Day 262 - Gossamer Griddle Cakes

For my eighteenth birthday, realizing I had a penchant for cooking and baking, my best friend gave me my first cookbook. It is filled with all-American type dishes for every meal of the day. I found a 'griddle cake' recipe (pancake) and gave it a try; the were scratch and I never thought I would really make the time to prepare these over using a boxed mix. It's the only way I'll serve pancakes now. They were Christmas breakfast : )

This is the quantity produced by a double batch.

Gossamer Griddle Cakes 

(from 365 All-American Favorites by Sarah Reynolds)

Makes 8 fluffy griddle cakes

• 1.5 cups All Purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• .5 tsp. salt
• 2 eggs separated
• 1.25 cups milk
• 3 Tbsp. butter, melted

1. Sift flour, baking powder, salt and sugar into a medium bowl.
2. In a small bowl, beat egg yolks and milk together with a fork to combine. In another bowl, whisk egg whites with a hand mixer until they are stiff but not dry.
3. Stir the milk and yolk mixture into the dry ingredients until just moistened, the batter will still have lumps. Stir in the melted butter. Gently fold in the whipped egg whites. (The batter will still be lumpy, this is ok, you don't want to overwork the flour--it will become tough)
4. Coat a griddle with non-stick spray or a very light film of butter and heat to medium. Once a drop of water sizzles on the surface of the griddle, you are ready to pour your batter. I use a 1/3 cup measuring cup to pour even amounts each time. Cook until the edges are dry, the bubbles have formed little holes in the top of cake, and the bottoms have become gold brown, then flip. About 3 minutes per side.
5. Cover with your favorite pancake topping and enjoy!

I love this recipe! They are thick and fluffy and have unbeatable flavor! No other pancake is ever served out of my kitchen, and I get requests for (extended) family breakfasts based on these.

This recipe, portioned into 8 servings (the 1/3 cup each pour) is 4 points per griddle cake for Weight Watcher's. This does not include any toppings you may want to add... and who doesn't want some blueberry compote on these?!?

Serve 'em hot, butter them right away and they just melt in your mouth...  *drool*

Day 231 - I've Been In Denial--And Potato Pancakes : )

I haven't been in potato pancakes, like this post title suggests. No need to call in the troops for a recon mission. No worries. But...

Let's get the confession out of the way first.

I've been eating like crap since I returned from my trip. I begin each day with good motivation and intentions and on plan. Then by about 2pm I'm starting to spiral out of control, eating high-point, low nutrition, non-whole foods. And because they are not filling or satisfying at all, I then eat more, and it keeps going 'round and 'round and 'round. And for the first time while being on the Weight Watcher's program, my points are in the red for the week--which means I've eaten more than my allotted points. And I haven't tracked everything I ate yet... This stops today.

That's why I told all of you. My accountability has been key in my success, and denying to myself and you what I've been doing is only going to hurt my efforts. The scale will be honest with me tomorrow morning and I'm ready to accept responsibility for what I've done. Time to move forward!


And because of all of this, I woke up wanting left overs. But this doesn't mean I can't get creative and incorporate them in a healthful and reasonable way into my morning meal. So here's what I did. And it counts for 1 veggie serving and 2 heart healthy oils. Score!

Mashed 'Potato' Pancakes

• 1/2 cup leftover Mashed 'Potatoes' with Chives (from my Turkey Day menu, or your own mashers)
•  2 tsp. olive oil, divided
• 1 egg white
• 1/2 Tbsp.shredded Parmesan cheese
• Salt and pepper to taste

1.  In a small frying pan, heat 1 tsp. olive oil over medium heat.

2.Meanwhile, with a fork mix together the egg white and left over mashed potatoes until they are very well incorporated.

3. Add the Parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste.

4. Tilt the frying pan from side to side to evenly coat it with olive oil. Scoop all of your potato and egg mixture into the pan and spread evenly so you have a nice round shape, not quite the full size of the pan. Allow to cook for at least 4 minutes before you try to check the underside for doneness. (keep an eye on the heat and if it seems to be scorching the pancake, every stove top's 'medium' heat is different--adjust as necessary)

5. Once you're able to insert a spatula under the pancake without it breaking, gently lift one side a pour the remainder of the olive oil, then flip it.

6. Continue cooking until the bottom has set as well. Then enjoy!

This is good as is, or with a dab of ketchup.

4 PP for Weight Watcher's as written with 1 veggie serving and 2 heart healthy oils.

nom nom nom!