PB & J Gluten Free Pancakes w/ Veggie Frittata Bites!

What do you call Brunch for Dinner? — BRINNER!

EEE yuck yuck yuck … what can I say, I’m guilty of corny humor.

such gorgeous green veggies….yay Spring!

But seriously, can you blame me? I mean, I’m kinda on an excitement buzz from the SUPER dinner tonight. Peanut Butter and Jelly Pancakes with Veggie Frittata Bites!

homemade strawberry sauce made these fluffy GF pancakes amazing!

Yes — you heard that correctly — Peanut Butter and *Homemade* Jelly Pancakes with Veggie Egg White Frittatas!

salty, sweet, and utterly delicious!

It was so. good.

Lick the plate — bask in the deliciousness — fun to eat — good.

swirly peanut butter and homemade strawberry sauce!

Lets start with the GF Pancakes.

Here’s what you need:

1 1/3 cup Bob’s Red Mill GF Flour Mix
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Vanilla
1 Tbsp Vegetable Oil (can use 2)
1 Tbsp Agave
3/4 cup warm water
2 egg whites, beaten to stiff peaks

Combine the dry ingredients in one bowl and wet ingredients in another (minus the egg whites). Mix the wet into the dry, and stir just to combine. Then, gently fold in the beaten egg whites. Ladle about 1/4 cup of the batter onto a hot, olive-oil-sprayed, non-stick frying pan or griddle. Flip after about 1 minute, when the edges begin to brown a bit and bubbles form on top. Keep them warm on a plate under tin foil. Serves 3.

so spongy and light!

Next, the Veggie Egg White Frittatas.

This serves one — as my parents wanted cheesy scramblers:) And, they aren’t allergic to egg yolks like me!

Here’s what you need:

2 egg whites
salt and pepper
3 button mushrooms, diced
2 green onions, sliced
2 asparagus stalks, sliced
big handful of spinach, chopped

Preheat oven to 350. Combine your egg whites and veggies in a bowl and stir to coat. Spray a muffin tin with olive-oil. Spoon the mixture into 3 cups. Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until cooked through. Run a knife around the edge to help them out. YUM!

egg whites made these so light and fluffy!

Peanut butter sauce:

about 1/4 cup Peanut Butter
4 drops of Agave
about 3 Tbsp water

Combine and microwave for about 15-20 seconds. Stir. If it seems too thick, repeat, adding more water. It will be slightly thicker than “drizzly.”

Homemade Strawberry Sauce

8 strawberries, sliced
2 tsp organic sugar

Macerate the strawberries by sprinkling the sugar over them. Mix to coat. Let that sit for about 30 minutes. Then, with an immersion blender (aka stick blender), blend until you get a smooth and delicious strawberry sauce.

light and airy texture!

This meal was absolutely delightful! I mean, where to start?! The pancakes were amazing, the frittatas were outstanding — I don’t know which to talk about first!

Savory first:)

The veggie frittatas were awesome. Even though there weren’t yolks, you didn’t miss them with all the delicious veggies! Since it was only made with egg whites, they puffed up in the oven! The texture was just wonderful — they were so spongy and chewy…the veggies were slightly crunchy. The mushrooms were chewy and deliciously earthy. They were perfect with the slight bite of the green onion. Yum.

And then the pancakes……

Magnificent, Gluten Free Pancakes with an out-of-this-world Peanut Butter and Jelly flare!

Lets first talk texture. GF bakery is notoriously bad — chalky, dense, cakey, crumbly, sandy. But these were outrageously fantastic. They were light and fluffy. Airy and chewy. It was hard to believe they were gluten free! The whipped egg whites gave these such a lightness! So good.

And then to top it off….the PB and J deliciousness! The combination of the rich and creamy peanut butter with the bright and sweet strawberry sauce was incredible! It brought back memories of childhood school lunches, with my daily PB and Strawberry Jelly sandwich! My mom was a little skeptical about the combination with pancakes, but after one bite, she was a believer! The salty-sweet with the light and fluffy pancake was delicious.

YUMMMMM!

I also served it with pure maple syrup for a different option, but I really enjoyed the strawberry puree as my topping — it was a natural source of sugar. (I know pure maple syrup is also natural, but I like fruit sugar!) Plus, it was a shot of fruit! It’s hard to say that it was a “serving” of fruit…but perhaps *half* a serving! It was just outrageous. Completely yummy.

No matter what time it is, brunch is ALWAYS good.

Take a delicious trip down memory lane, and enjoy my PB&J pancakes with Veggie Frittatas!

To make these pancakes, I beat the egg whites with my hand mixer. It's much more convenient than whipping out the stand mixer. I also got to use my immersion blender for the strawberry puree! Here are the tools I use:

Rosso Frittata!

My dog is dreaming right now:)…She’s sleeping, and all of her legs are twitching and moving, and her face muscles are going crazy. Fascinating! I hope she’s dreaming of running on the beach…where I wish I was.

Well, one week down on the new holistic regimen for my UC flare. Unfortunately, I think part of this healing process is that you have to get worse before you get better…at least that’s what’s happening with me. As a result, eating — and just the thought of food — is the bane of my existence right now. Needless to say, cooking is not fun at the moment. We’re staying positive though. And one week down is One Week Down! Hooray! :/

bright flavors, textures, and colors!

