Purple Snowmen: Recipe for Healthy Pancakes

Once upon a time this winter, Nora wanted snowman pancakes.  I was happy to oblige, conditionally. They also had to be healthy pancakes. We both got what we wanted, with a bonus:they turned out purplish (thanks to a key ingredient: black rice). Juvenile dream come true: We are officially Purple Snowman Eaters. Great times in the dead of winter. The pancakes were delicious (Frank ate 6), and really fun to make with Nora.

My recipe for Healthy Pancakes (aka Purple Snowmen) follows…after a brief history of our culinary frolic.

We started with eggs from our own chickens. Can you spot the double yolker? How does a double yolker translate in a recipe? One extra extra large? Two?

With enough liquid added (wet ingredients minus egg whites), my whole grain mixture was reduced to a fine texture in my blender. I didn’t want chunks of grain. Folding the batter gently into the whipped egg whites made for nicely fluffy pancakes.  Fluffiness is rare in gluten free recipes.

(Nora of course designed the actual snowmen.)

However, there’s an intense learning curve in flipping Snowman Pancakes… Nora’s first attempt looked Calvin & Hobbes-esque.  

We happily accepted Ezra’s input, with his amazing engineer skills (snowman decapitation, cured).

Yummmm. Nora loved her purplish snowmen with sugar on top. Mom, on the other hand:

Enjoyed my healthy purplish pancakes just a little more grownup. I made a delicious topping with my mom’s frozen blueberries, fresh lemon, agave, freshly ground nutmeg, and a spot of almond extract (just a spot!). Added a dollop of whipped cream with a pecan to make it extra pretty…oh, and finally,a spoonful of apricot jam (love how apricots and blueberries mingle). Mmm.