Four-Grain Fitness Pancakes

From Lou Seibert Pappas's Pancakes & Waffles, page 18.

I was really excited to try these pancakes, and they did not disappoint!  They were hearty with a hint of spice from the cardamom.  The texture was great, and so was the flavor.  Pappas recommends topping them with plain yogurt and fresh fruit, but I just couldn't resist that delicious Buttermilk Syrup from my sister's blog.  At least I used the fruit, though.

Yield: About fourteen 4" pancakes.

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup rye or oat flour
1/2 cup barley or buckwheat flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup toasted wheat germ
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. ground cardamom
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
2 large eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup canola oil
2 Tbs. honey or maple syrup

Notes:
- For the life of me, I couldn't find rye flour, so I used oat flour.  (You can make oat flour by processing oats in a food processor.)  After all, Pappas suggests, "Vary these healthful pancakes with the grains at hand."  She also recommends tossing in toasted sesame seeds or toasted chopped nuts.
- Look for buckwheat flour in the bulk bin section of your grocery store.
- Look for the wheat germ in the cereal aisle.

Multi-Grain Twisted Cinnamon Ring

From Healthy Cooking (Oct./Nov. 2011), page 40.

I decided to try making this ring after one of my sisters raved about the rolls.  I typically don't have luck with yeast breads, so I was surprised that this actually turned out for me.  And it was yummy!  This recipe can also be used for rolls or a pull-apart loaf (just follow whichever directions you want at the end of the recipe).

Prep: 30 min + rising / Bake: 15 min.
Yield: 1 ring / 1 loaf / 1 dozen rolls

Dough:
1 pkg. (1/4 oz) active dry yeast
3/4 cup warm water (110 to 115 degrees)
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 Tbs. butter, melted
1 egg
1 tsp. salt
1 3/4 to 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

Filling:
3 Tbs. butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Glaze:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
6 1/2 tsp. half-and-half cream
4 1/2 tsp. butter, softened

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water.  Add the oats, whole wheat flour, brown sugar, butter, egg, salt, and 1 cup flour.  Beat on medium speed until smooth.  Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough (dough will be sticky).

Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes.  Place in a greased bowl, turning once to coat the top.  Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down.  Roll into an 18x12-inch rectangle; spread with butter.  Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over dough to within 1/2 inch of edges.

For Icing: In a small bowl, beat the confectioners' sugar, cream, and butter until smooth.

Now choose one of the following three methods of finishing the recipe:

For Twisted Cinnamon Ring:
Roll up jell-roll style, starting with a long side.  Cut roll in half lengthwise.  Place dough side by side on a greased baking sheet.  Twist together, cut side up; shape into a ring.  Pinch ends together.  Cover and let rise until doubled about 45 minutes.  Bake at 375F for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from pan to a wire rack.  Drizzle glaze over warm bread.

For Cinnamon Rolls:
Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a short side; pinch seams to seal.  Cut into 12 slices.  Place cut sides down in a greased 9x13-inch baking pan.  Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.  Bake at 375F for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.  Drizzle glaze over warm rolls.

For Cinnamon Pull-Apart Loaf:
Cut into thirty-six 3x2-inch rectangles.  Make two stacks of 18 rectangles.  Place, cut sides up, in a greased 9x5-inch loaf pan.  Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.  Bake at 375F for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan.  Drizzle glaze over warm bread.

Notes:
- Confession: I don't hand-knead for very long if I can help it.  I just switch from the paddle to the dough hook attachment on my Kitchen-Aid mixer and call it good. :)

Banana Oat Muffins

Adapted from AllRecipes.com.

Prep: 15 min / Cook: 25-30 min.
Yield: 12-18 muffins

1 cup + 1 Tbs rolled oats, divided
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 large very ripe bananas
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream

Streusel topping:
1/3 cup rolled oats
4 Tbs. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 Tbs. butter, chilled
1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Preheat oven to 350F.  Spray muffin tin or line with paper muffin cups

Place 1 cup rolled oats in a food processor and process until ground.  In a large bowl, combine ground oats with flours, 1 Tbs. rolled oats, chopped nuts, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.

In a separate bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the banana and vanilla.  Stir in sour cream.  Mix oat/flour mixture into the egg mixture.  Spoon batter into prepared muffin pan.

To make topping, combine 1/3 cup rolled oats, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs; stir in 1/4 cup chopped nuts.  Generously sprinkle muffins with topping.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Notes:
- One reviewer said she chose not to process the oats because she liked their texture, so do what you want.
- The original recipe also called for 1 tsp. of baking soda but neglected to say when to add it.  I completely forgot about the baking soda and the muffins turned out just fine.
- I didn't pre-mash my bananas even though the original recipe said to.  I'm getting lazy.
- I was short on sour cream and ended up using a Tbs. or so of vanilla yogurt to make up for it.  No problems.

Oatmeal Pancakes (Coach's Oats)

Adapted from the back of the package for Coach's Oats.

Yield: about 15 pancakes.

These slightly chewy, heart-healthy pancakes are a great way to eat oatmeal and offer a nice change from the traditional boxed-mix pancakes.

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup Coach's Oats
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 cup milk
1 cup water

In a large bowl, stir together flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and sugar.  In another bowl combine eggs, vanilla, milk, and water.  Add liquid to dry ingredients.  Stir mixture until well blended.

Pour 1/4 cup batter for each pancake onto a hot, lightly greased griddle.  Cook both sides until golden brown.

Notes:
- Coach's Oats are 100% whole grain steel-cut oats, and they are delicious.  Buy yourself a huge bag at Costco and be happy.  My son loves them so much that the sample guy at Costco gave him two helpings; we were sold and took one of the bags off of the display table.  Anyway, you could probably make these with rolled oats, too, but I haven't tried it.
- The recipe says it makes 16-18 pancakes, but my batch made 15.
- The original recipe calls for all-purpose flour, but I've started using whole wheat instead.
- You can make these into waffles by adding more liquid--about 1/4 cup each of water and milk if you make the full batch.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from Sis. Hammond.

Yield: about 4 1/2 dozen cookies

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup margarine
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
2 3/4 cups flour
2 1/2 cups oatmeal
1 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Melt butter and margarine in microwave for 40 seconds.

Add sugars, eggs, vanilla, salt, band baking soda.  Mix well.

Add flour.  Mix well.  Stir in oatmeal and chocolate chips.

Drop into mounds on a parchment-covered cookie sheet.  Bake for 12 minutes at 350 degrees.  Cool on pan for 10 minutes and transfer to cooling racks.

Notes:
- The original recipe called for 1 cup chocolate chips.
- Added the bit about the parchment.  I use parchment paper for all my cookies--forget greasing and washing cookie sheets!