What is a Rosso Frittata, you may ask? Well, rosso is Italian for “red” — at least, according to Google :)  So, my Rosso Frittata was a beautiful egg dish bursting with fantastic red veggies!

Here’s what you need:

1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 yellow onion, diced
7 mushrooms, sliced
6-7 sun dried tomatoes, diced
12 kalamata olives, sliced
3 eggs + 3 egg whites, beaten
chives, minced

check out the beautiful, airy center!

Preheat your oven to 350.  In an oven-safe frying pan, saute your onions in 1 tsp EVOO, salt and pepper. Let them soften, and then add in your mushrooms. Let them release their moisture, and then add in your pepper. After they’ve cooked for about 4 minutes, take your pan off the heat to cool.  Stir in your sun dried tomatoes and olives. While the veg is cooling, put your eggs in a bowl with salt & pepper and beat with a fork or whisk. Once the veggies have cooled a bit, pour in your eggs, put it back on the stove over low heat, and stir it until it starts to thicken. Then, stop stirring and let it sit! Once you see that it is starting to set, take a silicone spatula and run it around the edge. Then, put it in the oven for about 15 minutes, until the middle is cooked. Garnish with minced chives! Yum!

all those nutritious veggies bursting through!

With this delicious egg “pie,” I also served amazing Thyme Home Fries! Wow. These might be my favorite potato preparation, besides my Sweet Potato Crisps. :)

crispy and pillowy home fries!

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Take 2 russet potatoes and cut into 1/2 inch chunks. Soak in cold water for 15 minutes. Then, drain and dry them as best you can. I wrapped them in a clean kitchen towel several times.  Place on an olive-oil-sprayed baking sheet and pour 1 1/2 tsp EVOO over top and toss to coat. Lightly sprinkle with s & p (you will add more later), and add in about 1 T chopped thyme and 2 minced garlic cloves and toss again. Bake for 40-ish minutes: stirring every 10 minutes until nice and golden brown: crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. When you take them out, sprinkle with more salt to taste.

yum!

This meal was so good. Easy to whip up, and even easier to eat! Well…figuratively.  There’s something so cozy and comforting about eating breakfast for dinner. But this is no diner’s “greasy spoon.” No ma’am. It is healthy, super flavorful, texturally wonderful, and aesthetically beautiful. Sometimes, on a lazy Sunday, it’s nice to put your PJs on early, cozy up, and have breakfast for dinner! :)

gorgeous mushrooms!

I couldn't have made this delicious dish without my nonstick pan! Here's the one I use:

Until Tomorrow!

A Tale of Two Potatoes

What do you do when you have 2 potatoes — one russet and one sweet? — You make potatoes two ways! That was the story at our house last night…we had 2 lonely potatoes that needed to get eaten…soooo we made home fries, and sweet potato chips!

mmmmmmm!

Along with our potato extravaganza, we had a beautiful Asparagus and Mushroom Frittata! YUM!! This is such an easy, quick, and inexpensive way to have a really delicious meal!

1/2 onion, diced

bunch of asparagus, sliced in 1 in sections

6-7 button mushrooms, sliced

4 whole eggs + 2 egg whites, beaten

tender asparagus peeking through :)

I sautéed 1/2 onion in 1 tsp EVOO with salt and pepper in an oven safe, non-stick skillet. After about 5 minutes, I added in my asparagus.  I let that cook for about 4 more minutes, and then added the mushrooms. Once they became tender, I took my veggies off the heat (so the eggs won’t scramble when I add them). When the pan had cooled, I poured the eggs into the pan and put it back on the burner.  I stirred it until I felt the mixture start to thicken….then stopped stirring and let it set.  Once the outside edges had set, I ran a silicone spatula along the edge.  I then sprinkled the top with a tiny bit of raw goat cheese, and put it in a 350 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes, until the eggs have set.

Next, the potatoes:

fantastic textures in our two potatoes

1) Home fries: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Take your russet potato and cut into 1/2 inch chunks. Soak in cold water for 15 minutes. Then drain and dry them as best you can. I wrapped them in a clean kitchen towel several times.  Place on an olive-oil-sprayed baking sheet and pour 1 tsp EVOO over top and toss to coat. Lightly sprinkle with s & p (you will add more later), and add in about 1 T chopped thyme and 2 minced garlic cloves and toss again. Bake for 30-ish minutes: stirring every 10 minutes until nice and golden brown: crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. When you take them out, sprinkle with more salt to taste.

2) Sweet Potato Chips: Use a mandolin and carefully slice your sweet potato into chips. In a bowl, toss with 1 tsp EVOO and salt. You can also add some cumin if you want a little spice. Place in a single layer on an olive oil sprayed baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes, flipping half way through.  The bake time will vary depending on the thickness of your chips.

wow, yum!

This meal was so enjoyable. The potatoes were such a highlight.  The sweet, crispiness of the chips with a slightly tender center were so tasty. And the home fries…wow. The outside was crunchy while the inside was soft and pillowy. The frittata really brought a lot to the party. The succulent asparagus offered a depth to the dish that paired wonderfully with the slight tang from the sprinkle of goat cheese.

Last night I slept through watched the Oscars last night. It looks like I need to see Hugo and The Artist!

Here’s to a happy, healthy week!

Tools used in this recipe: