Coconut Paleo Protein Pancakes

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I was still sleeping at 8am when my husband walked into the room and said, "I'm going to the store for milk. Do you want anything?"

And I did. I sure as hell did. I must have been nose deep in some culinary dreams, because I sprang out of bed with visions of paleo pancakes swimming through my head. I had almost everything, you see, but a few things would make it perfect.

You know, the good things. Like dark chocolate and maple syrup.

And so off I went, makeup-less and crazy haired, glasses smooshed to my face, because I was AWAKE now that pancakes were in the mix.

They did not disappoint.

Coconut Paleo Protein Pancakes
Ingredients:
1/4 cup Coconut Flour
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp Coconut Milk
2 eggs
2 egg whites
1 tbsp flax seed
1/2 scoop protein powder (appx 1.5 tbsp)

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender and mix until well combined.
2. Grease a cooking pan with coconut oil.
3. Pour in a bit at a time and cook uncovered over medium-high heat. *If you are adding blueberries or fruit, add it now, after you've poured the batter* 
4. Once you see bubbles appear, carefully flip with a small spatula. The top will be a bit liquidy still as you flip, so do it decisively! It's alright if a bit of it spills- just use the spatula to move your pancake around and pick it up!
5. If you are adding chocolate or something else that is melty, add it on top now!
6. After another two minutes, check the bottom of the pancake. When it reaches your desired darkness, serve.
7. TOP THAT SCHTUFF WITH MAPLE SYRUP, OBVIOUSLY.

Friday Ten Thangs

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Happy Friday! I'm so glad we made it (that reminds me of a Shania Twain song? Dear God, please make it go away). In lieu of a cocktail recipe, I wanted to share a few things or "THANGS" with you.

1. I was in a competition this week at work and my team ended up winning $500 each. Five hundo. A small part of me things I may have "Secret'ed" myself into getting it. Meaning using the principles from The Secret, I attracted it to me.



2. Speaking of The Secret, "Secret'ed" has now become a staple word in my house. Now like secreted, which is a gross word, but SECRET'ed. As in... "I got a great parking spot at the gym!"  "Oh really? You SECRET'ed that for yourself?" Okay, maybe that was a bad example.

3. St. Patrick's Day is coming up, and Chicago will be wild (and semi-obnoxious, but I'm partly Irish, so who's judging?!) with celebration. Pretty sure I should make these Irish Cream Hot Fudge Cupcakes... the only issue being that I probably won't because I am stingy with time and hate spending too much of it in one place.

4. I bought a Gilt Deal (click here to check out Gilt if you're in Chicago and might buy it) to The Mercury Method. It's basically an insane gym in Bucktown/Wicker Park that teaches super intense classes and keeps the room at 98.6 degrees. I read their Yelp reviews (are you a Yelper? Click here to find me! Let's be friends!) before buying and they have all 5-star reviews of people saying the classes are hellish and hard, but totally worth it. I'm super pumped! But also kind of terrified?



5. My friends at Chobani sent me a whole set of Flip Cup yogurts... along with a Chobani T-Shirt and a wonderfully fancy spoon to eat the yogurt with. I immediately tried the Key-Lime flavor (so. much. goodness.) and then tried the Coconut Almond flavor the next day. Honestly, they are both so good that I can't even decide which one I like more. Okay, fine. The coconut. Twist my arm.



6. A few months ago (like, last summer), I was on a great kick of incorporating Chia seeds into my diet. I would make chia seed pudding and top it with delicious things like peanut butter or PB2, greek yogurt, almonds, fresh fruit, etc, or mix it with oatmeal or muesli. But then... I don't know what happened. I stopped. Now I'm trying to get back into it... we'll see how it goes. The past two days have consisted of a banana, cinnamon, and coconut milk mash with chia seeds and water mixed in and soaked over night. So far, so good. SO FULL.

7. Have you heard of Ellie? I've been eying them for a while - it's a monthly thing where you get a workout top and bottom of your choice for $49 (combined). I'm trying it - just for this month. They're running an all black line ("The Little Black Collection" - love that branding). I picked the Back in Black Tank and the Little Black Legging. We'll see how it goes. I don't generally dig tops with built-in bras, but after longing after LuLuLemon tops like that and how airy they look, I thought I'd give it a try at this price point.



