Pumpkin Oatmeal Pancakes

It's that time of year to crack open a can or two of cooked pumpkin. The other morning I wanted something really good for breakfast. Not just tasting good, but nutrient good. My husband and kids were eating donuts and bakery grandma rolls. Ugh.

I had a can of pumpkin, so I did a quick online search and found some Pumpkin Oatmeal Pancakes. They were delicious! I added just a little sugar, but with maple syrup you could probably skip it. They are not quite as sweet as the Banana Oatmeal Pancakes from last summer, but bananas are quite a bit sweeter than pumpkin. I also doubled the recipe so I could have a couple in the freezer. Double the recipe made seven pancakes.

I would highly recommend toasting some walnuts just for crunch. I did not this time, but I will next time. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Oatmeal Pancakes

2/3 cup oats

1 egg

1/4 cup pumpkin

1/2 cup almond milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

2 teaspoon agave (I used about 2 t. sugar)

pinch of salt

In a food processor or blender, pulse oatmeal until finely ground (almost flour consistency). Transfer oat flour to a bowl and add remaining ingredients. Whisk to combine. Let batter sit so the oatmeal can absorb the liquid while the pan heats.

Preheat griddle or pancake pan to medium on stove top.  Grease griddle or pan (I used coconut oil) and pour batter on pan by the 1/3 cup. Flip after about 90 seconds until fully cooked. 

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Source: modified from Running to the Kitchen

Oatcakes

What is this, you say, a pancake blog? I know. I am a little obsessed. I do love pancakes. They are such a simple pleasure. And you know I love my grains. This recipe is a great compliment to the Banana Oat Pancakes. On days you don't have a ripe banana, try these. They are very much like your standard wheat pancake, but taste like a bowl of oatmeal. Very yummy. The texture is solid, like a wheat pancake and could stand up to incorporating some blueberries. Of course, if you are gluten-free,make sure your oat flour and oats are gluten free. I make my oat flour in the processor with old-fashioned oats.

Oatcakes

makes 10-12 pancakes

 3/4 cup oat four

3/4 cup quick rolled oats

2 eggs beaten with a fork until bubbly

1 T. melted coconut oil, plus more for frying

1/2 t. salt

2 t. baking powder

2 T. sugar

1 cup milk

In a small saucepan (or a microwave safe dish in the micro) heat milk till hot; stir in oats; let stand for 5 minutes.

In a mixing bowl combine oat flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add oat-milk mixture.

In a small bowl combine eggs and coconut oil; add all at once to flour-oat mixture, stirring just till combined.

  For each pancake, pour about 1/4 cup of the batter onto a hot, lightly greased griddle or heavy skillet. Cook till golden brown, turning to cook other side when pancake has a bubbly surface and slightly dry edges.

How I'm feeling about wheat

You may remember that I have been fasting from wheat (and rye and barley). I've not been diagnosed with any wheat allergy, but I did a little research and read a book about interstitial cystitis (The Better Bladder Book) and made a personal decision to do a trial of fasting from wheat just to see how I felt.

I have been wheat-free for one month.  I felt strongly that there was a possibility that wheat was causing an overal inflammation in my body and that the removal of wheat would allow my body to heal and the pain would go away. I'm sad to say that I feel no different. At least not in the ways I was hoping for. I was hoping for less bladder pain, and less overall achiness. Neither one happened. My bladder feels the same as it did a month ago, and my hips, ankles and feet are just as achy as they were a month ago.

What I have felt is a difference in my hunger and a difference in my cravings. Without wheat, I can go much longer without food without feeling hungry. Today, for example, I ate two breadless meat and veggie rolls (deli roast beef and provolone wrapped in two red leaf lettuce leaves) for lunch and ate nothing again until dinner, with no dips in blood sugar, no weak moments, no belly growls. I did feel very tired, but I have been fighting a cold and sore throat, and I think that was more to blame. I have not craved wheat at all. I went to dinner with my mom tonight at a really nice restaurant and the bread basket didn't tempt me one bit.

I don't crave sugar one bit either. Probably because I have not been eating very much sugar. One thing I have learned since I stopped eating wheat is that wheat, fat, and sugar go together in a very happy trio. Where one goes, you usually find the other two. By not eating wheat I have been eating very little sugar and butter. You would think I would have lost some weight. I don't own a scale so I can't say for sure. My pants feel a little more loose, so maybe a little.

Contrary to predictions in the popular book Wheat Belly I don't think I've lost any inches on my belly. That's unfortunate. Maybe I need to wait longer, but I think a month is a pretty decent amount of time.

