Month: July 2020

Pancakes are an all-time favorite comfort food for many, reminding us of the good old days when mom (or dad!) would get up early on the weekends and make a pancake breakfast for the family. If your mom was anything like mine, this breakfast usually included bacon with eggs that were fried in the bacon grease, pancakes cooked in butter and slathered with butter after cooking, then topped with Mrs. Butterworth’s or Log Cabin maple-flavored syrup-like substance made from artificial flavorings and high fructose corn syrup. Yum!

As a kid I thought this was awesome! Anything sweet, buttery or fried tasted great to me. Now that I am all grown up and more educated on diet and the role it plays in my long-term health; I am more mindful about my food choices. However, I still find ways to make amazing and delicious versions of my favorite comfort foods that taste as sinful and decadent as the stuff mom used to make.

Nowadays, when I’m in the mood for something comforting and self-indulgent for breakfast (or sometimes dinner!), I might mix up a batch of pancakes with some fresh and yummy organic toppings. Although I know going in that it’s going to be an indulgence, I am mindful of what ingredients I use and how they will affect my health and wellbeing. The recipe I am sharing here is a perfect combination of healthy and deliciously decadent.

Even though I always use organic non-GMO ingredients, pancakes topped with syrup is still going to be a high glycemic load, so to slow down the sugar spike we need to add fiber, protein and healthy fats. We can achieve this by adding some organic old-fashioned oats, ground flax, hemp hearts, pumpkin and sunflower seeds and toasted coconut flakes, as well as using coconut oil instead of butter to cook our pancakes. If you like, you can also add protein powder in the mix.

I usually use a scoop (1/4 C) of hemp protein powder and a little extra water if it makes the batter too thick. For our topping, we will use peaches and blueberries, which are both low on the glycemic index. For this recipe I used what I had on-hand at the time. You can be creative and use whatever ingredients you have but try to be mindful of the impact of each ingredient. When I first began changing my diet and trying to eat healthier, sometimes I couldn’t resist putting my old favorites in there, like butter and sugar.

But after learning to substitute healthier ingredients and testing the finished products, I realized that I didn’t need to add the unhealthy stuff to make it taste good. This is the beginning of mindful eating. We have to experiment and be willing to give up our addiction to our habitual ways of eating and try new things. We can use this recipe as a mindfulness practice by paying attention to each ingredient that we will use and mindfully listening to our inner voice and noticing what happens during our process.

Just keep your attention in the present moment and follow the recipe, beginning with the gathering of the ingredients, then the mixing of the ingredients, then the cooking of the pancakes and the topping, then to the assembly of your beautiful masterpiece, and finally to the experience of tasting and eating it, slowly enjoying every bite. The Ayurvedic spices we use in this recipe not only boost the intensity of pleasure you get from tasting it, but also boost your health!

Cardamom is great for boosting your digestion and is also used in Ayurveda to reduce gas and bloating.

Cinnamon is used in Ayurveda to increase the bioavailability of nutrients in foods and also acts as an anti-inflammatory and is used to balance the digestive system and pacify stomach issues.

Turmeric is well known for its anti-inflammatory properties and in Ayurveda it is widely used in many ways such as detoxifying the liver, balancing cholesterol, fighting allergies, stimulating digestion, boosting immunity and improving the complexion of the skin.

Nutmeg is used in Ayurveda to stimulate the appetite and boost the digestive fire. Its power is derived from its intense aroma.

In Ayurvedic medicine, the digestive system is the root of all imbalance in the body, and problems with the digestive system lead to disease in the tissues and organs. Stagnation in the system is not good for your health so Ayurveda uses many spices and herbs to insure healthy digestion. The combination of delicious healthful ingredients and Ayurvedic spices in this recipe will not only taste amazing but will serve your mind body and soul with a beautiful blissful experience.

This concoction of mouthwatering ingredients, along with the divine aroma of the Ayurvedic spice mix will wow your senses and send you into a state of taste bud bliss! Enjoy! Breath, live, love, move, eat, grow. Learn, let go, and transform!
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Shopping List

TIP: Buy everything organic.

