Cottage Cheese Pancakes {gluten free}

I think these pancakes could fall under the paleo diet guidelines.  Wait, did cavemen eat cottage cheese? Oh well,  I'm pretty sure that cave men ate pancakes. After all they apparently ate muffins, cookies and pie why not pancakes. O.k. so I haven't read up on this new fad. I know it's a pretty basic concept of eating whole foods but as far as trying to figure out exactly what cavemen ate, I'm not sure I really get it. Like coconut for instance? Did cave men eat coconut? Maybe if there were cave men in Hawaii. Coconut is good for you but if cave men didn't eat it then are Paleoians not allowed to eat it either? Why?






These are the random things I think about when I am stalling cleaning the house. I'll bet cave men didn't have to clean their houses errr caves.  The closest to living like a cave man that I get is living with 4 crazy kids running around the house like little neanderthals.

Honestly. Not sure what got me on this subject. Just seeing an awful lot of Paleo recipes out there in the blogosphere. Paleo must be the new gluten free. I'm sure there's some great science behind it.

At any rate, in an effort to reduce our intake of processed carbs/sugars and limit GMO foods in our bodies I have been trying to remake some of our favorite foods without white or wheat flour.

These pancakes turned out to be super easy and tasted great without the wheat flour. Score! Dare I say,

"So easy a caveman can do it!" 

Sorry. Had to.

My mom used to make cottage cheese pancakes for us when we were little. We all loved them. Substituting almond and coconut flour for regular flour adds protein and vitamins. 

Bye Bye wheat belly!

If your thinking cottage cheese sounds really weird in pancakes let me tell you, it's amazing! The pancakes turn out moist and the cottage cheese somehow gets sweet when cooked and tastes very similar to a cream cheese crepe IMO.

Topped with strawberries for extra sweetness and these pancakes will be your new 

favorite healthy breakfast I promise!

*NOTES  I also have used 1 cup spelt flour in place of the almond and coconut flour. Spelt flour is not certified GF but it is a nutritious ancient grain with a deep nut like flavor. Spelt dates back long before many wheat hybrids. Many of its benefits come from the fact that it offers a broader spectrum of nutrients compared to many of its more inbred cousins in the wheat family. It can be used in many of the same ways as wheat including bread and pasta making. Spelt does not seem to cause sensitivities in many people who are intolerant of wheat. 




adapted from my mom's recipe

TIME    15 MINUTES      YIELDS    8-10 SMALL PANCAKES

Cottage Cheese Pancakes {Gluten Free}

Ingredients

4 eggs
1/2 cup plain, fat free yogurt
1 1/2 cups large curd cottage cheese
1/2 cup almond flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
real butter to coat pan


toppings
chopped strawberries
honey
or real maple syrup


Preheat a non-stick pan over medium-high heat.
In a medium bowl, beat eggs, add yogurt and cottage cheese. Sift in flours, baking powder and salt.
Using a 1/4 measuring cup, slowly pour batter into hot skillet. The batter will be thin and spread quickly so pour slowly.

Cook for 3-4 minutes on first side until bubbles cover the top. Flip pancakes over and cook 1-2 minutes more. Lower heat if necessary.

Almond Butter and Banana Pancakes: Simple and Decadent in every way

First off, I have a funny, albeit slightly embarrassing story to tell you about my first experience with Almond butter.

I've always loved cooking and all it entails. For me it is a creative outlet. Chopping, sauteing, deglazing ect. are all de-stressors for me. I love that it is an expression of art in a lot of ways and that you can really change and experiment with the ingredients to create a flavor that is just right for your mood or tastes. Baking however, IMHO is another story. Yes, you can change the ingredients a little for the most part, exchanging one flour for another or a bit of applesauce for some of the butter, but really you usually need to be pretty exact to get a result that was worth your efforts ie. 'A Big Fat Mess' at my house.

Anyway, waaay back when I was just a novice little baker (errhegmmm, a few short years ago), I had some recipe that called for Almond Butter. In my mind, I was thinking it was just regular butter flavored with almonds and so I thought, I can just make my own and save a trip to the store...........

And so, I proceeded to take a cup of butter from the fridge and poured a few teaspoons of almond extract into it and creamed it up into my cookies. I told you, embarrassing.

It wasn't long before 2 and 2 clicked together and I realized that I had created the butteriest, greasiest, most disgusting cookies ever. Pooor cookies. Poor me. So while this was at the time very frustrating and humbling, I did end up discovering what in fact Almond Butter actually was. Goober, I know.

Speaking of what a goober I am, I am probably one of the only people in America who does not like peanut butter. *gasp! 

Never liked PBandJ's or apples with peanut butter as a kid. As a health conscience adult I've tried to like peanut butter, at least with apples or in recipes but it's just not my fav. I do however L.O.V.E. Almond Butter. Go figure.  Almond Butter has a very mild and less 'toasty' taste compared to peanut butter and is very decadent and naturally sweet.

I've listed a Nutritional Comparison Chart below, based on a 2,000 calorie a day diet in case your interested. Both peanut and almond butter are good for you and pretty similar except that Almond Butter has slightly less carbs and saturated fat and quite a bit more Calcium, Iron and Vitamin E.

2 tbsp. Peanut Butter      2 tbsp. Almond Butter

                            Calories                     190                               190

                           Total Fat (g)                 16                                 16

                          Saturated Fat (g)            2                                  1.5

                           Carbs (g)                      7                                    6

                            Fiber (g)                      3                                    4

                           Protein (g)                    8                                    7

                           Calcium                       1%                                  8%

                            Iron                             3%                                 6%

                           Vitamin E                    14%                                40%

                           Folate                           6%                                  6%

Choose baking powder that is aluminum free!

Almond Butter and Banana Pancakes

SERVES 4-6    TIME  15 MINUTES
Ingredients


1 cup Whole Wheat flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder  (*without the aluminum additive!)
1/2 teaspoon salt  (*preferably iodized)
1/2 cup creamy Almond Butter  (preferably Organic)
2 tablespoons sugar  (preferably Organic/Raw)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large egg   (preferably free range)
1 cup milk + 2 tablespoons milk   (*preferably Organic or w/out rHsbt hormone)
2-3 ripe bananas  (don't need to be Organic ;)
tablespoon of butter for griddle.



Directions

In large bowl mix together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In small bowl, whisk together peanut butter, sugar and oil until smooth. Beat in egg, then milk. Add 1 chopped banana.

Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture, stirring just until blended.

Lightly coat griddle or skillet with butter and heat it over medium heat.
Drop batter onto the griddle and cook until tiny bubbles appear on the surface of the pancake, then flip and cook a few minutes more. 

*Careful, these burn easily. I suggest making small pancakes so they won't be undercooked in the middle before they burn.
 
Serve with pure maple syrup and top with sliced bananas and a glass of ice cold chocolate milk!  My 16 year old likes these with jam on top.

 

"Skinny Pancakes"

This was one of my favorite breakfasts in the whole world when I was little. My dad made these for us for a special treat. Today, I make these occasionally through out the year and also as a Christmas morning tradition. I think most people call these crepes, but I like to stick with tradition and so we call these skinny pancakes.  We fill them with either scrambled eggs or just chunky, cinnamon applesauce, roll them up and top them with fresh, pureed strawberries and dust with powdered sugar.
 It doesn't get much better than this when your a kid!

You will need: 

3 eggs
1 1/4 c milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup flour

Putting it all together: 

Whisk together and pour a very thin layer of batter into a hot, buttered non-stick skillet. Roll pan to completley cover the bottom of the pan with batter. Cook till golden brown (about 2 minutes) and flip over to cook other side, about 1 more minute.