Happy Pancake Day!

Shrove Tuesday falls on 5 March 2019, so we thought we’d share with you two healthy alternatives to traditional pancake recipes from the creative Miriam at Mimi’s Bowl. The aim of Miriam’s blog is to help parents prepare wholesome, fun food in no time at all - and these recipes definitely fit the bill. Enjoy!

~ Sweetcorn Pancakes 

Wholemeal savoury pancakes are brilliant for any meal. Children love pancakes so it can be a way to add a few extra ingredients into their diets; I also make a version with sweet potato puree and cinnamon, which kids love.These wholemeal pancakes are hearty and filling, I blend half of the sweetcorn into the batter and add the remaining half whole, to create texture. For children who are very sensitive to texture you can blend all the sweetcorn. I use pre-cooked tinned sweetcorn, with no added salt.

 

Ingredients

1 small can salt-free tinned sweetcorn (195g), drained

50g wholemeal flour (you can use plain flour if you prefer)

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 organic egg

50ml milk, dairy or non-dairy

1 tbsp rapeseed oil, for cooking

 

To cook
● Divide the sweetcorn mix into two. Add half the sweetcorn to a blender with the flour, baking powder, egg and milk. Blend until smooth. Add the remaining whole sweetcorn kernels to the pancake mix and combine with a spatula.
● Pour the mix into a jug (you can then pour the pancake mix directly into the frying pan).
● Next take a frying pan and place over a medium heat. Brush the surface of the frying pan with a little oil.
● Pour out small pancakes into the pan, roughly 1 tablespoon of the batter per pancake. Once bubbles appear on the surface of the pancakes, they are ready to turn. Then cook on the other side.
● Cook in batches and remove to kitchen paper to drain.
● Serve with chopped avocado, halved cherry tomatoes and a dollop of natural yogurt.

 

~ Sweet Potato Pancakes

These sweet potato pancakes are golden, crispy and delicious. The sweet potato adds some dietary fibre to the pancakes and also turns the batter the batter a lovely golden colour. I prep the sweet potatoes the night before, so I'm ready to whisk up a quick batter in the morning. 

Ingredients
300g sweet potatoes
200ml milk
2 medium organic eggs
½-1 tsp ground cinnamon
150g self-raising flour
1 tbsp oil, for cooking
Fruit and/or maple syrup (optional)

To cook
● Peel the sweet potatoes and cut into chunks. Boil until tender, then drain and cool.
● Blend the cooked sweet potato with the milk, eggs and cinnamon, then blitz until smooth.
● Sift in the flour and combine.
● Heat a little oil in a pan and with a large spoon or ladle, portion a pancake and drop into the pan, spreading the mix a little into a pancake. (I think thinner pancakes work better for this recipe.) When you start to see bubbles in the pancake surface, turn and cook the other side. Both sides should be golden.
● Repeat until you’ve used up all the batter, adding more oil to the pan as needed.
● Serve with fruit and a drizzle of maple syrup (optional).