Aaahhh. Pancakes.
The breakfast of champions.
Nothing beats waking up to the aroma of early morning pancakes. Am I right?
For me, this beats the smell of freshly-brewed coffee any day. Well, I don’t drink coffee to begin with, so I’m kind of biased there. But even though I’m not a coffee drinker, I still LOVE the smell of it! Especially, when it’s freshly-grounded! But anyway, back to the subject….
Pancakes.
*(this post was originally published on Jan 2018, but updated with new pics, new recipe, and updated text.)**
My love for pancakes is undeniable. If I’m out having brunch or if I’m at a breakfast joint, the one thing I gotta scope out on the menu is what kind of pancakes do they offer??
Is there a chocolate chip one?? An apple cinnamon?? Blueberry banana??
Even back in my college days, after a night out in SF, we would go to a nearby Denny’s or Ihop, and in my drunken daze, after I finished eating mine, I would scarf down any and all leftover pancakes that my friends couldn’t finish. And if there weren’t any, I would just order another batch all for myself!
I swear, it was like I would never feel full. I could just keep eating and eating like no tomorrow.
Attack of the munchies, for sure!
But then I would wake up the next morning and feel and look like crap.
Then, I would just go to the gym to burn it off, adjust my diet accordingly, and then repeat the cycle all over again the following weekend.
I definitely do not recommended this type of behavior, guys.
But I just love my pancakes. What’s a man gotta do??
Nowadays, I still love pancakes, but if I want to stay the course on my healthier, more natural, high protein, low carb diet, I definitely can’t do the standard pancakes served at the local restaurant, made of high carb all purpose flour, sugar, salt, milk—-and then topped with loads of fatty butter and sugary syrup.
That just can’t happen anymore. Not regularly, at least.
So, how do I fulfill this void and satisfy a pancake craving while still eating healthy?
Enter….. my very own, extra special, Dark Chocolate Chip Blueberry Protein Pancakes!!
These pancakes are loaded with muscle-building protein, lots of fiber, and superfood nutrition!
For me, a pancake just isn’t a pancake if there is no blueberry, cinnamon, or dark chocolate. These are just standard requirements in my book. And plus, these three ingredients are known to be antioxidant powerhouses.
The aroma of cinnamon, and blueberries, and dark chocolate—- when this baby gets cooking, it’s crazily aphrodisiacal if you know what I mean.
Your mouth will be watering and you won’t be able to contain yourself from tearin’ these babies up!
And when you add that warm, melted peanut butter on top, and you watch it as it just oozes over those hotcakes—-
—-just like the Macho Man Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth—–a match made in pancake and peanut butter heaven!
OK, this is what I used for this recipe:
A few notes on the ingredients:
-I like to use a dark chocolate with around a 70% cacao content, for extra flavonoids, polyphenols, and fiber. Studies have shown dark chocolate to have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant benefits. Higher percentage cacao contains more nutrients and minerals than a lower percentage chocolate.
–Blueberries consistently rank as one of the most nutritious foods on the planet. I like to use wild blueberries for these pancakes, because they are smaller than regular blueberries, and like chocolate chips, you can fit more in a pancake.
-I also like to use frozen berries because they are flash frozen at the peak of freshness. All that goodness is preserved in its frozen state, and not exposed to the elements like fresh berries would be, as they are transported to the supermarket. I still use fresh blueberries from time to time, and they will work just as fine for this recipe. I also go organic as much as I can to limit pesticidal residue.
-I used almond flour because of its low carb, high fiber content. Generally, this type of flour contains 5 grams of carbs, and 3 grams of fiber per serving—a great source of fiber!
Also, according to the Diabetes Education Online website, “because fiber is a type of carbohydrate your body can’t digest, it does not affect your blood sugar levels. You should subtract the grams of fiber from the total carbohydrate.” Taking this into account, this means that this almond flour only has 2 grams net carbs per serving! Much leaner than whole wheat flour or oat flour!
–Cinnamon because it gives an added boost to the flavor. Who doesn’t love cinnamon?! And because it’s one of the most highly nutritious spices in the world.
–Whey protein powder gives these pancakes some muscle-building capabilities. I’ve tried different flavors, and in the end, the powder you use doesn’t really impact the taste much. I think the blueberries, the cinnamon, and the dark chocolate definitely overpower whatever flavor the protein is. But, feel free to use whatever flavor you desire. Plant or veggie-based proteins should work just as good.
This dish alone contains 5 of the 8 foods I try to eat on a daily basis—-eggs, blueberries, peanut butter, dark chocolate, whey protein powder. Check out that post here. These foods are chock-full of nutrients, antioxidants, and muscle-building power—a definite must for daily consumption, in my opinion (if whey protein isn’t your thing, then sub in any other veggie or plant protein supplement).
If you like these, then you gotta check out my…
- Ultimate Blueberry Protein Muffins
- Dark Chocolate Blueberry Hazelnut Protein Bars
- Peanut Butter Bananas Foster Protein Pancakes
Alright then, let’s get to it!
| Prep Time | 10 minutes |
| Cook Time | 15 minutes |
| Passive Time | 10 minutes |
| Servings |
pancakes
|
- 1.5 scoop vanilla whey protein powder
- 3/4 cup almond flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1.5 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup blueberries (more if desired!)
- 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips (more if desired!)
- 3/4 banana
- 2 egg whites
- 1 whole egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
- peanut butter (more if desired!)
- blueberries
- dark chocolate chips
- cinnamon
Ingredients
dry ingredients
wet ingredients
topping
|
|
- Preheat a pan on stove top to low/med heat.
- In a large bowl, mash banana with a fork until mushy. Add all wet ingredients. Mix thoroughly.
- In separate bowl, mix protein powder, almond flour, cinnamon and baking powder. Gradually pour into wet ingredients bowl, mixing thoroughly.
- Add in blueberries and chocolate chips. Fully incorporate.
- Once pan is hot enough, measure 1/3 cup of batter and pour onto pan. You should be able to form about 7 pancakes.
- Let cook for about 1-2 minutes, if spatula slides cleanly underneath, flip over.
- Let cook for about 2 minutes. If your spatula slides cleanly under, pancakes should be done. Thicker cakes may need more time.
- Remove pancakes from grill. Pour the melted peanut butter on top of the pancakes. Add additional blueberries, dark chocolate chips, cinnamon on top. Enjoy!
-I use a vanilla flavored whey protein powder for this recipe, but I also use a cookies and cream flavor some other times. Feel free to use any flavor you wish, these pancakes are very adaptable.
-Fresh or frozen berries will work just fine for the batter. I recommend that wild blueberries are best because they are smaller in size---and get the frozen ones!!
-Make sure the pan is oiled up good before pouring the next batch for easier flipping.
-As batter is cooking on the pan, throw in more blueberries or chocolate chips here if desired.
-I like to toss more blueberries on top of the finished product for more fruitfulness. You can add other berries as you wish.
-Sometimes, I also like to add a touch of pure maple syrup on top of the peanut butter for extra sweetness and flavor!
**Nutritional information is an approximation using Nutrifox, information from Google, and my own calculations to the best of my knowledge. It is not the definitive values or guaranteed to be 100% accurate information. Use only as a reference.**
