Apple Oatmeal Pancakes

It's a cold, rainy October morning in Virginia - perfect for some apple pancakes, a cup of coffee and a newspaper.

These pancakes are delish and full of fiber, so they'll fill you up. I doubled them this morning so I can pop them in the toaster for breakfast during the week... give 'em a try if you have some time and apples!

Apple Oatmeal Pancakes

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup all purpose flour

2 t baking powder

1/4 t salt

1/2 cup oats

1 T brown sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 cup milk

1/2 cup grated apple

3 T melted butter

Stick butter to grease griddle

Whisk together the dry ingredients in one bowl. In another bowl, combine milk and butter well. Add eggs to liquid and whisk, then add apples and stir. Create a well in the dry ingredients and add liquid; stir until just combined. Let sit for 5-10 minutes. This time allows the oats to soften and for your batter to "grow" and become slightly bubbly.

While your batter is sitting, heat a griddle on the stove top on low heat. The griddle is hot enough when a splash of water sizzles. Just before pouring your batter on the griddle, quickly rub the end of a stick of butter on the griddle to grease. Using a one-quarter cup measuring cup, pour batter into small circles, about 4-5 in. diameter. Let the pancakes cook until bubbles have burst and flip. Re-grease in between batches of pancakes.

Top with spiced apples, applesauce and/or syrup.

Makes about 12 pancakes.

Sweet Potato Pancakes

I am a big fan of breakfast. BIG. Every weekend I make pancakes. And while blueberry are the time-tested favorite around here, I am always up for trying something new. For me, making pancakes is an art, and one of the few I've perfected. In fact, I could probably devote an entire blog to my adventures with pancakes but I'll file that thought away for a rainy day. In the meantime, I'll tell you about this week's latest pancake creation that came about, once again, as a result of my son's affinity for bread and vegetables in masquerade.

Case Study #2 (see Sweet Potato Salad for #1): my son is still refusing sweet potatoes (as well as several other vegetables) as of late. This week I opened up a can of Glory's Sweet Potato casserole as a last ditch for vegetables on a there's-a-tired-boy-and-not-enough-time-to-cook evening. I've never had sweet potato casserole from a can but when I bought it months ago, I thought it might be a nice alternative to baby food. He tried it, I tried it, and quite honestly, I couldn't blame him for not wanting to eat it: overly sweet, weird aftertaste, it just didn't hold a candle to fresh sweet potatoes or a homemade casserole. After all, it was in a can.

But I hate waste so I saved it, determined to do something with it. I contemplated a sweet potato quick bread and muffins, but both required more effort and more fat than I wasn't interested in at the time. And so the next day, at 2 p.m., I made a batch of sweet potato and raisin pancakes, still thinking it would be a great way to sneak those fruits and veggies into my son. Moreover, what's great about these pancakes is that they are made with whole-grains, are low in fat, and are an easy make-ahead meal - I freeze them so they can be popped in the toaster for a quick breakfast or anytime snack.

Sweet Potato and Raisin Pancakes

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup wheat flour

1 T sugar (*omit if your sweet potatoes contain sugar)

2 t baking powder

1/2 t cinnamon

1 cup low fat milk

2 T melted butter

1 egg beaten

1 cup canned or mashed sweet potatoes

1/4 raisins

DIRECTIONS:

Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl. In another bowl (or large glass measuring cup) combine wet ingredients. Words of wisdom: be careful not to add the egg to hot, melted butter or you'll have scrambled eggs. Add wet ingredients to dry and stir until just moist. Do not over mix. Let batter sit for 5-10 minutes.

Lightly coat your griddle with cooking spray or butter. To give your 'cakes that buttery taste without all the butter, quickly rub the griddle with the end of a stick of butter just before pouring batter. Pour batter on and cook until bubbles begin to burst. Flip the cakes and cook until golden. Top your pancakes with yogurt and/or syrup for a delicious wake up call. You will have approximately 12, light and fluffy pancakes in no time flat.