Oatmeal Pancakes

Like any household that contains a teen on a summer day, the teen doesn't make an appearance until 10 or 11 in the morning. It's usually another hour or two after that when the lovely teen finally is awake enough to hold a conversation and be a part of the household.

Every single summer morning, I hear the same question from mine. "Mom, what can I have for breakfast?"

Well, it's actually lunch time.

And I know that part of me needs to tell him to get up when the family eats and eat with us and to find his own breakfast if he's going to roll out of bed at a later hour.

But Sam is seriously such an awesome kid that I like to let him have little liberties like this. He's so helpful around the house and with Henry. I'm a very lucky Mom!

Sam's absolute favorite breakfast is pancakes with chocolate chips. The thought of regular, flour and sugar-filled pancakes with chocolate chips, syrup and butter makes me cringe a little. He does a lot of activity and sports in the summer and I want to fuel his body. A regular pancake just doesn't cut it.

This very healthy version of pancake is the answer for us. It contains no added sugar, whole wheat flour, and good old oatmeal is the main ingredient. Throw in a few chocolate chips for the teen, some bananas for the toddler, and some berries for the adults and it's a perfect recipe!

Oatmeal Pancakes

*recipe adapted from here

2 cups oats (Quaker Old Fashioned or Quick, not steel-cut or instant)

3 c. buttermilk

3 eggs, beaten

1/2 c. whole wheat flour

1-1/2 t. baking powder

dash of salt

1 t. pure vanilla extract

1 T. olive oil

cooking spray

The night before making: put oats in a large bowl and pour buttermilk over the top. Cover and refrigerate overnight. The next morning add in the other ingredients and mix.

Oil and Heat your griddle to medium high heat. Pour 1/4 c. of pancake mixture onto griddle and heat until the bubbles on the surface pop (usually about 3 minutes). Flip over and warm the other side. You want a nice golden brown color.

*I serve these with real butter, pure maple syrup, and a dusting of powdered sugar. A berry sauce is always good too. See variations below.

The oats and buttermilk the morning after

Henry's version. Just lay the bananas on the griddle and pour the batter on top. Yum!

Just a bit heavier than a regular pancake, but I love the texture

Sending my family out for the day knowing they had a healthy breakfast makes me smile :)

The teen version. Save and microwave when they finally get out of bed!

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