Health Food Focus: Chocolate Chip Pancakes
Chocolate chip pancakes are extraordinarily easy to make and healthy too. (See my Chocolate Zucchini Bread posting for the health benefits of chocolate chips.) It’s the perfect food that combines the essential building blocks of life: pancakes, eggs, milk and chocolate.
I start with a box of Aunt Jemima® Original Pancake Mix and Nestle’s® Chocolate Chips. The quantities of milk, eggs, etc. is dependent on the amount of pancakes you intend to make. Follow the instructions on the back of the box.
INGREDIENTS (See back of pancake box for exact quantities)
1 box of pancake mix
Milk (Whole milk or skim)
Eggs
Vegetable Oil
1 package of chocolate chips
DIRECTIONS
Heat up a griddle while mixing the batter according to the directions on the back of the box. Add one or two handfuls of the chips to the batter. Use a soup ladle to pour out the batter onto the griddle. Carefully note the texture of the just poured batter. When it starts to look a bit dry (there will also be bubbles in the pancake) it is time to turn it over. You can use a spatula to peak underneath to see if the pancake is golden brown and ready to be flipped over. When both sides are brown…that pancake is done.
Since it is more than likely that you can only cook a few pancakes at a time, you might want to stack them on a warm plate. To increase the health benefits of this breakfast I like to put additional chocolate chips between each pancake in the stack.
VARIATIONS
- Add a mashed banana to the pancake batter. Remember: the riper the banana the sweeter the banana.
(See Eat More Bananas for banana fun facts, history and recipes.) - Serve with whipped cream on top of the pancakes.
