Christmas Pancakes for the Health Nut

I love food that makes you fat. Carbs... love'em. Fat... Loooove it! Sugar.... yes, please. I'm not ashamed to admit it either. Fat and carb filled sugar is delicious. If anyone knows me well, they know that passing up a donut is as difficult for me as saying no to 1 million bucks. 

It's simply not fair. Just like the universal imbalance of how youth is wasted on the young, so is the irony of delicious food making you fat. Ooooohhh the injustices of the world... I shake my head. 

Lately, I have been on quite the quest of trying to close the veil between delicious and healthy. Tirelessly striving to make the two more synonymous with each other. I do believe there are ways to trick your mind and taste buds into thinking you are eating something that you should probably feel a little bit guilty about. 

Today I have proudly conquered yet another recipe and have successfully come up with a beautiful trick for the oh-so-delicious pancake! With a few key substitutions, these pancakes taste amazing and are sooooo satisfying.... I know because I ate them this morning. 

I give you: The Christmas Pancake! They are made with cinnamon and Eggnog to get you into the holiday spirit! They would make for a great breakfast on Christmas Day for unwanted... errr...I mean... wanted family houseguests. 

Recipe for: Christmas Pancakes for the Health Nut

What you will need:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour 
2 tablespoons coconut sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon 
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 3/4 cups reduced fat Egg Nog (if you don't like Eggnog you can sub milk, almond milk or soy milk)
1 large egg
3 tablespoons coconut oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions: 
In a large bowl- mix flour, coconut sugar, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Set aside. 
In a microwave safe bowl (you can do this on the stove too)- heat Eggnog to lukewarm. 
In a medium bowl- add coconut oil, Eggnog, vanilla and egg. Whisk well to combine. 

In the bowl with the flour mixture make a well in the center. Pour your wet ingredients into your dry and mix with a fork. The batter will be rather thick. Mix until combined and only small lumps are left- do not over mix. 

At this point, you can add fruit or nuts if you like. Walnuts, bananas, blueberries, apple compote... the list is endless. Be creative! 

When ready, heat skillet and use a small amount of butter to coat the pan (if you are not anti Pam, use butter flavored Pam to reduce calories). Spoon in batter to make a 4"circle. Since the batter is so thick, use the back of the spoon to spread it out. Wait until edges are lightly brown and bubbly.... flip. Cook an additional 1-2 minutes. 

I hope you enjoy these pancakes! Please leave comments if you make them and tell me how they turned out!

Happy Holidays!