Pancakes are forgiving

 

With a topping of maple syrup, a good pancake is not difficult to make. As my vegan friends already know, you can make delicious pancakes without eggs. Previously I've substituted for eggs with flaxseed, another time I used Greek yogurt because of the thick consistency, but today I had no egg, flaxseed nor Greek yogurt. I made the pancakes anyway as we just returned from vacation the day before and our refrigerator was still a little bare.

Here are the ingredients I used:

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup almond meal
1 cup vanilla almond milk
2 Tbsp (approximately) natural apple sauce (just finished what was in the jar)
2 tsp baking powder
good sprinkling of cinnamon

The end result? Yummy and filling pancakes.

The photo is a whole wheat and flax recipe from skiptomylou.org. I think they look delicious!

Action Item: Make pancakes tomorrow. It's faster than you might remember!

Anytime Meal

Ron comes home from a long workout and heads to the kitchen to refuel. It's usually always eggs, avocado and green chile sauce. Sometimes he eats that on whole-wheat toast other times he just chops it all up. Well, I didn't want to miss out so after my next bike ride, I came home and made my own yummy creation (minus the green chile sauce, but I could substitute salsa instead). He's pretty smart... it's filling, it's yummy and good for you too. My recommendation - make your own similar healthy, protein-packed meal for breakfast, post-workout, whenever. Enjoy!

Action Item: Take time to eat a meal if you are hungry. Snacking and grazing will only lead to overeating. If you really only have time to "grab" something, make sure it's appropriate - hydrate well, and pick items such as nuts, cheese, carrot sticks and hummus or a piece of fruit.

For Further Reading: What to Eat Before and After a Workout from Fitness Magazine and The Many Health Benefits of Avocado from Mercola.com.

No Eggs? No Problem.

A few people have mentioned to me about using flaxseed as an egg replacement, and I had never tried it until this morning. While making pancakes, I was about to use flaxseed meal to replace some of the flour when I remembered that I can use it instead of the egg! It worked great for pancakes, and the taste was great. My son ate three of them!

Eggs have more protein, but flaxseeds have fiber so use what works best for your diet. Use flaxseed if you are trying to get more Omega-3 fatty acids* in your diet, if you are out of eggs, or if you are cutting back on cholesterol and saturated fat intake.

Care2.com explains that flaxseeds are a nutritional powerhouse and sneaking some into baked goods is an easy way to get some of their wonderful nutrients into your diet. Read on for an easy tip on how to substitute flaxseeds for eggs.
 Flaxseeds are rich in alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), an essential fatty acid that appears to be beneficial for heart disease, inflammatory bowel disease, arthritis and a variety of other health conditions. They also contains a group of chemicals called lignans that may play a role in the prevention of cancer.

With all of this goodness, it seems like a great idea to get flaxseeds into one’s diet in any way possible.

To replace one egg:
1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds
3 tablespoons water (or other liquid)

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Stir together until thick and gelatinous.

You can also use whole flaxseeds:
1 tablespoon whole flaxseeds
4 tablespoons water (or other liquid) Process seeds in a blender to a fine meal, add liquid and blend well. You can make a bigger batch by increasing the ingredient amounts. Store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

*According to MayoClinic.com, flaxseeds contain a precursor to omega-3 fatty acids. These fats play a critical role in your brain function, growth and development. They may also reduce inflammation in your body and lower your risk of developing chronic diseases such as cancer, heart disease and arthritis, according the University of Maryland Medical Center. Most eggs from the grocery store don't have a significant omega-3 content, however hens that are free range and eat a large amount of grasses tend to lay eggs with a high omega-3 content. --SF Gate Flaxseed vs Eggs


Action Item: Try this in one of your baking recipes. The articles below give some helpful advice when using flaxseed.

For Further Reading: Flaxseed vs. Eggs and Flaxseed Egg Substitute