What have I learned by giving up wheat? Well, I learned it's not a cure-all. I learned it absolutely causes intense cravings and appetite. I learned that when I eat wheat, I eat more fat and sugar. I learned that even wheat-free treats have a lot of fat and sugar. I learned that it's a lot harder to create a tasty treat (ie baked good) without wheat. All grains are not the same, and rice flours, tapioca flour, potato flour (not technically a grain) do not all taste very good. Not even when you add a lot of butter and sugar to them.

I learned it's really easier to give up all flours than it is to create something equal to a brownie without flour (don't ask me about those black bean brownies). It's crazy combining five or eight other ingredients to try to create the same taste and texture you find in one ingredient -- wheat flour.

So, what am I going to do now? I haven't decided for certain because I haven't tried eating wheat and, ultimately I have to try it again to know if it really causes a problem. If I want to be tested for gluten intolerance I have to eat it again. I could just go on the way I have been not eating it, but, frankly, if I ever want to eat bread again, or enjoy a baked good, it's not going to be some wheat alternative. I'm sure that as time goes on there will be better wheat alternatives, but I tried to create some tasty alternatives and fell flat about 9.5 out of 10 times. I made some really awful stuff (which may account for why I have done very little blogging lately).

I will try wheat again, and soon, just to know how my gut reacts. If I have no pain, no bloating, no gas, I will probably eat wheat again. I will not, hopefully, ever, eat as much as I did before, if for no other reason than I feel like my diet is at least 90% better without wheat. I think I can eat some bread and wheat pasta without compromising how I feel, but I don't think I can have baked goods the way I did before. Wheat truly causes cravings and appetite like nothing else. I ate sugar when I was off wheat, like in these Edy's Fruit Bars, and I never craved sugar. I also had butter, in potatoes and on my Banana Oat Pancakes, and I didn't crave butter. My appetite never changed when I ate butter and sugar. It is definitely different when I eat wheat.

So...that's how I'm feeling about wheat.

Banana Oat Pancakes (Wheat Free, if need be)

I headed into week two of wheat free. So far, no results, but I'm gonna stick with it. I also removed oats from my diet last week, but I really just didn't have my heart in it. I eat a lot of oats. Probably not quantity a lot, but a little here and there, and I had really nothing to fill that gap with. So I added back wheat-free oats this week and I am much happier. I can eat my granola and I can eat these pancakes.

These are a real treat. They are sweet and creamy (from the banana) and filling. I can't help it, I just feel happy with a belly full of grain. I'm like a horse, I guess.

These were also super easy to make, and a great use for those ripe bananas. I bought wheat free oats (not necessary unless you are avoiding wheat) and just whirled them in the processor until they were a coarse flour -- just a minute. They are a little delicate while they are cooking, so take it easy when you're flipping. I topped mine with just a pat of butter and some fresh, sweet blueberries. Syrup is completely optional. The recipe came from cookieandkate.

Just thinking about these delightful pancakes makes me think I might need one for dessert. yum.

 Banana Oat Pancakes

makes 6-8 pancakes

3 small bananas (9.5 ounces), mashed (I used two medium because my bananas are never small)

2 T. coconut oil or butter, melted (I used butter)

1 T. lemon juice 

1 t. honey or maple syrup (I used honey)

2 eggs

1 cup oat flour*

1/2 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (I omitted)

In a medium bowl, stir together the mashed bananas, coconut oil (or butter), lemon juice and honey (or maple syrup).

Beat in the eggs. If your coconut oil goes back to its solid state like mine did at this point, just warm the mixture for short 30 second bursts in the microwave, stirring between each, until it is melted again.

In a smaller bowl, whisk together the oat flour, baking soda, salt and spices.

Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. With a big spoon, stir just until the dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened. Do not overmix or you’ll run the risk of getting tough pancakes.

Let the batter sit for 10 minutes. You may want to thin out the batter a bit with a touch of milk or water, I did not.

Heat a heavy cast iron skillet (or nonstick griddle) over medium-low heat. If necessary, lightly oil the surface with vegetable oil or cooking spray.

Once the surface of the pan is hot enough that a drop of water sizzles on it, pour 1/4 cup of batter onto the pan. Let the pancake cook for about 3 to 4 minutes, until bubbles begin to form around the edges of the cake.

When the pancake is just beginning to set, flip it with a spatula and cook for another 90 seconds or so, until golden brown on both sides.

Source: cookieandkate

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