Spinach Banana Shake

Let's face it. This is the tree in front of my apartment. It went from this:

To this, within one single week:

Is just depressing.

But, let's look at this situation on the bright side, in a glass-half-full kinda way. Because I'm cheesy like that.

There's still time to work on those pale legs and flabby arms of mine. There's time before it gets so hot I can no longer hide inside my North Face. So, here's to eating healthier-

I know, you are probably rolling your eyes thinking, not green juice again! But believe me, this does NOT taste anything like spinach. It's so delicious and it helps you pack more greens into your diet. I like to add yogurt and flex seeds to pack some pro-biotic culture and fiber in there, but you don't have to.

I swear. Just close your eyes and try a sip. You won't regret it!

Spinach Banana Shake

1 ripe banana
1 cup packed spinach, or as much as you can stuff into to the magic bullet after putting the banana in
Soy milk
Water
1 tbsp ground flexseed (optional)
Yogurt (optional)
Juice of half a lime (optional)

Put the banana and spinach into the blender/ magic bullet. If using, add ground flexseed, yogurt, and lime juice. Fill half the cup with soy milk, and the other half with water. Blend until smooth.

If you are using a regular blender, you can first add the banana, spinach, milk, and a little bit of water. After pulsing a few times, add water until desired consistency is achieved.

No-fat Yogurt Pancakes

I love breakfast/ baking recipes that do not involve any oil. It's one thing to turn a blind eye at bakeries or during travels, but it's another when you willingly add a stick or two of butter into your food. In the past, I have tried baking chocolate muffins using ricotta cheese with success, so this past weekend, I made pancakes with yogurt in place of butter.

The texture was just as fluffy and soft as "normal" pancakes.

Perfect guilt-free pre-workout breakfast.

ps- workout of the day is called "Grab Your Balls Workout", I completed the challenge in about 22 minutes instead of 18 (I had to rest longer in between sets). All my body muscles are still shaking!!!

Yogurt Pancakes

Adapted from Things for Boys

Makes 2 servings

1 cup plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground flexseeds
1 tsp sugar 

Pinch of salt
1 cup yogurt
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp water
1 egg

Few drops of vanilla extract

1. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, flexseeds, sugar and salt together. Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, beat together yogurt, 1/4 cup of water, egg and vanilla. 

3. Add wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix until just blended. Do not overmix!!

4. Heat a skillet to medium. Add a spoonful of mixture to the pan. Wait until it starts bubbling and flip over. Cook until brown. Repeat with the rest of your mixture.

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Pancakes

This morning, while Miss Hurricane Irene was preparing to visit the east coast, I was making pancakes in the kitchen. I know, I should be stocking up on food and doing all these precautionary things, but I really didn't feel like it. All I knew was that I needed to go to the gym, and in order to do that, I needed breakfast. So I whipped out my favorite recipe and made these in 15 mins.

I like this recipe because it only uses whole wheat flour, not a mix of whole wheat and white. But of course, what good would the pancakes be if they didn't have anything to balance the healthiness of the whole wheat flour? That's right, they needed the chocolate chips. There was no other option. Plus, I used dark chocolate, which is good for you anyway. No guilt at all.

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Adapted from allrecipes.com

Makes about 6 medium sized pancakes

1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk (I used 1 tbsp of vinegar + milk to make 1 cup of buttermilk)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
Handful of chocolate chips.

1. In a large bowl, sift the flour and mix with baking powder, salt and sugar. 

2. In a separate bowl, beat egg and buttermilk together.

3. Add the egg and buttermilk mixture to the bowl with flour. Add chocolate chips. Stir until just combined. 

4. Take 1/4 cup of batter and pour into hot pan. Cook until bubbly, then flip over and cook until golden brown.