Hey ya’ll, happy Friday! I’ve had a super productive day and I think the pancakes are to blame (and maybe the rainy weather that made me stay inside all day). I made my pancakes with chickpea flour which has more protein and fiber than most other flours, and my energy levels were sky high today. Have you ever baked/cooked with chickpea flour? I hadn’t until today but man this stuff is gold. If you have used this stuff before please comment below and give me some suggestions on how else to use!

These pancakes were inspired by two challenges for me this month:

1. Recipe Redux - “A new ingredient for the New Year” (never used chickpea flour!)
2. The Pulse Pledge Challenge - A 10 week challenge to eat pulses once a week. We’re on week two and this week’s challenge was eating pulses for breakfast. Need more pulses in your life? It’s not too late to take the pledge! Share your photos on Instagram for a chance to win the monthly prize.

I’m sure these guys taste marvelous with maple syrup too, but one of my favorite ways to nutritiously top my pancakes is with yogurt. Siggi’s yogurt to be exact. Why Siggi’s? Because their yogurt has more protein than sugar and doesn’t ruin my day with a sugar crash. Of course plain yogurt is just as beneficial in preventing blood sugar drops, but sometimes you want a little flavor and sweetness in your yogurt, right?

I blended up some coconut Siggi’s with dried apricots and holy mole is that stuff good. The natural fruit sugars from the apricots sweetened the yogurt just a touch and it gave this meal a boost of cancer fighting Vitamin A. Sprinkle on a handful of pepitas for a little crunch (and added magnesium) and you’ve got yourself a deliciously nourishing breakfast that will make your day as productive as you want it to be.

Chickpea Flour Pancakes

Serves 2-3

Adapted from A Garden for the House

Chickpea flour is gluten-free and lends more protein and fiber than most other flours. It’s a bit more dense but it’s mild flavor and velvety texture won’t disappoint. Enjoy.

What You Need

1 cup chickpea flour - I used Bob’s Red Mill

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup milk of your choice

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 TBS olive oil

1/4 cup unsweetened, shredded coconut

What To Do

1. Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and set aside. In a smaller bowl mix the remaining ingredients together.
2. Add the wet to the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
3. Heat a nonstick pan over medium heat. If not using a nonstick pan, be sure to add a bit of oil or butter to the pan before cooking your cakes.
4. Ladle in the batter - I think you know what to do from here.

For the Yogurt Sauce: You need one single serving siggi’s container (coconut flavor) and 5 dried apricots.

1. Soften up your apricots. Boil some water, pour it over the apricots in a small bowl, and let sit for a few minutes.
2. In a blender or bullet, add the yogurt, the apricots and a few tablespoons of hot water. Blend until you can no longer see large chunks of apricots. Add hot water until you arrive at your desired consistency.
3. Pour over pancakes and enjoy.

Nutrition per serving (2 pancakes + 1/3 of yogurt mixture): 321 calories, 12g fat {2g saturated, 2g polyunsaturated, 4g monounsaturated}, 62mg cholesterol, 104g sodium, 35g carbs, 8g fiber, 13g sugar, 19g protein

%DV of specific nutrients: 13% Vitamin A, 19% B12, 13% Vitamin D, 28% Calcium, 20% Iron, 12% Riboflavin