Recipe Post: Sunday Morning Primal Pancakes

Oh. My. Goodness.  I made primal pancakes for breakfast this morning. They were so fantastic. I modified a recipe that I found on Mark's Daily Apple. 

Fitgirl's Sunday Morning Primal Pancake Recipe

Ingredients

1 small ripe banana

1/3 cup almond flour

Splash almond milk (unsweetened)

Dash cinnamon

Capful vanilla extract

Sugar-Free Syrup (I like Carey's)

1/4 cup fresh blueberries

4-5 pecans

Directions

1. Preheat griddle to 400 degrees.

2. Mash 1/2 of the ripe banana in a bowl.

3. Add cinnamon & vanilla to the mashed banana, and stir together until well incorporated.

4. Add almond flour and mix together.

5. Put splash of coconut oil or PAM onto hot griddle.

6. Pour pancake batter onto hot griddle.  It is best to keep pancakes small in size so that they cook well.

7. Wait until the pancake edges turn brown in color and then flip the pancakes.

8. Top with butter, sugar-free syrup, remaining 1/2 banana, blueberries, and 4 crushed pecans.

The original recipe called for 1 egg, which I omitted since I already had a side of scrambled eggs ready to go with breakfast. I was in heaven eating this breakfast! My batter yielded 2 small pancakes. I also used the wrong measuring cup for my blueberries, and wound up topping with 1/3 cup instead of 1/4 cup.  Oh well :-).  My batter seemed to need to cook for quite some time in order to cook fully (maybe because of the missing egg) and were kind of dense.  Next time, I will try to add an egg white, beaten to stiff peaks to try to make them more fluffy.  My nephews are visiting for the summer, and I can't wait to give these a try for them.

If you are interested in the original recipe, follow this link to see the original recipe & article from Mark's Daily Apple : http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-many-uses-of-almond-meal/

Enjoy!

Sharing Recipe: Coconut Pumpkin Soup with Sea Scallops

As I mentioned a few posts back, I'm striving to go on more of a paleo diet for the next 30 days. I am actually trying to follow and learn about Mark Sisson's Primal Diet.  Well, tonight I made a coconut pumpkin soup with sea scallops for dinner. Oh my goodness, it was simply outstanding, not to mention so quick and easy to make.  I was literally licking my bowl as I ate my dinner - lol.  If this is eating primal, then where have you been all of my life??!!  Side Note: I made a pizza for my BF's dinner. I tasted a small slice, and it did not hold the same level of satisfaction that it once did. It didn't even taste good to me anymore, which is remarkable because the pizza that I cooked actually used to be my favorite.  It's only been a few days of eating "primal," and my palate has already noticeably changed. I actually find my primal meals to be so much more satisfying and filling than when I often enjoyed and craved pasta, breads, and rice.  The sugar cravings are also going away. I find comfort knowing that I can have a bit of fresh almond butter and dark chocolate to fight the cravings. A small serving is all that it takes.  Anyway, I wanted to share the recipe for the soup.  I wasn't sure if I was going to like coconut milk or coconut-anything, as I'm not a fan of coconut, but it was very tasty!

Coconut Pumpkin Soup with Ginger-Garlic Sea Scallops

Ingredients

1/2 lb sea scallops

1 small can Canned Pumpkin (organic if you can. My grocery store only had Libby brand)

3/4 can Coconut Milk (I used Taste of Thai brand Lite Coconut Milk)

3 cloves of Garlic, chopped

1T fresh ginger, chopped
Coconut oil and/or EVOO
Sea Salt & Pepper for seasoning
Handful of Blanched & Slivered Almonds, toasted (I only had whole, raw almonds. I crushed them and toasted.)
Fresh Basil & Cilantro for garnish

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400-degrees.
2. Rinse and pat dry scallops. Put them in a shallow dish and coat with EVOO. Season lightly with salt & pepper. I added a salt-free garlic & herb seasoning that I created as well. Top with garlic and ginger. Mix well and let sit for a few minutes to marinate.  (This marinade made the scallops burst with flavor! Simply outstanding!)
3. While the scallops are marinating, prepare the soup base.  Pour the canned pumpkin and coconut milk in a saucepan. Heat slowly to a simmer. Season lightly with salt & pepper to taste. Do not let the coconut milk come to a boil, as it will separate.  Allow to warm while you prepare the rest of the meal.
4. Line a cookie sheet or baking dish with parchment paper. Add the almonds to the pan and place into the hot oven to toast/warm. Watch them carefully so that they don't burn.
5. Heat 1 teaspoon of coconut oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  Once hot, add scallops and all of the yummy ginger-garlic marinade. Cook the scallops 3-4 minutes per side, depending upon the size of the scallops.
6. Prepare soup bowls by adding soup base and 3-4 scallops per bowl (get some of that yummy ginger-garlic in that bowl as well).  Top with almonds, fresh basil, and fresh cilantro.

Sit down, kick back, and Enjoy!!

I did not think that I would be full after eating a bowl of this, but I was.  I even had enough leftover for another bowl.  I'll plan to eat it for lunch tomorrow.

On another note, I found myself feeling really tired today. I didn't sleep well, and I was hungry for a large part of the day. I kept putting off my workout, and I was simply exhausted and unable to perform when my clients left tonight.  I'll get a good night's sleep tonight and come back refreshed for tomorrow. I had a really great workout planned, too!

Sharing Recipe: Gluten-Free Dessert Crepes

In my discussion with my nutrition coach on Friday, he suggested that I may have an issue with wheat/gluten sensitivity and intolerance. This is not the first time this has been suggested to me. He actually recommended that I start following either a gluten-free diet or a paleo diet.  I decided to give it a shot.  Anyway, I was craving dessert last night, and I came up with this dessert crepe creation. 

I actually used to treat myself by going to a dessert crepe shop and getting a strawberry-banana dessert crepe with ice cream and nutella. I came up with a much healther option, without the sugar, fat, or gluten!  It was a nice treat. Let me know if you try it!

FitGirl's Dessert Crepe Recipe

Ingredients

1 Gluten-Free Tortilla (I used Food-For-Life's Gluten-Free Brown Rice Tortilla)

Strawberries (3-4 depending on size), sliced
Almond Nut Butter (just enough to lightly spread on tortilla)
Frozen Cool-Whip Lite (or Rediwhip)
Optional: 1 square of dark chocolate, broken into smaller pieces (99% would be great, but 80% at least, to cut down on the sugar...and just 1 square :-)!! I used World Market's 99% Dark Chocolate Bar)
Optional: Banana slices (I used 1/4 of a small banana)

Directions:

1. Warm the tortilla in the microwave. I used about 30 seconds, and the toritlla was frozen.

2. Spread nut butter on the tortilla. I used just enough to cover about 3/4 of the tortilla.
3. Add sliced strawberries. If you're eating bananas, add those next. (I must admit that I used 1/4 of a small banana...couldn't resist!)
4. Put dollops of frozen Cool-Whip on the tortilla. (I used 2 dollups, approx 2.5 teaspoons.) I also think that Rediwhip could work, but it won't have the same consistency as frozen lite cool whip. I compared the two to see if they were similar in terms of sugar, calories, etc.
5. If using dark chocolate, sprinkle it on top or strategically position your chocolate pieces.
6. Fold and eat!

This was so yummy. It actually made quite a large (and filling) dessert. I recommend half as a single serving size, and sharing the other half. Alternatively, you could just use half of the tortilla for a single serving.

Enjoy!