Sweet Tater Pancakes and Zucchini Scramble

 I've got a yummy recipe for you all today.  These sweet potato pancakes would be perfect for a breakfast or brunch.  We like them for dinner, and they are sweet enough that you don't even need syrup (although they certainly go well with pure maple syrup or agave syrup too.)  I've paired them with a simple zucchini scramble to make a Feingold-friendly as well as clean eating approved.

 Sweet Tater Pancakes

You need: 

     *1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

     *2 tsp cinnamon

     *1 TBS baking powder

     *1 tsp salt

     *1 large sweet potato

     *1/4 cup melted butter

     *2 eggs, beaten

     *1 tsp agave syrup

     *1 1/2 cups milk

     *coconut oil for the skillet or griddle







 To make:
1.  Cover the sweet potato with water in a pot and boil for 20 minutes.  Remove the sweet potato and put immediately into cold water.  Slide the potato skin off and throw away.
2.  Cut up the sweet potato into cubes.  If the center of the potato is not completely cooked, put it in the microwave for a couple of minutes.  Mash up the cubes.
3.  Add the butter, eggs, agave, and milk to the sweet potatoes and mix well.
4.  In a separate bowl, mix the dry ingredients (flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.)
5.  Add the dry ingredients to the sweet potato mixture and mix.
6.  Grease your skillet or griddle with a little coconut oil.  Spoon the batter onto the griddle in heaping tablespoons.  Watch for bubbles to rise to the top before flipping pancakes to the other side.  These pancakes will be a bit thick; so check to make sure they are cooked through before removing them from the griddle.

 Zucchini Scramble
You need:
     *1 medium zucchini, diced
     *5 eggs, beaten
     *1/2 cup milk
     *dash of paprika
     *dash of cinnamon
     *1 TBS olive oil

 To make:
1.  Saute the zucchini in the olive oil over medium-high heat until nearly translucent and browned.
2.  Mix the eggs, milk, paprika, and cinnamon together.
3.  Pour the egg mixture over the zucchini and stir frequently until the eggs are cooked through and no liquid remains.

(This served our family of 6 - two adults and four somewhat hungry small children.  There were even extra pancakes to put in the refrigerator for the next day.)
Enjoy!

Changes

So.

Apparently I am not as good at juggling school, family, therapy, housework, exercise, church, and extra activities as I thought. As you can see, my poor blog has been sadly neglected. It certainly isn't for lack of blog post fodder - the posts keep piling up in my head. It's just finding a solid time to sort out all the random thoughts and get them published in a coherent post.

But.

I'm not giving up! I do love blogging and will persevere to find that magic time to do it. There is way too much happening in our little family that needs recording for posterity. :)

One of the things that has been keeping us pretty busy is our new gym membership. We have been talking for a long time now about getting healthier and setting a good, positive example for our kids. Of course, it was all talk and not much action. The truth is - we are both pretty unhealthy, with the Nerd needing to lose a lot of weight and myself needing to change some bad habits. We finally found a gym that really works for us. It is completely family oriented, and our membership fee includes childcare (huge benefit for me!) and racquetball (huge motivation for the Nerd.) Since we joined, we have been at the gym almost every day. I am still amazed at how motivated we are this time. I actually look forward to going every day! It makes me smile when the kids eagerly ask if we get to go to the gym each day.

Along with exercise, we have been slowly changing our eating habits as well. The Nerd and I keep track of our calorie intake on our I-phones each day, and I have been making extra effort to get the kiddos to try new, healthier snacks and meals. We even celebrated the Beast's half-birthday with chocolate bean cupcakes (cupcakes made with pureed black beans and whole wheat flour). Amazingly, the kids loved them!

Our results at the end of our first month of healthier living? The Nerd lost fifteen pounds and is playing racquetball competitively in a league. His extra energy has helped him get a lot more things crossed off his "honey-do" list. :) I have lost eight pounds and have noticed extra energy as well. We are so excited at our progress and are determined to make this next month even better!

And part of this healthier lifestyle is getting a decent amount of rest; so I am going to log off and get under those covers. :) happy Monday all!