Apple-Banana-Cinnamon Oat Pancakes + The Weekend of ABC’s

That’s right, these are your ABC’s in pancake form. Let’s be honest, I’d rather eat my ABC’s than sing them and this is the perfect solution to make sure that happens. Since Dan is off in PA celebrating our niece’s 1st birthday (Happy birthday, June!), and I am stuck here in Chicago due to overpriced airfare, I figured I’d best make this weekend alone count.

Friday night began with Sun Salutations A and B at Corepower in a steamy 103° and ended with a delicious veggie sandwich and the documentary Forks Over Knives. I woke up this morning and decided to revisit Jillian Michaels after ditching her for yoga the last three weeks and in comparison to the yogis and yoginas that have been guiding my workouts recently, she seemed extra mean. Thus, I decided that my sensitive soul deserved to be nurtured back to its pre-Jillian state with a breakfast that was more indulgent than my usual oatmeal or yogurt. However, Forks Over Knives scared the vegetarian out of me, so I decided that these pancakes needed to be vegan and I tossed in gluten free for good measure.

The result is a fluffy, gooey, cinnamon-y, belly-filling, heartwarming pancake.

Healthy really can be delicious…

Apple-Banana-Cinnamon Oat Pancakes (Serves 2)

For pancakes:

◊ 2 ripe bananas, mashed

◊ 2 tsp lemon juice

◊ 1 tsp honey

◊ 2 chia eggs*

◊ 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk (I used sweetened)

◊ 1 tsp vanilla extract

◊ 1 cup oat flour*

◊ 1 tsp baking powder

◊ 1/2 tsp salt

◊ 1/2 tsp cinnamon

For Apple-Cinnamon Topping:

◊ 1 apple, peeled and chopped

◊ 1/2 tsp cinnamon

◊ 2 tsp honey

1. Combine bananas, lemon juice, honey, chia eggs, almond milk, and vanilla extract in a small bowl.

2. In a medium bowl, combine oat flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.

3. Create a well in the dry ingredients and add in the wet ingredients. Whisk together until combined, but do not overmix. Add in additional almond milk if needed.

4. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Pour 1/3 cup of batter into pan at a time. cook for 2-3 minutes on first side or until little bubbles form around edges of pancake. Flip pancake and continue to cook on other side for another 1-2 minutes or until golden brown.

5. While pancakes are cooking, combine apples, cinnamon, and honey in a sauce pan over medium heat and cook for 5-7 minutes or until apples have softened.

6. Serve pancakes in a stack topped with apple-cinnamon compote and a drizzle of maple syrup.

* To make one chia egg, combine 1 tbsp freshly ground chia seeds with 3 tbsp water and let stand for 5-10 minutes. Oat flour can be made by grinding old-fashioned oats in a food processor.