Pancake Day is here, and it’s tempting to throw syrup or chocolate spread on your creations. However, with this boot camp guide to healthy pancakes, we hope to make healthy living on Pancake Day slightly easier. If you prefer savoury pancakes, we’ve got you covered with a tasty Mexican wholemeal recipe or, if you have a sweet tooth, an energy boosting oatmeal pancake with all the healthy toppings you can imagine. Enjoy!
Mexican Wholemeal Pancakes
50g plain flour
50g wholemeal flour
1 pinch salt
2 eggs
200ml semi skimmed milk
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 ripe avocados
400g tin red kidney beans, drained
200g tomato salsa
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
150ml soured cream
4 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
Method:
1. To make the pancakes, sift the flours into a mixing bowl, and stir in the pinch of salt. Make a well in the centre and add the eggs, gradually add the water, milk and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and whisk until you have a smooth creamy batter. Cover and leave to stand for 30 minutes.
2. For the filling, peel the avocados, slice in half, remove the stone and dice the flesh roughly. Toss with the kidney beans and salsa. Season to taste. Mix the soured cream with the chopped coriander and set aside.
3. To cook the crepes, heat a 20cm non-stick frying pan and wipe a little of the remaining olive oil in the pan. Whisk the batter again and using a ladle, swirl a thin layer of the batter over the pan – just enough to give a thin coating. Cook for 2 minutes then flip over with a palette knife and cook the other side for a further 2 minutes. Stack onto a warmed serving dish and keep warm while you cook the remaining batter – you should make 8 crepes. Wipe the pan with a little olive oil before you cook each crepe.
4. To assemble, fill each crepe with equal amounts of the avocado and bean mixture. Roll up and top with a dollop of the coriander soured cream.
Healthy Boot Camp Oatmeal Pancakes
125g rolled oats
230ml 1% low-fat buttermilk
125g all-purpose flour
125g whole-wheat flour
50g sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
350ml low-fat/soya milk
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Method:
1. Soak oats in buttermilk in a small bowl for 15 minutes.
2. Combine all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and ground cinnamon in a medium bowl.
3. Whisk eggs together with egg whites in a small bowl, and stir in milk.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and stir.
5. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, and coat with cooking spray. Pour about 120ml batter per pancake onto hot skillet, and cook 2 minutes or until tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked. Flip and cook 2 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Transfer to a plate; keep warm.
6. Cook remaining batter in batches.
Let’s talk toppings.
Avoiding products with high sugar content is difficult on Pancake Day, but it can be made easier through sugar swapping. Choose low fat natural yoghurt instead of cream, or swap jam for your very own home-made berry compote.
The great thing about making pancakes is that they are so versatile. You can use sweet and savoury toppings with dozens of different combinations. You can use whatever fruit you have in your bowl like bananas, oranges, blueberries, kiwi, strawberries, grapes and berries.
