Pumpkin Spice Protein Pancakes

Pancakes.

They're becoming a Sunday morning tradition at our house. I often make a big batch and then toast up the leftovers for breakfast during the week.

....but a travesty occurred yesterday my friends. I'd already decided on Saturday night that I wanted to try making a pumpkin version of my protein pancakes. On Sunday morning, the batter was made and the griddle was hot....and then I realized the worst; I was out of maple syrup! Pancakes without syrup?! Oy, I wasn't sure if I could do it, but I did and it.was.good.

I hope you're not too sick of pumpkin recipes yet because these turned out to be fantastic. In keeping with my clean eats plan, I topped mine with a wee bit of Earth Balance and that was it, but you could definitely fancy them up with some maple syrup, walnuts or some white chocolate chips...or of course you could add a little of everything to make these the absolute ultimate!!!

Pumpkin Spice Protein Pancakes
Makes 8 pancakes

1 c old fashioned oats
3/4 c 1% cottage cheese
3/4 c egg whites
1/2 c pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp stevia
1 tsp chia (optiona)

Heat your griddle to a medium high heat.

Add all of the ingredients into your blender and blend until smooth.

Pour onto griddle into 4" rounds. Cook until the edges start to look dry and then flip. Continue cooking until the pancakes are cooked through.

Serve immediately and top with your fave pancake toppings.

Store your leftover pancakes in the fridge and toast the next morning for an awesome weekday breakfast!

What's your favourite Sunday morning breakfast?

Have a great day!!

Andrea
xoxo

Zucchini Cheddar Egg Muffins

Morning, friends! Welcome to the last Tuesday of August. Crazy right?!

Lately you've seen many ramblings and brags about my garden and finally we are seeing the produce that I've been very (im)patiently waiting for. Lettuce, green beans, cherry tomatoes and boatloads of zucchini are what's in season at my house right now. I've been able to share the lettuce, beans and tomatoes with family & co-workers, but the zucchini count is starting to get a wee bit out of control.

So far, I've made ~

- my favourite zucchini bread

- Courtney's light & tasty zucchini casserole and zucchini latkes

- my dad's goulash

I still have 2 1/2 zucchinis at home and several little baby ones growing away in the garden. Is anyone in need of zucchini?? I would be very happy to share! :-)

On Sunday, I did a little meal prepping for the week and one of the things that I cooked up was a batch of egg muffins. These are great because you can make them on the weekend and store them in the refrigerator for a week. I often pack them in my lunch or pop a couple in the microwave for breakfast on the go. I got the idea after I made Courtney's zucchini casserole. I mean really, can you go wrong when you mix zucchini and cheddar together?!  I think not.  

Zucchini Cheddar Egg Muffins
Recipe adapted from He & She Eat Clean

Makes 12 egg muffins

1 1/2 c shredded zucchini
1/2 c mushrooms, diced
1/2 c onions, diced
3/4 c shredded cheddar cheese
4 eggs
14 egg whites
1 tsp Italian seasoning
sea salt & fresh ground pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 375. Grease your muffin tin well.

Place zucchini, mushrooms & onion in a large bowl and mix well. Fold in 1/2 cup of the shredded cheese. Scoop the veggie mixture into the muffin tins. Fill each cup about 2/3 to 3/4 full.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs & egg whites. Stir in your spices.

Pour the egg mixture over the vegetable mixture filling each muffin cup. Leave a little room because the egg will puff up & expand as it bakes.

Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of cheese over the egg mixture in each muffin cup.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes.

Once baked, remove from the oven and allow to cool for approximately 10 minutes.

Slide a knife around the edges of each egg muffin and carefully remove each one and place it on a cooling rack.

Once the egg muffins are completely cooled, store in an airtight container in the fridge.

