Sweet Potato Pancakes

My little one wanted pancakes again this morning and I had some leftover mashed sweet potatoes from last night's dinner, so I obliged her with Sweet Potato Pancakes, and they turned out quite yummy if I must say so myself. She also loves her pancakes heart-shaped, thus the picture.


Sweet Potato Pancakes

Copyright 2012 Brendilly Bakes, All rights reserved

2 1/2 cups White Whole Wheat Flour
4 t. Baking Powder
2 T. Brown Sugar
1 heaping t. Cinnamon
1/2t. freshly grated Nutmeg
3 T. Flaxseed Meal
1 cup Milk
1 cup Heavy Cream
1/4 cup Canola Oil
2 Eggs
1 C. Mashed Sweet Potatoes (Recipe follows)

In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients and mix well with a wire whisk. In a large glass measuring bowl/cup (such as a Pyrex), measure the milk, cream, oil, and eggs; combine well. Add sweet potatoes to milk mixture and whisk until smooth and incorporated. Add liquid ingredients to dry ingredients and mix well.

Drop by half-ladelfuls (approx. 1/3 cup) onto heated non-stick skillet or a 300 degree griddle. Cook until bubbles form, flip, and continue cooking until done. Serve with real butter (better for you than margarine) and pure maple syrup. Enjoy!


MASHED SWEET POTATOES
To peel or not to peel, that is the question.........and my answer is NOT. First off, peeling potatoes is a lot of work and that just doesn't appeal to a lazy person like me. Second, most of the nutrients in potatoes are in the peel. Third, I LIKE the peel. So, why would I put myself through a labor intensive chore in order to rob myself of something I like that's good for me? I wouldn't. You, however, must decide for yourself whether perfectly smooth and creamy potatoes with less nutritional value is worth the work. It's still a free country. Take advantage of it. :-) So, now that the politics are out of the way, here for you, is my recipe for non-peeled mashed sweet potatoes.

3 med. sized sweet potatoes
Water
Salt
Pepper
Heavy Cream
Maple Syrup

Wash and cut sweet potatoes into a large pot and cover with water. Set to boil. Once boiling, lower heat, cover and simmer until fork tender. Drain potatoes and pour into a bowl. Add butter, heavy cream, salt, pepper, and maple syrup to taste. Mash slightly with beaters before turning on the hand-mixer, then beat on medium speed until smooth.

I really feel the need to apologize here. I am notorious for not measuring when I cook. The only place I measure is in baking (it's a much more exact science). I cook by instinct and senses, and that just comes from experience. I've been cooking since I was 9 and I am now 51 - you do the math, because I'm terrible at it. Start with small amounts; look, smell, taste. Does it need a little more? Add a LITTLE more, then; look, smell, taste......until it's just the way you want it. It is so much easier to add more than to take out if you add too much. After a while, you just come to know how much is too much and how little is too little. The biggest thing is, don't be afraid. There are fixes for some things we mess up, and there is the trash can and takeout for things we can't fix. Cooking is about expression (yes, it's a bit of an art) and having fun. So, HAVE FUN!

Buon appetito! :-)

Brendilly's Banana Pancakes

This morning, my 5-year old granddaughter wanted pancakes for breakfast. We decided on banana pancakes and I set to work. Pancakes are a lot of fun because once you have the basics down, you can add just about anything to them and make them all kinds of different ways. Here for your enjoyment, is my latest rendition of the banana pancake.

Brendilly's Banana Pancakes
Copyright 2012 Brendilly Bakes, All rights reserved

1 C. Milk
3 T. Fresh Lemon Juice
2 cups White Whole-Wheat Flour
2 t. Baking Powder
1-1/2 t. Ground Cinnamon
1 t. Kosher Salt
1 t. Grated Lemon Zest
1/2 C. Sour Cream
1/4 C. Agave nectar
2 Eggs
1 t. Vanilla Extract
1 T. Torani caramel flavored syrup
4 Ripe Bananas, coarsely mashed (so you have banana lumps in your pancakes)

DIRECTIONS: In a bowl or quart measuring glass, pour lemon juice and milk, and let sit while you mix the dry ingredients.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, lemon zest, and cinnamon.
To the milk and lemon mixture add; sour cream, eggs, vanilla, Agave, and caramel syrup. Whisk until well combined.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones, mixing only until combined.
Fold in the mashed banana.
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet or on a griddle over medium-low heat (300 on an electric griddle). Ladle the pancake batter into the pan to make 3 or 4 pancakes. Batter will be thick, so spread the pancakes out a bit as your ladling. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until bubbles appear on top and the underside is nicely browned. Flip the pancakes and then cook for another minute until browned. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel, add more butter to the pan, and continue cooking pancakes until all the batter is used. Serve with butter and maple syrup.








Pancake syrups abound on grocery store shelves, but for my money, there's no skimping on the real thing. For one thing, real maple syrup is typically not processed and therefore contains higher levels of potentially beneficial minerals including, copper, potassium, and calcium. Real maple syrup also has a higher antioxidant content than processed sugar, which is found in many of the counterfeit syrups. From what I understand, the body also assimilates pure maple syrup much slower than processed sweeteners, which translates to "better for you". One of the major differences between pure maple syrup and the others is taste. The real thing does taste different, like farm-fresh eggs or fresh cow's milk taste different than their processed counter-parts. Trust me though, it's good, and once you get used to it you won't want to go back. Give it a try......maybe on these yummy banana pancakes, and see what you think. :-)

Pumpkin Pancakes

One of my favorite ways to celebrate fall is with pumpkin pancakes! I have searched far and wide for a good recipe and I think I may have finally come up with it. They're sweet, but not too sweet, and they have a definite pumpkininess. This batter is thick, so kind of spread it out a bit when you drop it onto the griddle or fry pan. Don't be tempted to thin it out. It's part of what makes these pancakes light and fluffy.

Serve with warm maple syrup for a true taste of fall! Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups fat-free evaporated milk
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons apple-cider vinegar
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
4 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
Chocolate chips (if desired)


DIRECTIONS:
1. In a bowl, mix together the milk, pumpkin, egg, oil and vinegar. Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon and salt in a separate bowl. Stir into the pumpkin mixture just enough to combine.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/3 cup for each pancake. Drop chocolate chips onto each pancake if desired. Brown on both sides and serve hot.