the pumpkin pancakes (which has finally given me a way to get some vitamin A sources back into the baby diet again) this was my favorite pancake recipe.  It's time to preserve it, as the printout I have is getting harder and harder to read!  I found it, once again, on allrecipes.com.

• 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup cornmeal
• 2 teaspoons granular no-calorie sucralose sweetener (e.g., Splenda ®)--(I use regular sugar)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 egg whites-- (I use one whole egg)
• 2 tablespoons plain nonfat yogurt
• 2 tablespoons skim milk
• 2 tablespoons water

1. In a medium bowl, stir together the whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, oats, cornmeal, sweetener, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, milk and water. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, and mix just until moistened.
2. Heat a skillet over medium heat, and coat with cooking spray. Pour about 1/3 cup of batter per pancake onto the skillet. Cook until bubbles begin to form in the center, then flip and cook until browned on the other side.

Strawberry Muffins

These were taken off the lid of a StonyField Farms yogurt container.  They also have a website, which I haven't perused in a while full of great recipes.  You may be seeing more of their recipes soon!  We love yogurt, and really can't keep enough of it in the house.  I love that these muffins use whole wheat flour as well-- it speaks to my fiber lovin' heart!  These were moist, delicious, and gone in a flash!

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 eggs
1 cup Stoynfield lowfat plain yogurt
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped strawberries

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 12 muffin tin or line it with paper baking cups. In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar and baking soda. In another bowl, stir together eggs, yogurt, melted butter and vanilla until blended. Toss the strawberries with the flour mixture. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture and stir until the flour is just moistened. The batter will be lumpy. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups. Bake for 20 ? 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Yields 12 muffins. 

Peach-Nectarine Muffins

I love peaches and nectarines and can't wait for their season to get here.  Unfortunately (or fortunately) my kids don't seem to share the same love affair I have with them.  Weird kids, I know.  So, last season, I found this recipe to use up some of the hoards of nectarines I had on hand before they spoiled.  I found the recipe on allrecipes.com.  The recipe was good unaltered.  It could be "healthed-up" a bit, however, by using whole wheat flour (or at least half all purpose and half whole wheat) and perhaps trying to use light vanilla or plain yogurt or applesauce in place of the oil. Otherwise, it is super yummy as written, and has been a great treat for everyone here!

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 large ripe peach - peeled, pitted and diced
• 1 very ripe nectarine, pitted and diced
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease 8 muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Add vegetable oil, egg and milk; mix well. Fold in diced peach and nectarine. Fill each muffin tin to the top with muffin mix. Sprinkle a little brown sugar onto the top of each uncooked muffin.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes. Check muffins regularly after 15 minutes of baking. Serve warm or cool.

Cream Cheese Carrot Muffins

These muffins were quite literally almost gone before leaving the oven! Okay, not quite, but I'm pretty sure the kids were putting names on each of them to make sure they'd get some.  Another great recipe from Full Bellies Happy Kids.  When I make them again, I will try substituting Oikos yogurt for the oil (or any yogurt I have lying around) and MAYBE (if i'm feeling daring at all) decrease the amount of sugar in them.  Otherwise completely, perfectly, YUMMY!

1 can (15 ounces) sliced carrots, drained
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1-1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon each ground allspice, cloves and nutmeg
egg
1/3 cup canola oil
FILLING:
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/4 cup sugar

1. Preheat oven at 350°.
2. Place carrots in a food processor; cover and process until smooth.
3. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and spices.
4. In a small bowl, whisk the pureed carrots, egg and oil; stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened.
5. Fill 12 greased muffin cups one-third full.
6. In a small bowl, beat the filling ingredients until smooth.  Drop by tablespoonfuls into the center of each muffin.
7. Top with remaining batter.
8. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack. Serve warm. Refrigerate leftovers.
Yield: 1 dozen.

Pumpkin Pancakes

Oh my goodness! These were so delicious. I sometimes have a hard time getting the kids to eat pancakes, but these are like eating muffins or maybe cake! YUM!! No topping necessary for these scrumptious flat cakes! A big thank you to Julia for posting these and the tag couldn't be more accurate... they are kid-tastic!

1 cup flour
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 egg
1 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
2 tbsp butter, melted and cooled, plus 1 tbsp for the skillet

1. Preheat a large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat. In a bowl, stir together all the dry ingredients.
2. In a large bowl, beat the egg for 30 seconds. Add yogurt, pumpkin puree, and 2 tbsp melted butter and beat well.
3. Stir in dry ingredients and beat just until combined.
4. Grease skillet lightly with butter. Pour 1/4 cup batter per pancake; flip with spatula when tops bubble and edges are slightly dry. Cook until other side is golden brown, 23 mins per side.

Note 1: I didn't this time, but would definitely add ground flax seeds to the flour mixture. They'll never know!!

Note 2: I ended up using what was left over from the can of pumpkin I used when I made the Pasta with Creamy Pumpkin Sauce-- it was a perfect amount!