Banana Oatmeal Pancakes

 

If you look back at my posts from last summer, you will see that, on the weekends, I was a little pancake obsessed. Working endlessly to create a healthier version of a chocolate chip pancake, I finally created a recipe that I loved. That is until, I came up with this gem of a recipe this past Saturday. I didn't want chocolate; I wanted banana oatmeal pancakes. And I wanted them to be light, fluffy, and healthified. So here it is, my newly improved pancake recipe:

Be sure to drink a cup of coffee, like a boss, while enjoying these pancakes.

Ingredients:
1 cup light soy milk
2 T fat free vanilla Greek yogurt
2 egg whites
1 T vanilla extract
2/3 cup quick cooking oats
2/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 t baking soda
1 1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 T cinnamon
1 T chia seeds
1 banana sliced



What to do:
1. Put on a soothing pandora station, such as Mumford and Sons, so that you are able to enjoy your pancake making in the best way possible.
2. Whisk together the egg whites, vanilla, soy milk, and greek yogurt in a medium bowl.
3. Stir together the remaining ingredients (except for the banana) in a separate bowl.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, and mix until combined.
5. Heat a skillet pan on Medium low heat, and spray the pan with cooking spray
6. Slice a ripe banana thinly Set aside.
7. Scoop about 1/2 cup of batter into the pan, and push the batter out into a circular shape using a spatula.
8. Add a few slices of banana on top of the batter in the pan.

9. Once the pancake begins to bubble, check to see if the under side is browned using a spatula. If it is, give the pancake a quick flip.
10. Add a few more slices of banana straight to the actual skillet to heat them up and give them a bit of a carmelization.
11. Once the under side of the pancake is nice and brown, transfer the pancake to a plate and top with the carmelized banana slices.
12. Serve with greek yogurt, syrup, blueberries, or whatever your heart desires.

WIAW: A Plethora of Eats

Goooood day, and happy WIAW!! This is the most excited I have been for What I Ate Wednesday in ages because 1. I have been a good little blogger and have been documenting my recent eats, 2. I've been eating some deliciously nutritious foods, 3. I have days and days of eats to share, and 4. I have been doing some experimenting in the kitchen. Who wouldn't be excited? (side note... I just accidentally capitalized the K in kitchen, like it's some holy place or something.... ) Anywho, a big thanks to Jenn over at Peas and Crayons for hosting the party.

And thanks to her for her recent instagram pics. Loving that little ferret she has :) I recently joined the instagram fiesta, and I am completely obsessed. I like to find any reason to post a pic. It's addicting. Follow my crazy and sometimes mundane (depends on the day...) life @kaitlintheresa44. Now back to the food...

 Saturday morning, I decided to treat myself to some homemade healthified banana oatmeal pancakes. These were just lovely and kept me full until dinner.

 Dinner on Saturday was perfect and delicious. An eggwhite omelet with crumbled Trader Joe's Meatless Meatballs, and peppers topped with 1/2 a sliced avocado. Leftover roasted potatoes, carrots, and onions were had on the side along with some salsa.

Sunday Morning, I had healthified banana pancakes again, except this time I didn't use maple syrup as a topper. I didn't want that much sugar (I noticed my hands swelling Saturday morning from a sugaa ovaload.) I heated up about 1/2 cup of frozen blueberries, added a teaspoon of maple syrup, and a packet of truvia, mixed, and poured over the pancakes. DE-VINE. Shoulda done that from the get-go. Perfect, light, fluffy. Yum. Sorry no picture. These were DEVOURED in .10 seconds flat.

Sunday Dinner was a fried egg topped with a sprinkle of freshly grated cheddar cheese, a side of heated lentils, a side of seasoned frozen broccoli, and a small salad consisting of spring mix, feta, carrots, celery, and tomatoes topped off with balsamic glaze.

 

WORK WEEK EATS.....

Breakfasts: Recently, every morning has looked like this. A coffee with soy milk, truvia, and pumpkin spice, a Lemon Zest Luna Bar, and a banana. Filling, sweet, and a bit of protein in there. I'm working to a healthier, on-the-go breakfast, but for now, I will stick to this combo.

 Lunches: Salads on salads on salads. Each day has started with the same base of spring mix, lentils, and cottage cheese topped with balsamic glaze, but each day has a bit of a variation. Monday was leftover black beans, peppers, and chiplets from Golden Globe Nachos on Sunday.

Tuesday was the basic base with the addition of chopped radishes, carrots, and celery mixed in with the spring mix.

Today's lunch is the base with the addition of roasted frozen brussel sprouts leftover from last nights dinner. (Blogger is refusing to let me make this picture smaller, so the result is HUGE, in your FACE, BRUSSEL SPROUTS!)

