Paleo Pumkin Pancakes That Are Pretty Decent

Improvising foodie pics. 

I’m not much of a genius in the kitchen. If there’s a recipe for it, if it’s nuke-able, or comes out of a box, I can make it. Most of my meals are prepared in 30-minutes or less because I don’t like to spend a lot of time cooking.

Since starting on the Whole Life Challenge, I had to not just change the way I cook and eat, but also how I think about food. No more skipping meals, like breakfast, because of time constraints and dinner should be eaten before 7 p.m. So, I’ve stuck to the same menu items because of ease, convenience and budget.

Basically, my diet has been mostly eggs with nitrate free bacon or sausage and peppers for breakfast; and meat, eggs, fruits, and veggies for lunch and dinner.

Although I pre-make my lunch/dinner, I make breakfast fresh every morning. I dislike the taste of lukewarm eggs and nuking them dries them out. However, on the mornings I’m running short on time, I end up either skipping breakfast or grabbing a piece of fruit and black coffee.

Really, I need more than a banana and black coffee. Seriously, I don’t even know what I’m thinking with that banana. It’s like trying to paint a smile on bitterness. I needed to find something I could take with me and heat up at work on the mornings I don’t have time to make breakfast – that wouldn’t taste like cardboard or dried eggs.

To be perfectly honest, I’m not a big fan of eggs anyway. In the last four weeks, I’ve eaten more eggs than in my entire life up to this point. So, I really wanted to find something like a Paleo doughnut or breakfast cake recipe that didn’t taste like eggs because I like those two things and really don’t like eggs that much.

Preferably something with icing on top.

What I found instead is the next best thing: Paleo Pumkin Pancakes. Finally, out of all the Paleo sites spamming my inbox, one of them sent me something I can use.

As I scanned the recipe, there were a just a few ingredients I that I just can’t have on the performance level: sugar, milk, flour, pumpkin spice – basically anything that would add a richer flavor to the food to ensure I might actually like it … right?

With my limited knowledge of how ingredients work in recipes, I knew I’d be cutting those items out and replacing them. Thinking back to the paleo coconut blueberry muffins I made before the challenge, I had an idea to sub those ingredients with ones approved for the performance level of the challenge.

I used coconut flour, Stevia and almond milk, but left out the pumpkin spice – mainly because I’m not sure what it is and if there are health benefits. Also, just a note: a little bit of Stevia goes a LONG way.

Something that is not mentioned on the Challenge list is approved spices – there’s not even a mention of salt and pepper to flavor food. But the recipe called for cinnamon. Cinnamon is GOOD for you: Cinnamon provides high amounts of calcium and fiber. Also, one teaspoon provides a whopping 22 percent of the daily recommended value in manganese.

What does manganese do for you? A lot, actually. Manganese is a trace mineral that helps the body form strong bones, connective tissues, and sex hormones, and coagulates the blood properly. It helps metabolize fat and carbohydrates, regulate blood sugar, absorb calcium, and is essential for optimal brain and nerve function. As if that's not enough, it’s also a component of the antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase, which helps neutralize free radicals that can damage cell membranes and DNA. Proper levels of manganese have been linked to the prevention of diabetes, arthritis, epilepsy, and even PMS.

Soooo, I’m allowing it since it’s technically not a sweetener and has a bunch of health benefits, although there’s probably not enough in the recipe to do all of that jazzy stuff I just mentioned.

What you’re gonna need:

¼ cup pumpkin puree

1 egg

½ cup coconut flour (or almond flour)

½ tbsp Stevia

2 tbsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

pinch of nutmeg

(if you’re on a different level of the challenge, add the pumpkin spice and try 1 cup of rice flour instead for a gluten free recipe)

Directions

Whisk pumpkin and egg together until smooth

Add in remaining ingredients and whisk until smooth

Using coconut oil to grease the pan, make them like you would regular pancakes

Makes 6 medium size pancakes or a lot of minis 

Enjoy with Maple syrup, fruit preserves or plain

Just some notes:

I used ½ cup coconut flour. If it’s too watery, add a little bit more until it has a thick consistency. Like pancake mix. Remember, a little bit of Stevia goes a long way. Also, if you’re on the mid- to low-level challenge, you can add stuff like real sugar or honey, pumpkin spice and real milk.

All the food I’ve eaten up to this point has been pretty bland and my goal with these pancakes was to add something with a little more flavor to my diet. These pancakes definitely taste great. You can refrigerate or freeze them for take-and-go meals, but they taste better fresh.

I’m thinking about using this recipe to make them into muffins. If I don’t ruin my oven or burn my kitchen down, I’ll let y’all know how that turns out.