I know this muffin tin is old and ugly but that's because it's been well loved <3

One thing I would caution is that non-stick spray is not the most effective when trying to get these little muffins out of the tin. Even though I used a knife to cut around the edges and a fork to oh so gently lift the muffins up and out, several of them came out with a messy looking bottom. Lucky for me, the ugliness did not affect the taste - these are tasty little bites if I do say so myself! Next time I'm going to grease my pan with shortening and I hope that will make the whole muffin removal procedure a little easier and more successful.

Here are some other zucchini recipes on my radar to try over the next couple of weeks ~  

- Jessica's Whole Wheat Zucchini Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins 

- Summer Squash & Ricotta Galette

- Jenna's Portobello & Zucchini Lasagna

- Angela's Zucchini Bread Oatmeal 

Do you have any great zucchini recipes that I should try? Please leave your link below.

Enjoy your day,

Andrea

xoxo

Mini Greek Egg White Souffles

Oh happy day!! The sun is shining, the temperature is rising and the sound of our neighbours lawn mower is music to my ears. This is just what I needed to pull myself up out of my funk and get my booty in gear!

This morning I was up bright and early to go to a new spin class at the gym. On my way home, I decided that  I'd take the dogs for a walk in this gorgeous sunshine before I went inside to start tackling my very long list of To-Dos.

By the time I finally came in the house I was torn between checking out all my fave blogs or getting something to munch on. My bloggie buds won out and I took a quick buzz around the Net to see what everyone was up to. I'm so glad I did, because I saw a recent post from Cait at beyond bananas that totally inspired my lunch! This recipe is easy, based on one serving for one lone gal at home and is delicious!! It also helped me get rid of some leftover ingredients lurking around in my fridge from my orzo spinach greek salad last weekend.

Mini Greek Egg White Souffles

Makes 4 mini souffles (perfect for one hungry gal)

Recipe adapted from Cait's Egg White Souffle Dinner Cakes

These little beauts are so delicious. Cait put some spices into hers and I completely forgot. They still tasted amazing! You have to be careful when removing them from the pan because they can easily be squished down. They are light and fresh and would be a perfect addition to a Mother's Day Brunch!

1 tsp extra virgin olive oil

3 egg whites

1 c baby spinach, chopped

3 tbsp onion, chopped

3 tbsp tomato, diced

2 tbsp black olives, chopped

1 1/2 tbsp feta

Note: The original recipe called for a dash of garlic powder, pepper and chili powder. I forgot and mine still tasted great, but you could add any spices that you like!

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 4 muffin cups in a tin muffin pan. Make sure you grease your cups well because these will stick.

Preheat the olive oil in a small frying pan over medium heat. Add your spinach and cook until the spinach has wilted (approximatley 1 - 2 minutes).

Add the tomato, onion and black olives to the skillet and cook an additional 4 - 5 minutes ~ until the onion is softened. Remove from heat.



Place your egg whites into a medium sized mixing bowl. Beat on medium speed for 4 - 5 minutes until the they are white and fluffy and are able to form stiff peaks.

In the beginning....

The final result. 

Fold in the veggie mixture and feta cheese.

Scoop the egg mixture into the prepared muffin pan. Makes 4 large muffin cups or you could make 6 smaller ones, if you prefer.

Bake for 14 - 15 minutes. They are done when the tops are golden brown.

Don't they look lovely (minus the old pan I was using)??

 I found that the best way to remove the souffles from the pan was to run a knife around the edges and then use a fork to GENTLY remove them. They squish very easily so be careful!!

Yet another healthy meal that is quick, easy and delish!! I was nervous about just using egg whites, but you can hardly even tell. These were amazing and I loved every single bite! I had some salsa on the side, but they are really good on their own. I didn't use much salsa at all.

I think I've procrastinated enough, so I better be off! My workout is done, the dogs are exercised and my belly is satisfied. Time to go be productive!

Have a wonderful weekend. Soak in some of the sunshiney rays while you can!

How do you tackle a great big to do list?

What ingredients do you like to add to your souffles?

Andrea