Hacking Your Food: Lemon-Chia Pancakes (& a musical interlude)

October 21st, 2012 § 0 comments

If you haven’t caught on yet, autumn brings on that primal mammalian instinct in me, hibernation. With said hibernation comes the overwhelming desire to eat enough food to last me through the winter….each day.

Unfortunately I do not have the metabolism of a svelt young Aphrodite.  Quite the contrary, I lean consistently more towards a curvaceous Boticelli babe than a lean Kate Moss. What to do? Hack your comfort foods.

NOW is the best time to use your great-aunt's china. While you are at it, check out the history of how "china" got its name.

NOW is the best time to use your great-aunt’s china. While you are at it, check out the history of how “china” got its name.

I firmly lean towards the real food movement with a smattering of “eat whatever in moderation”.  What does this mean?  Don’t give up your favorite foods, choose to make them as nutrient dense as your palette will allow but moderate the fats yo.  Then take a passegiata, tomorrow.

I have taken a pancake recipe from one of my blogging faves, the lovely and whimsical Joy the Baker, and real-fooded it up with a few simple hacks.  These pancakes get a boost fiber from the white wheat flour, a smattering of vitamins from using grass-fed dairy as well as an omega-3 and protein punch from the chia seeds.

These are perfect for a lazy Saturday, or, if you freeze and unthaw the batter (fluffy pancake tip!) overnight, an easy Sunday morning.  Perhaps these are best on Saturday if you are like me and rushing to mass on a Sunday morning rather than lounging “Easy” on a Sunday morning (Musical interlude).

Did you know the Dutch word for pancake is pannenkoek? They can be sweet and savory and more like the French crepe. I ate quite a few while visiting the sis in the Netherlands.

Hungry yet?

Lemon-Chia Pancakes

Adapted from a recipe by Joy the Baker

Ingredients:

  • 2 Tbsp Organic Cane Sugar (still worth the splurge in small amounts)
  • 3 Tbsp organic lemon zest (go organic or wash off all those pesticides & wax)
  • 2 cups Flour, Whole Wheat White
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp Sea Salt
  • 2 cups raw whole milk minus 1 Tbsp (for the extra lemon juice)
  • 2 large pastured eggs
  • 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
  • 3 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 3 Tbsp grass-fed butter
  • 2 Tbsp Chia Seeds
  • coconut oil, maple syrup for frying/making decadent
Instructions:
1.     Mash sugar and lemon zest together in small bowl. Set aside to let lemon infuse.
2.     Sift (or mix with whisk) together dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, sea salt
3.     Lightly beat together wet ingredients: eggs, vanilla, milk, lemon juice (Use a tender touch for tender pancakes!)
4.     Mix in lemon sugar
5.     If you can refrigerate batter at this time, it only gets better overnight. If not, set in fridge for a few minutes. Mix chia seeds into batter before frying. Keep them out of batter if refrigerating overnight or freezing as chia seeds will gel up.
6.     Heat up flat cast iron, saute or griddle pan on medium.  When pan is hot, add a Tbsp of coconut oil.
7.     Ladle pancake batter onto pan when oil is melty and slightly sizzling.
8.     Cook a few minutes on each side until golden and toasty or until a chopstick inserted inside comes out clean.
Then, for goodness sake, take out that unused china, add some maple syrup and/or grassfed butter and eat while reading a good book or watching a show!  You need this.
Love,
Sheila

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