Chocolate for Breakfast Round Two

Happy FRIDAY! I'm back with another post for you guys today. And this one is a great one because it centers around yet another easy and healthy breakfast recipe that includes my very favorite ingredient - chocolate. It really doesn't look a whole lot different from this recipe right here, but I did make a couple of changes to it. Minor changes, but to me, they made all the difference.

I don't know how you fall on the quinoa spectrum, but I absolutely love it. I've never been a huge fan of rice, and couscous, while delicious, has few nutritional benefits, but quinoa is just plain addictive. And good for you. And I often end up cooking far more than what I actually need at that time, and it's not one of those foods that keeps particularly well. So if you have leftovers, you have to use them pretty quickly. Which is why this healthy quinoa pancake recipe is absolutely perfect.

And even though every day feels like a Friday when you're a teacher and you still have summer vacation, thank goodness for Fridays, right? Chocolate is obviously a must.

Chocolate Chip Quinoa Pancakes

Prep time: Less than 5 minutes

Cook time: 4-5 minutes

Makes approximately 8 small-medium pancakes

Ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked quinoa
• 1/2 cup almond milk (or any milk, but I'm on the dairy-free spectrum)
• 1/2 cup egg whites (or 2 eggs)
• 2 tbsp. chia seeds
• 1 1/2 tbsp. baking powder
• Dash of honey (or sweetener of your choice)
• Pinch of salt
• Sprinkle of cinnamon
• Handful of chocolate chunks

Directions:

1. This recipe makes the most sense when you have leftover quinoa, but if you don't have leftover quinoa, cook up some quinoa. It requires minimal effort and takes less than 15 minutes.

2. Put quinoa, milk, egg whites, honey, baking powder, cinnamon, and chia seeds in a large bowl.

3. Mix all of the above together until smooth. Batter will be thick.

4. This is where we may differ, though it will certainly end with the same result. I have a Perfect Pancake Maker, because I am the world's worst pancake flipper. So I simply scooped batter into each of the four rounds, sprayed down with cooking spray, and placed the pan over medium-low heat. If you don't have a Perfect Pancake Maker, no stress! Simply spray down a large skillet and scoop your pancake batter into three or four rounds.

5. Once the pancakes are in the rounds, sprinkle the chocolate chunks into the batter.

6. With a pancake maker, close the lid, give it 2-3 minutes on one side before flipping it over for 1-2 minutes on the other side. The same goes for using a skillet, you just don't have to close the lid. It may even be easier because you can keep an eye on the pancakes and flip them when they turn a golden brown color.

7. I totally intended to eat these topped with strawberries and blueberries, because those two fruits plus chocolate are hard to beat, but I got so excited that I completely forgot about the fruit. Next time. But garnish as desired - fruit, syrup, Greek yogurt, butter, etc.

8. Enjoy! Because chocolate for breakfast is always a good idea.

And that's it. An easy breakfast that will keep you full for hours afterward. My breakfast of four (okay, maybe five) pancakes fueled me for another one of Felipe's strength and circuit workouts. It was a toughie, but I really enjoyed it. I felt strong and full of energy throughout the class, and some of the exercises we did had my brain churning with potential circuit workouts. So be on the lookout for some of those. And with that, I'm off to fix myself a (very) late lunch before heading downtown-ish for a massage and a movie. Because every once in a while you just have to treat yourself.