A pretty new look, and pancakey goodness for picky eaters...

Like my pretty new blog design? Me too! I checked out Shabby Blogs and found the purtiest new banners and backgrounds. I luuuurve that site.

I almost have a "nesting" urge right now. With my wild ones almost ready to board the bus next week, I feel this urge to become more organized, tidy, and SuperMomish. I hung up this wall organizer thing for the kitchen, and cleaned off the little white board hanging next to it. By the way - a magnetic white board in the kitchen near the door is my best thing ever! I can write myself notes, clip up permission notes... It is like a ToDo list on the wall! And because it is on the wall, it can't get buried under piles of mail, backpacks, dishes, and other goodies that seem to accumulate on my counters.

So in my nesting SuperMom mode, I thought I would share my Most Important Recipe Ever.  The boys call them "Pancakems", but I secretly call them YouDon'tEvenKnowYou'reEatingHealthyVegetablesInYourPancakems.

In the tradition of the Sneaky Chef, these pancakes have pureed veggies and other goodness in them. Excellent books, by the way. This recipe I am sharing I created after being inspired by her concept of putting healthy pureed veggies in "regular" food.  It is a "from scratch" recipe, and my boys love to help make a mess mix them up with me.  I also know that you moms and dad are craaaaazy busy out there, so I also wrote the "quick and dirty" version using pancake mix.  I make a giganto batch of these babies - pancakes reheat nicely, so I can pop a few in the microwave for a snack or breakfast the next few days.  I feel relieved wholesome that I can serve up a hot breakfast every morning - without having to drag out the griddle every time.

YouDon'tEvenKnowYou'reEatingHealthyVegetablesInYourPancakems

3 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp salt

7 tsp baking powder

2 TB sugar

6 TB butter/margarine (melted)

2 1/2 cups milk

2 eggs

1/2 cup pureed sweet potatoes OR two packs (7ish ounces total) of baby sweet potatoes/mixed veggies ORANGE colored

Combine all the dry ingredients in a big bowl. Mix together well. Add milk and eggs, butter, and veggies and stir it all up! Scoop about 1/3 cup (use an actual 1/3 cup measuring cup - easier to pour) batter onto hot greased griddle, flip when bubbles look like they want to erupt (you can lift an edge and peek to check too), cook another minute, serve. Yields a ton of pancakes... at least 30ish, more if you make smaller pancakes.

These pancakes are super nice and fluffy :) The veggies keep them moist and give a super subtle flavor (only if you know it's there, if you know what I mean). If I have pureed sweet potatoes on hand, I use those, but lately I have been using the baby food. I suggest either straight up sweet potatoes, or a "orchard" or "farmers" blend baby food - my favorite is Orchard Blend Sweet Potato (it has apple, pear, and peach puree in addition to the sweet potato).  Just make sure it is orangeish.  Otherwise, the pancakes will be a funky color and the jig is up.

You can also use 1.5 cups white flour and 1.5 cups wheat flour if you are feeling extra virtuous - which I often don't. Feel virtuous, that is. It makes the cakes a bit flat and brownish.  However, when once-in-a-blue-moon virtuosity does happen to strike, I may use 2.5 white, .5 wheat, or some other such division of the flours.

The simplest version? Take premixed pancake mix, follow their directions, and add the baby food to it :) 

Good luck! If you try it, let me know :) And if you have any suggestions or other recipes, I would love to hear about them! I need all the help I can get to make my boys eat foods other than pizza, PB&J, and pancakes.  At least the pancakes have some veggies in them...