8. What would it be like to be a dog? Why do I keep wondering that? Has anyone, like, had a dream about it and feels like they can testify to an answer? Humph.

9. Y'all (yes, that was necessary), I have a confession to make. I can't peel bananas. You know that fancy thing where you put pressure on the top to pop it open? Can't do it. Have to have a knife to split it open. Embarrassing. Now you know.



10. My parents are throwing my fiance and I an engagement party this weekend! So excited to see what they threw together. Apparently my sister (with the beautiful handwriting) is making name tags. Watch out, people. It's gonna be wild. ;)

Chocolate Banana Bread (with added Protein)

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Let's be honest, we've all let produce go to waste. Some things are unsalvageable (hello, most vegetables). But other things, just like a good wine, only get better with time.

Enter bananas. I have to admit, it takes the pressure off knowing that I don't have to finish my bananas before they turn brown. I first experimented with low cal frozen banana ice cream. It's a delicious treat, and extremely creamy. But as it gets colder, I've decided to make something warm instead.

Banana bread is wonderful. There's really not much better than taking a bite of a steaming hot piece of banana bread, straight from the oven, with a tasty slab of butter melting on top. Nothing. Better.

...except maybe if you made it healthier. Say, by using whole wheat flour... adding in some protein powder... and some greek yogurt to keep it moist without dumping too much added fat indo the mix.

Ah, and I should mention that the protein powder is chocolate protein powder. So now we're not just working with banana bread, it's healthy protein chocolate banana bread. I know, chocolate was the only word you remember from that sentence. Go ahead and take a bite!

Whole Wheat Chocolate Banana Bread (with added protein)
Ingredients:
...for the bread

• 1 1/2 scoops chocolate protein powder
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• 2 egg whites
• 2 tbsp vanilla greek yogurt
• 1/3 cup oats
• Optional: 1/3 cup chocolate chips (if you want it really chocolatey - I skipped this step)

...for the topping

• 1/3 cup oats
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• drizzling of honey
• sprinkling of cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Mix dry bread ingredients in a medium size bowl.
3. Add bananas, egg whites, and greek yogurt, and mix well.
4. Spray a bread pan with nonstick spray, then pour mixed ingredients into the pan.
5. In the same bowl (which should now be mostly empty), mix topping ingredients with clean hands. Be sure to sprinkle enough honey into the mix so that the topping begins to stick/clump together. 
6. Sprinkle topping over the bread mix.
7. Put in the oven for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean (the topping will still be gooey, but the bread should be solid and clean). 

Cinnamon Almond Banana Chips

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Crunchy round chips that have the sweetness of bananas and almond extract, with just a bit of cinnamon kick. Swap these with chips for a healthy, sweet-tasting snack!

You know what? Sometimes, you just deserve chips. Here's a news bulletin for you, though: chips are bad for you. They're filled with fat, trans fat, carbs, and carcinogens... none of which will keep you healthy (or, quite honestly, happy).

Yet, you deserve to have a little crunch in your life. That's where these delicious banana chips come in!

There's something very special about making your own chips. You always end up with less than you thought you'd yield (meaning that there's less in front of you to chow on). Second, when you make something yourself, you'll cherish every bite - because YOU brought those babies onto this earth (good job!)!

In the end, you're subbing these health-packed banana chips for health-destroying regular ones, you're eating less of them, and yet you're cherishing every bite. Sounds like a win-win-win to me. What could be better?

Cinnamon Almond Banana Chips

Servings: 2
Calories: 57
Bake Time: 60-90min

Ingredients:

• 1 Banana
• 1/2 Lemon, juiced
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Almond Extract

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 215 degrees.
2. Peel banana and cut into 1/8" slices
3. Combine lemon juice, cinnamon, and almond extract in a small, shallow bowl. Dip each banana slice into the mixture, then set on a greased cookie sheet.
4. Bake for ~60 Minutes. Depending on the consistency of your slices, you may want to check on them periodically (perhaps every 15 minutes), starting at about 45 minutes. For thinner chips, they may be ready around this time. If your slices are thicker, you may need to wait 15-30 minutes longer.

Looking for other healthy recipes? Try these!

• Kale Chips
• Chocolate Mousse Filled Cupcakes
• Chickpea Choco Chip Cookies
• Protein Chocolate Banana Pancakes