Sometimes I re-post posts I love -- Pumpkin Pancakes

I am posting these without having tried them...so hopefully they're good, but they sound just like what Danny would love -- moist. And what I would love -- pumpkin. I have to say I've never like pancakes either! I LOVE waffles a lot and would always beg the family to make waffles. They are crispy and hold more syrup in their little holes without getting soggy. But alas, we are poor college students (money's not the problem because i have a waffle maker) the problem is... with little room for extra pans that we'd use thrice a year. So Maybe I'll try pancakes one of these mornings!

TUESDAY, APRIL 12, 2011

Pumpkin...pancakes?

I feel I need to be honest here.

I don't like pancakes.  Finally. I said it.

It all started with:
A.) My undying love for cereal..how dare ANY other so-called "breakfast" food try to compete!
and
B.) Syrup sogginess.


FLASHBACK: Age 5:

This was probably around the time I began to understand the divine-ness of cereal.  Let's imagine my mother introducing pancakes to me.  The "cool" thing about pancakes is that you get to pour this sugary, maple goodness all over it, after it's been soaked in butter.  Then you dive right in. Sound delectable?  Not to me.  Here is the (possible) conversation that took place that fateful, soggy, day.

Me: Mom do I have to eat these?  It takes like a sponge. (after I've just poured half of Aunt Jemima all over my pancakes)
Mother:  April, you can't have cereal everyday for the rest of your life. It's time for something new. Something adventurous.  How will you ever be able to appreciate other cultures if you don't even like pancakes?
Me: Grossss...I think I hear the Jetson's calling my name.  Where's the dog?

So there you have it.  Pancakes and I have had a history.  And it's not been pretty.  I swore I would loathe pancakes until the day I died.  Until one day...

FLASH FORWARD: Age 28

Yesterday.  I had a leftover can of Pumpkin Puree from when Sarah and I were into a "Mookies" obsession.  "Mookies" are delicious muffins that look like cookies..you should try them. 
So anyway, this can of P.P just kept staring at me until finally I decided I just had to do something with it.  I was flipping through the "Parents" magazine when I came across a recipe for...Pumpkin Pancakes.

I could at least try them.

Maybe pancakes have changed in the last 23 years. Maybe they taste better. Maybe there's no soggy syrup or calorie laden butter involved.  Maybe, just maybe.  Plus, I loved that it was under the "Healthy Eating" section and they added, "Veggies for breakfast? Yes!" Most of you think that sounds anything BUT good..not me. I thought it sounded delicious!  Then again, I feel that pumpkin could make anything taste good.  Even pancakes.

The result was astounding.  A hallelujah chorus sang.  My heart leapt with joy.  Mitt Romney became President.  Seriously I believe these pancakes are miracle-workers.

Only Mitt Romney did not actually become President. Yet.

You will want to try these.  For Shiz.  They are moist and pumpkin-y (but not too much) and Andrew said this morning that they were so good he didn't even need syrup.  Miracle.

Here they are..adapted from "Parents" magazine:

Pumpkin Pancakes:

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 T. maple syrup ( hint: if you put it IN the batter they don't get soggy!)
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
2 T. unsalted butter, melted
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 T. cinnamon
1/3 cup canned pumpkin

Add ingredients dry to wet.  Use 1/4 cup to put batter on skillet.  Make sure pan is hot before adding batter.  Allow to cook 3-4 min on each side.  I doubled the batch so Andrew could grab some for breakfast on his way to school.  Store remaining, uneaten, tasty pancakes in airtight container or ziplock bag. Place in fridge.  Will stay good for about 5 days.  But they prob won't last that long :)

So there you have it.  The true story about how I came to like pancakes.  Add some pumpkin, hold the butter and syrup.  Become a believer.

http://aamcquay.blogspot.com/2011/04/pumpkinpancakes.html

Anti-clutter

I am very anti-clutter. Though I love my things, I hate having them out of place. I love seeing open spaces and walls.
My freshman year, I had one picture on my wall in my entire dorm room -- no tack boards or posters or sayings or calendars, just one picture. And on my desk I had a collage of things I loved such as quotes, a favorite picture with each of my parents, and then a few framed pictures on the top shelf. No pens out on the desk, not even my school notebooks. They were all tucked away out of sight in their proper places. I love love loved it!
My roommates thought I was crazy!

Flash forward 5 years...I'm pregnant and that means you're tired and you have more stuff; but I cherish the moments when my home is uncluttered, everything in its space. If I ever get to spend an hour throwing away miscellaneous papers, I just LOVE the feeling! IT's so freeing! I love simplifying and getting rid of things.

Today I read a post that really made me think Unstyled Life 
I especially love this part: "You’ve heard time and again that you can’t take it with you, that in the end the stuff doesn’t matter. You know that, logically, because it’s an obvious truth. But until you pull every lastthing from the recesses of an empty home and lay it out to catalog, you really have no idea.

Old tubes of mascaras. Eyeshadows. Almost empty bottles of aspirin. Expired lotions. Moth eaten sweaters. Uncomfortable sofas. Bills, paid and unpaid. Unread books. Shirts that don’t fit, are no longer in style, or you never really liked. Someone will one day run their hands over your possessions and make an assumption you won’t be there to refute.

I find it disconcerting that someone will find an empty Impressionist address book on my desk and wonder when I became a fan of Cézanne when, in truth, it was a gift from a friend I will never use. If they open my hall closet by the front door, what will they think of my piles of art and ill-fitting coats? Surely those who love me will realize I only wear the red one, even though it’s three sizes too big. And what does it say that I never took the time to alter a coat so that it fits my form in a flattering way, that I let the cuffs drag my knuckles and the waist swing wildly when I walk?

They will open my makeup drawer, pause, and then say, “I don’t remember her ever wearing green eyeshadow.”"

I love this other lady's thoughts on simplifying -- her blog has so many ideas of how to de-clutter. This post is one that made me think as we are acquiring baby stuff and thinking of moving a few times before we have a second baby.

Happiness :)

mmm potstickers...

http://blogs.babble.com/family-kitchen/2010/07/28/take-a-break-from-take-out-homemade-potstickers/

Red Velvet Cookie with White Chocolate Chunks

http://whipperberry.com/2011/03/recipe-red-velvet-cookie-with-white-chocolate-chunks.html

Really Cool Kid Art

http://lindseydanielladidit.blogspot.com/2011/09/melted-crayon-art.html

Noteworthy

I have been craving red meat for the last week or so -- always wanting a hamburger. But I know I hate the taste but mostly the chewiness of hamburgers (I was vegetarian and at age 5 swore off hamburgers. The next time I tasted one I was 18).
Well Saturday I went to the dentist's office and went to Dan's strategy luncheon all numbed up (this meant I hadn't eaten much in the last 15 hours) so I took a few bites of Dan's hamburger and it tasted so good I made my own after I had already eaten a hotdog.

What? Yep, for the first time in my life I ate an entire hamburger! 
I also ate a whole hotdog in the same sitting! 

I couldn't believe it!
What strange cravings you get when you're pregnant!

And on to the morning sickness...I sure am feeling it as of late!