Saturday Morning Zucchini Pancakes

So this whole week, for some reason, I had pancakes on my mind. I was just waiting for the weekend to come so that I could wake up in the morning and make them. I couldn't wait for the smell of pancakes and coffee to waft through the house, in anticipation of the breakfast/lunch that would follow.

The batter awaiting its pancake fate.

This week I also happened to come across a recipe for "Cottage Pancakes" thanks to 101 Cookbooks. I love pancakes and all, but sometimes the amount of flour and "breadiness" of them is hard to handle...well at least when you try to keep eating even when you know you can't really eat anymore. So these pancakes incorporated cottage cheese and cauliflower instead of lots of flour.

So in my ready to make pancakes mode and my work with what I've got attitude, I put my own little spin on her pancakes (meaning I had to use yogurt and ricotta cheese since I was out of cottage cheese, and I was too lazy to blanch cauliflower so I used raw zucchini). I think they turned out pretty good...since I ate most of them. My husband wasn't a huge fan. But I still think that's because he just had to know what was in them before he even tried them...once he heard the word zucchini he was out.




INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup yogurt
3/4 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup chopped zucchini (into tiny pieces)...or just grate it
2 Eggs, separate yolks from whites
1/2 cup flour

So close...but not done yet.

1/2 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt


PROCESS
1. Mix together the yogurt, ricotta cheese, zucchini and egg yolks.
2. In a separate bowl, sift the flour and baking powder and salt.
3. In a small bowl, beat or whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks begin to form.
4. Combine the flour mixture into the yogurt and zucchini mixture, and mix until blended nicely.
5. Fold the egg whites into the pancake mixture.
6. Put your griddle or pan on medium-low heat, and place a bit of butter on it to grease it up.
7. Put 3 Tbsp of the mixture on the pan for one pancake.
8. Once they begin to brown and cook on one side (may be a couple of minutes), flip over to cook the other side.

Top them up and enjoy!

This should make about 8 pancakes that can be topped with anything you'd like. I went for some peanut butter and bananas, to ricotta cheese and chickpeas, to my mom's homemade plum jam. My husband stuck to his regular maple syrup.

Have fun with making pancakes and trying your own thing...the just add egg and/or water boxed versions really aren't any easier. This way, you know what you're getting.