Banana Nut Pancakes

Posted on December 14, 2011 by Andrea

Me: What kind of pancakes do you want this week?

Him: Something with nuts!

Me: What kind of nuts, pecans or walnuts?

Him: What did we just have with the coffee cake?

Me: Pecans.

Him: Then we should have walnuts.

Me: Done

And this is how Banana Nut or what I lovingly call, my favorite pancakes ever, were born.

Andrea’s Banana Nut Pancakes

1C Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

1C Buckwheat Flour

1tsp Baking Soda

1tsp Cinnamon

2TBSP Sugar

1C Walnuts, crushed

1 Large banana

1C Unsweetened Coconut Milk (the kind in the dairy section, not from a can)

1C Water

2tsp Vanilla Extract

1/2tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

Preheat grilled over medium heat. In a large mixing bowl combine the flours, baking soda, cinnamon, and walnuts and whisk together. In a medium sized mixing bowl combine the water, coconut milk, vinegar, extract, and banana. Mash the banana in the liquids as much as possible.

Add the liquid ingredients to the dry and stir until everything is combined. Grease your griddle with a little oil and drop batter by spoonfuls. The size is up to you! Cook for about three minutes on the first side or until you start seeing several bubbles pop up in the center. Flip and cook for another minute to two minutes. Remove from heat and continue until all the batter has been used.

Whole Wheat Drop Biscuits (Vegan)

Posted on September 12, 2011 by Andrea

I love biscuits. They’re warm and they make me want to eat jam. I’m not a jam person at all but when I have a biscuit, there’s only two things that go with it, gravy or jam. Okay sometimes butter but I would rather have gravy than butter on my biscuit.

Growing up, we didn’t have traditional biscuits. My mom made drop biscuits. Drop biscuits are made without having to knead the dough and adding in butter.

They’re really easy to make and are a nice addition to a meal.

My mom always made them with Bisquick and in the beginning I did as well.

As I started paying more attention to ingredients and eliminating processed food, Bisquick had to go.

Since drop biscuits are so simple to make, there’s no need to use a boxed mix.

Andrea’s Whole Wheat Drop Biscuits

1 1/2C White Whole Wheat Flour

1/2tsp Baking Soda

1/2tsp Baking Powder

A Pinch Of:

Buzzin Bars

Posted on August 19, 2011 by Andrea

Last week Scott left for a business trip that had him away from the house for about a week. He was flying off to San Francisco to geek out about code and be in his element.

Because I knew that eating times might be odd and because I know Scott, this meant he would need to take some food along with him.

He was taking a carry on which meant that the food had to be small, easy to carry, and not prone to spoilage. And since I knew that these could very well be a meal source, I knew that they had to be jam packed with good stuff. Stuff that could get you through a couple of hours.

I like using soaked dates in bars and coffee cakes because it adds a nice sweetness without being over powering. Plus they are a great source of fiber and potassium.

Plus I wanted to do something fun so I added an extra little kick to these bars.

Roasted Veggie and Wheatberry Salad

Posted on June 21, 2011 by Andrea

Roasting veggies and adding it to a grain is one of the simplest ways to make a salad. This could be a side dish or a main dish. It can be made ahead of time for a quick meal or for party prep.

Using veggies that have a lot of moisture in them, like tomatoes and squash will provide you with automatic dressing. No need to make extra sauce or dressing, it’s already built right in!

I love making dishes like this in the summer because they are so versatile. You can use whatever veggies are in season or what you happen to have on hand. You can make a huge portion or a small amount. The dish can be served hot or cold.

As you prep the veggies, you can’t help but be amazed by their gorgeous color. Something that looks that good and also smells good, before you even do anything to it, you know will turn out super tasty.

Pina Colda Pancakes

Posted on April 21, 2011 by Andrea

Earlier this week, I discussed how a recent kitchen flop then lead me to create one of the best pancake flavors to date. Happy day!

I had been toying around with making a summery-themed pancake one that tasted like the sun and reminds you of the beach and drinks with little umbrellas in them.

Or tasted like the sun and reminded you of being pool-side with drinks that had little umbrellas in them.

I’m flexible.

Once I trashed the failed pancakes, I got busy making some Pina Colada inspired pancakes. While I don’t like an actual pina colada, the flavors that make one up are fantastic and can be used in other applications (like smoothies!).

I knew that I could use those flavors in a pancake as well!

Andrea’s Pina Colada Pancakes

1C Spelt Flour

1C Buckwheat Flour

Pinch Ground Cinnamon

1/2C Unsweetened Shredded Coconut

2TBSP Cane Sugar

1/2tsp Baking Soda

1C Pineapple Juice

1/2C SO Delicious Unsweetened Coconut Milk

Sunrise Cookies

Posted on February 3, 2011 by Andrea

When I tell you about these cookies, I’m pretty sure that you are going to think that I have crossed over into crazy land. Let me assure you that I have not.

