Tuesday's Dish: Pancakes

Did you know that the average American gains anywhere from 7-10 lbs over the Holidays? That is a lot of extra fluff to be carrying around. To lose that extra fat you would need to burn an additional 35,000 calories!
That equals:

• running 350 miles
• 87.5 hours of circuit training
• walking the dog for 171.6 hours

I don't know about you but I don't have enough time in my schedule to add all that extra exercise into my already full days.

One of the best ways to stay on track with your nutrition is to start the day with a healthy breakfast!

Lola and I are getting ready to head out for a run with the BOB but before we do, we wanted to share what WE had for breakfast today! Add these protein packed pancakes to your breakfast repertoire--you will be glad you did.

The pancake batter recipe is from Oxygen magazine but the blueberry topping is my creation.
Every summer we go blueberry picking many, many times (remember this post?) and I love having bags of frozen blueberries available all winter long. I use them in muffins, oatmeal, pancakes etc.

The warm spices added to the blueberry topping not only tastes delicious but will make your home smell amazing!

Protein Pancakes with Spiced Blueberry Topping

The actual pancakes I devoured this morning!

Batter:
1/2 cup oats
1T flax meal
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
2-3 egg whites
1/3 cup low fat cottage cheese

Blueberry Topping:
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1T water
1T honey
walnuts* optional

Combine the batter ingredients in a blender, using 2 egg whites to start. If the batter is too thick, add the third egg white. It is suggested that you use real egg whites since the carton egg whites will change the consistency of the batter. Let the batter rest for several minutes in the fridge while you prep your sauce and get the pan ready to make the cakes.

In a small sauce pan, add the frozen berries and the water. Bring to a bubble over med heat-once bubbling, add the honey. Add your spices and let the mixture simmer gently while you make your pancakes.

Heat a skillet over med heat-spray with your favorite oil to keep the pancakes from sticking. Add a scoop of batter. Once it starts to bubble along the edges, flip and cook on the other side.

This amount of batter should make 4 4" pancakes or 3 bigger ones.

Top the finished pancakes with the warm blueberry sauce and then top with walnuts (if using).

Enjoy!

Tell me-what is your favorite healthy start to the day??