Makes 12 Lemon & Ricotta Pancakes

Serves 6

All hail arguably the very best day of the entire year! This is the day where we are all actively encouraged to eat pancakes for breakfast, lunch and dinner - so really, what on earth could be better?! It’s just the kind of joy that is needed on a rainy day in February. I’m kicking off this Shrove Tuesday with some utterly delicious Lemon, Poppyseed & Ricotta Oat Pancakes with a Blueberry Ricotta Cream. It might sound super fancy, but it was surprisingly easy to throw it all together.

I admit I tend to like to stick to my old tried-and-tested berry and banana pancakes on most weekends. But since it is THE day to push the boat out on different flavour combinations, I thought I would mix things up a bit, and I'm so glad I did! The combination of the zesty lemon, paired with the creamy ricotta and the sweet blueberry compote was a total revelation.

Since mornings + me go together like oil + water, I much prefer to batch cook pancakes on the weekend and quickly reheat the in a frying pan with some butter on the weekday mornings before school. Not only do they make a scrumptious and seemingly-indulgent breakfast treat, but they are actually a brilliantly nutritious way to start the day for the whole family. One portion (of 2 pancakes each) only contains 273 calories, 4g of fibre and only 2½ g of sugar, thanks to using the natural sugar substitute of erythritol. They are also high in protein, containing 13g per serving, which is the equivalent of having two eggs for breakfast. They are also a good souce of calcium and iron, and then when you pour over the juicy blueberry compote, it gives you a nice hit of vitamin C to boot!

INGREDIENTS

For the Pancakes

Dry Ingredients

·      20g Erythritol or Xylitol (or sugar of your choice)
·      20g Unflavoured Unsweetened Protein Powder (I used Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides)
·      200g Wholegrain Oat Flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill)
·      10g Poppyseeds
·      Pinch of Salt

Wet Ingredients

·      125g Soft Ricotta
·      30ml Olive Oil (I used Belazu Lemon Infused Olive Oil for extra lemon-y-ness)
·      1 large Egg
·      Juice & Zest of 2 large Lemons
·      250ml Milk (I used Unsweetened Oat Milk)

For the Blueberry Compote

·      200g Frozen Blueberries
·      A Splash of Water to coat the bottom of the pan
·     A squeeze of Lemon
·      Sugar of your choice to taste (I used Biona Date Powder)

For the Blueberry Ricotta Cream

·      ½ of the Blueberry Compote as above
·      75g Soft Ricotta or Mascarpone
·      A squeeze of Lemon

METHOD

·     In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and mix well.
·     Make a hole in the middle and crack in the egg. Combine.
·     Add the ricotta, lemon zest, lemon juice and oil, and mix.
·     Slowly whisk in the milk, trying to make sure there are no lumps.
·     Let the batter rest while you prepare the compote.
·     Combine the frozen blueberries with a splash of water and a squeeze of lemon in a small saucepan.
·     Heat over a medium heat for 5 minutes or so.
·     Taste and add a little sugar if too tart.
·     Take off the heat and set aside.
·     For the blueberry ricotta cream, simply mix together ½ of the blueberry compote and 75g of ricotta (or mascarpone) with a squeeze of lemon.  Set aside.
·     Heat a little butter or oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and spoon in the batter - using approximately 3 tbsp of batter per pancake.
·     Cook for approximately 4 minutes on each side until just starting to get brown and crispy.
·     Repeat with the remaining batter.
·     Serve the pancakes with a spoonful each of the blueberry ricotta cream and the blueberry compote.  Enjoy!

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Per 2 pancakes with no compote on top

Calories – 273
Protein – 13g
Fat – 12g
Carbohydrates – 30g
Fibre – 4g
Sugars – 2½g
Vitamin C – 10%
Calcium – 16%
Iron – 10%

Lemon, Poppyseed & Ricotta Oat Pancakes with Blueberry Cream