I have been dreaming of a cookie that I could eat for breakfast for a long time now. Something that I could make ahead and keep in the freezer where I could pull out one or two, heat up quick in the microwave and eat. With my hands and not a fork or spoon.

I wanted a cookie that would make a great on-the-go snack that was low in sugar but loaded with flavor and good stuff.

I wanted something that could be legitimately called a cookie because they were made and eaten just like a regular cookie.

I wanted it to have whole grains and veggies in it.

Stay with me, remember I promised you I wasn’t crazy.

I’m calling these Sunrise Cookies because you can have them first thing in the morning and feel good about starting you day off with a cookie.

Multigrain Pancakes

Posted on January 13, 2011 by Andrea

Our most recent breakfast outing had Scott and I sharing a plate of multigrain pancakes. These were new to the restaurant and I definitely wanted to give them a try. They were delicious and full of wheat germ sprinkled on top. Fluffy and huge making it the perfect thing to share over coffee and conversation.

However I wanted to make my own and you all know that I love me some pancakes. First chance I had, (the following Sunday actually), I made my own batch of multigrain pancakes and they were fab!

Andrea’s Muligrain Pancakes

1C Buckwheat flour

1/2C White Whole Wheat Flour

1/2C Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

2 Heaping TBSP of Ground Flax

2 Heaping TBSP of Wheat Germ

2TBSP Brown Sugar

1tsp Baking Soda

Sprinkle Cinnamon

2 1/4C Apple Cider

Heat griddle over a medium heat. In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients and whisk together. Add in the apple cider and gently stir folding and combing everything. Grease the griddle by your method of choice and drop by spoonfuls some of the batter onto the griddle. When bubbles start forming in the middle (about 2-3 minutes), flip the pancake over, gently. Finishing cooking on the second side, about 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and serve!

Butter and maple syrup went on top of my pancakes and I could not eat them quick enough. Fluffy, sweet, and full of multigrain goodness, I was in pancake heaven. Next time I might use half white whole wheat flour and half buckwheat flour. I may reduce the sugar just a touch as well.

Cranberry Apple Sauce

Posted on November 4, 2010 by Andrea

While growing up, cranberry sauce was a staple at our Thanksgiving meal and truth be told I didn’t like it. We always had the canned version and there was just something about it that didn’t really sit quite right with me. I don’t know if it was the taste or texture, regardless it was a dish that I passed over.

When I started making Thanksgiving dinner for Scott and I, he told me that they always had cranberry sauce too and that he liked it.

Say wha?!

This meant that I needed to supply him with some cranberry sauce. In the beginning, I just bought the canned version and let him go to town. Eventually I came around and stared being able to tolerate it. When OHC was in it’s infancy and before we cut out HFCS, I even used it to make this salad.

Now taking a look at the ingredient list, yikes! Corn syrup and HFCS are the first two ingredients. Ick! That means we stay far away from the canned grocery store version and I had to start experimenting on my own to make cranberry sauce.

Pumpkin Cider Corn Cakes

Posted on October 26, 2010 by Andrea

Pancakes are pretty much on the menu each Sunday here at the HQ. Yes, occasionally we have eggs and sometimes waffles but nothing warms my heart and fills my belly as well as pancakes.

It’s an interesting turn of events really because I was never a real big pancake eater. I ate them and liked them well enough but I didn’t seek them out or love them. My mom would make pancakes from a boxed mix and make them into small silver dollar size rounds.

When I started making pancakes for myself and Scott over a decade ago (holy cow!), I did it the same way my mom did. Then I gave up on pancakes for a while and didn’t really pay much attention to them anymore.

Until now. Now I cannot get enough of the fluffy goodness. I’ve learned that you don’t have to use a box mix. Heck, you don’t even need eggs, milk, or butter to make them!

Read more on Pumpkin Cider Corn Cakes…

At Home Barista: Pumpkin Latte

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Andrea

Since it’s Pumpkin Month it’s about time we get some pumpkin goods up in here, am I right? As soon as the end of August starts getting near and the thought of September hits our consciousness, what does everyone start thinking about?

Pumpkin Lattes!

Don’t play, you know it’s true.

The concept I’m about to discuss is not one that I came up with, I have to acknowledge Mama Pea for this inspiration. Last fall she discovered that a pumpkin latte from Starbucks made with soymilk and no whip is in fact not vegan.

Apparently there is some dry milk or something similar in the pumpkin spice syrup used to flavor the coffee. I’m not really down with that. I’m not vegan by any stretch but my preference for dairy comes in the form of cheese. If I don’t want dairy and I’m actively trying to avoid it in food products, I really don’t appreciate having it snuck in behind my back.