Tuesday, January 10, 2017

3 Ingredient Pancakes for Kids (& a little about veggies)

Anyone else stress over their little ones not eating enough veggies?? (insert hand raise here)

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I am always trying to find new ways for them to get in more veggies. When my little ones turn 6 months old, one of the first foods I offer is vegetables so they have a taste for that rather than something sweet. I sneak in a scoop of Amazing Grass in Jase’s drink, let them have as much of my smoothies & green juices as they want (both are packed with veggies), and always offer vegetables even if they don’t eat them. I put veggies on their homemade pizza & make sure that most dishes I make have veggies in them somewhere.

That sounds like a lot when I type it out, but when it comes to daily consumption, they don’t get NEARLY as much as I’d like. So, I have some GREAT news! Healthy fats are way more important at this age (for mine anyway- at 3 1/2 and 1 1/2). I read an article recently explaining that little children don’t have the ability to break down veggies the way adults do yet. Really, we should be focused more on giving them butter with a side of broccoli than broccoli with a side of butter. (An exaggeration, but trying to get the point across. Also, it needs to be the GOOD butter. The real, quality stuff.) Their brains are doing the majority of their developing by age 3, and our brains are made up of primarily fatty tissue. Despite what they’re trying to make us believe, excessive dairy can cause issues for our kiddos down the road (including obesity), but there are so many ways to get a variety of healthy fats. (Also, for the record, the American Academy of Pediatrics now encourages parents to begin introducing high allergen foods such as peanut butter, eggs, and fish closer to 6 months instead of delaying to a year. Be sure to check with your doctor, and of course you want to breastfeed for a year or beyond too if you can for the most comprehensive nutritional needs.)

It is very important to consume plenty of veggies when you’re pregnant, because that’s when they start developing their taste buds. During their time in utero, they eat what you eat, and some research suggests that’s when they start developing food preferences. (So eat well, Mama! Especially if you want your kiddos to eat their broccoli. Ya can’t be a “do as I say and not as I do” parent…and that starts early! HA!)

It is also important to introduce veggies early and offer them as often as possible. You definitely want to ENCOURAGE them to be veggie eaters, and do that by offering a variety and eating them yourself. You are a powerful example!

Still, this took some pressure off of me knowing that it’s okay they aren’t chowing down on salads right now. Anyone else? It also encouraged me to start looking for ways to incorporate more healthy fats. Both of my boys love eggs (& I make the whole thing, yolk & all!) and we eat them almost every morning. Sometimes boiled, sometimes scrambled, sometimes fried in avocado oil.

I’m always looking to mix it up though, so I found this super easy recipe for pancakes & wanted to pass it along. Lots of healthy fats (egg yolk, coconut oil, natural almond butter) & DELISH.

Ingredients:

  • 1-2 bananas (it calls for one, but I used 1 1/2)
  • 2 eggs
  • cinnamon
  • coconut oil (as your cooking oil)

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Directions:

  1. Mash the banana in a bowl.
  2. Crack/beat two eggs.
  3. Mix well together. (I used a mixer to get the right consistency of pancake batter.)
  4. Sprinkle in some cinnamon.
  5. Add unrefined coconut oil (preferably in a cast iron skillet for some extra benefits) & heat pan.
  6. Add pancake mix. Flip when solid.
  7. Serve! You can wrap them like a burrito and add natural almond butter to the inside (maybe some berries too?) or allow them to eat them like pancakes and dip in the almond butter (if they want- they’re delicious by themselves and don’t need syrup).

Literally takes about 5 minutes, & the boys LOVED it!

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