• • Healthy Organic Non-GMO Pancake Mix: The “just add water” type if possible but the flax will replace the egg if the mix calls for it (eggs are not healthy, they are proven to be linked to heart disease, cancer, diabetes and early death, look it up). I used Birch Benders Organic because I had it on hand. Bob’s Red Mill Organic 7-Grain Pancake Mix is good and very low in sugar.
  • Ground flax seed meal.
  • Organic old-fashioned oats or grandy oats super hemp granola (the former if you are wanting to cut the sugar intake, the later will add 4 grams of sugar to your recipe).
  • Ground spices: cardamom, turmeric, nutmeg, cinnamon.
  • Vanilla extract.
  • 100% pure organic maple syrup.
  • Fresh peach or peaches depending on how many you are cooking for. I used ½ of a small peach for one person.
  • Organic blueberries: ½ cup per person.
  • Fresh mint (optional but amazing).
  • Celtic sea salt or himalayan pink salt.
  • Raw or toasted unsalted sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds (I toast the seeds myself in a dry sauté pan on medium heat, keep shaking and tossing until they are toasted).
  • Organic unsweetened coconut flakes (I toast these in a dry pan on the stove top just like I did the seeds. You can also just buy already toasted unsweetened coconut flakes).
  • Ayurvedic spiced pancakes with fresh peach and blueberry sauce.
  • Recipe is for one serving and makes three 5-6 inch pancakes.

FOR THE PANCAKES

• • ¾ cup organic pancake mix (reduce to ½ cup if using old-fashioned oats instead of granola).
  • 2 tablespoons of ground flax meal (I grind whole flax seeds in my coffee grinder).
  • ¼ cup of grandy oats super hemp coconola granola OR ¼ cup of old-fashioned oats (no instant oatmeal).
  • 2 pinches of ground cardamom.
  • 1 pinch of turmeric.
  • 1 pinch of nutmeg.
  • 1 pinch of cinnamon.
  • ¾ cup of water (a little more if needed for batter consistency when using oats).
  • ½ teaspoon of coconut oil.

Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl and let stand for at least 5 minutes to thicken. Meanwhile, heat a large non-stick skillet or griddle over medium to medium low heat. Once the skillet is hot add the coconut oil and tilt the pan to spread it around. Now pour your batter in and make three even pancakes. You might need to use 2 pans if you don’t have one big enough for 3 pancakes. You should use all of the batter for the 3 pancakes.

Cook until edges are lightly browning and bubbles form all across the top surface of the pancake, then flip and cook on the other side until done. This takes about 5-7 minutes total, depending on the type of heat you have on your stove. While the pancakes are cooking you can make your topping.

FOR THE SAUCE

• • 2 tablespoons of pure 100% organic maple syrup.
  • ½ of fresh organic peach with seed removed, sliced into thin slices.
  • ½ cup of fresh organic blueberries.
  • 1 pinch of ground cardamom.
  • 1 tiny pinch of salt.
  • ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract.

Put all of the ingredients except the vanilla extract into a saucepan and heat it on medium heat, stirring occasionally until sauce is bubbly and turning blue. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract.

FOR THE TOPPINGS

• • ½ tablespoon of toasted pumpkin seeds.
  • ½ tablespoon of toasted sunflower seeds.
  • 1 tablespoon of toasted coconut flakes.
  • 1 teaspoon of hemp hearts.
  • 2-3 fresh mint leaves.

Build Your Pancake Masterpiece

Stack your pancakes on your plate and spoon the fruit out with a slotted spoon and place on top of your stack. Then sprinkle your seeds and hemp hearts over your fruit and pancakes. Then sprinkle your coconut flakes on top of the fruit and garnish with the mint leaves. You can pour the remaining sauce in the plate around your pancakes or pour over the top, however you like.

Once you have finished preparing the pancakes and you’ve plated and topped them with all the ingredients, sit down and prepare to mindfully enjoy each bite. Get all of your senses involved. See the beauty of what you have created, notice the colors and textures and how each ingredient has amazing individualized qualities. Smell the unique and special gifts from mother nature collaborating in this delicious combination of aromas. Taste all of the flavors together and individually. Notice the textures in your mouth and on your tongue. Savor and appreciate this experience as just one of the gifts and blessings of life on Earth.

Enjoy life to the fullest! Be grateful! Choose wisely! Live long! Be healthy!