Friday I brought home soup from work to have for dinner with a fried egg on the side. It consisted of black beans (hence the purple hue), quinoa, farro, and cabbage.

Thursday Dinner: PROTEIN SHAKE!! My dad introduced these to me last week, and I have been loving coming up with different combos! This guy is full of light soy milk, ice, frozen blueberries, 1/2 frozen banana, chia seeds, cinnamon, and 2 scoops chocolate protein powder. Perfect dinner following a sweaty gym sesh when I am not feeling up to eating anything solid or cooking in the kitchen. Thank you, Ninja blender.

Clearly still loving the Protein Smoothies on Tuesday as well. (and Snapchat... but that's a whole other obsession to deal with on another day...) This smoothie was a bit different than my usual. It had light soy milk, a handful of kale, 1 cup of Welch's frozen mixed berries (sour and sweet cherries, blackberries, blueberries, and strawberries), 1 packet of truvia, 2 scoops of vanilla protein powder, ice, and chia seeds. This is my favorite thus far. I think it may be the vanilla protein powder. It smells like cake mix. YUM.

 Fried egg on the side for good measure.

Last night, I wanted something more substantial than a smoothie. I microwaved a sweet potato for 1 minute 30 seconds, and then threw it into the toaster oven, which was preheated to 375 degrees, while I prepped the rest of my dinner (about 20 minutes or so). I made an egg white omelet with 3 crumbled TJ's meatless meatballs and cottage cheese. Lastly, I nuked some frozen b-sprouts, then threw a bit of olive oil, garlic salt, and pepper over top, and tossed them into the toaster oven along with the sweet potato. Lovely, well rounded meal :)

 

 

Props to anyone who read through all of that.... #longwinded.

Or maybe you just scrolled through all the pics? Haha.

Regardless, thanks for stopping by!

Anyone have a favorite post work-out dinner?

WIAW: resolutions

A new year comes with all kinds of cliches...fresh start, new year new you, clean slate, new beginnings....and I, for one, am not falling privy to any of the above have taken on all of the above.

My resolutions include cleaner eating, more movement, new ways of thinking, and a better attitude. And I have to say... So far so good!! I think I've been doing pretty good with the clean eating, eating mostly whole foods, and less frozen/prepackaged foods (though you'll see below some habits die hard... Sorry but trader joes meatless meatballs are the best thing that has happened to vegetarians in a time constraint who need am extra protein punch!!) I've gone to the gym 4 out of the past 6 days, and have started feeling better about myself. Enough about all that though, you all came here to party! Not to hear me ramble on.

As always, thanks to the beautiful Jenn for hosting these bloggy shenanigans each week. I have to admit, I've been a slacker in the posting department with WIAW lately, but I always drop by to see what's happening each week. Here's a look into my cliche "new year, new me" eats!

Clean Grocery Shopping!!! BEST. DAY. EVER. So satisfying unpacking these groceries, and proud to say that I've gone through about half of this pile of goodness. Nom.

Post Work Out Smoothie- Blueberries, Soy Milk, Ice, Chocolate Whey Protein Powder, Cinnamon, Chia Seeds, and Oats

Breakfast Tuesday Morning- Lemon Zest Luna Bar, Grapes, and Coffee with Soy Milk, Pumpkin Spice, and Truvia

Can't get through the day without a seltzer!

Dinner Monday Night- A monster salad with roasted brussel sprouts, roasted brocolli, roasted kale, lentils, feta, crushed up lentil chips, romaine lettuce, olive oil, and balsamic glaze. AMAZING.

Roasting veggies every night!

Recent Desserts- A few squares of Trader Joe's Organic Dark Chocolate.

Tuesday Lunch- Trader Joe's Meatless Meatballs with Spaghetti Squash and Tomoto Sauce. Doesn't look too appealing, but it's quite delicious and definitely satisfying.

Tupperware on tupperware. All day, every day.

Coffee with a few friends on Sunday included a Grande Soy Latte. I don't know why, but Starbucks, HANDS DOWN, has theee best Soy Latte. I can't get over them. So yum.

Breakfasts last week included good ole' Rolled Oats, Quick Cooking Oats, Soy Milk, Chia Seeds, Raisins, Truvia, and Pumpkin Spice. Honestly, I think I killed this combo over the summer. I don't seem to be as much of a fan lately.

Perfect cups of "Signature Crema Coffee" (no dairy!) with Soy Milk, Pumpkin Spice, and Truvia.

What are your New Year's Resolutions?

How have you been keeping up with them?

What's your go-to healthy meal during the week?