Banana Pecan Pancakes

I was looking for a lower-calorie pancake recipe, and tried Hungry Girl's banana pancakes from her 200 under 200 cookbook. They were good, but I made a couple of changes the next time, and they were perfect!

Banana Pecan Pancakes

1/2 medium banana, mashed (chop the other half for topping, like in the picture)
46 grams of liquid egg whites (about 3 Tbsp.)
1 Tbsp. skim milk
dash of vanilla extract
1 packet of stevia (or 1 tsp. sugar, or whatever sweetener you like)
1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour (you can use whole wheat, like in the original recipe, but the whole wheat pastry flour made them fluffier)
1/4 tsp. baking powder
dash of cinnamon
12 grams (about 1 Tbsp.) chopped pecans

Heat a skillet over medium heat. In a bowl, combine the mashed banana, egg whites, milk, vanilla extract, and sweetener. Add the flour, baking powder, and cinnamon and stir until combined.

Spray the skillet with cooking spray, and then sprinkle the chopped pecans in four separate little sections. Pour the batter over the pecans, making four small pancakes. When the top starts to bubble after a minute or two, flip them over and cook for another minute or so.

I top mine with sugar-free syrup and half a banana, chopped. (Nutrition info is for the whole recipe, not including the syrup or chopped banana on top)

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Pumpkin Cranberry Apple Baked Oatmeal

This baked oatmeal combines all the best flavors of Fall! Pumpkin, cranberries, apples, and cinnamon--a delicious combination!  Original recipe can be found here. I just made a few modifications, which I've typed below.

Pumpkin Cranberry Apple Baked Oatmeal

2 cups old-fashioned oats
1/3 cup wheat germ
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup Craisins (dried cranberries)
1 1/2 cups almond milk
1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp. canned pumpkin
3 Tbsp. egg whites
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 medium apple, peeled and chopped
1/3 cup chopped pecans (or other nuts), divided

Preheat oven to 375. Spray an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar, egg whites, pumpkin, almond milk, and vanilla. Add the oats, wheat germ, cinnamon, salt, and baking powder, and mix well. Fold in the Craisins, apples, and half of the nuts. Pour into prepared baking dish and top with the rest of the pecans. Bake at 375 for about 20 minutes. Let it cool for about 10 minutes before cutting. It will be soft-set (not firm like oatmeal bars). Cut into 6 pieces. Top with warm milk and brown sugar.

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Kielbasa & Corn Hash

I found this unusual recipe on allrecipes.com and gave it a try. It's fantastic!! This is a great way to use up veggies.

Kielbasa & Corn Hash

20 oz. potatoes, peeled and diced
14 oz. package smoked turkey sausage (about 90 calories/serving)
1 cup of pepper and onion stir-fry blend (frozen)
1 can corn, drained
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
salt & pepper, to taste
4 eggs, cooked over-easy, to top the hash with

In a large skillet sprayed with cooking spray, cook potatoes and kielbasa until potatoes are nearly tender, about 10 minutes (add a little water if they start to stick).  Add the frozen pepper mix and corn. Season with red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture is hot and potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes more. Portion out hash and top with an egg.

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