By Russ Marchewka
Growing Guru, and professional beach volleyball player, Russ Marchewka, shares his recipe for Protein Power Pancakes that balances healthy fats, protein, whole grain carbohydrates and fiber for a hearty, healthy breakfast to satisfy and fuel for hours
You know how people say “breakfast is the most important meal of the day?” Well—it’s not…
Every meal you eat is important in that what you feed your body is a critical part of your health. The theory goes that fueling your body early in the morning leads to higher metabolism etc. Actually, there is a ton of benefit to drinking tons of fluid the first half of the day. Our body does a significant portion of detox at night, so flushing all that out early in the day is just as important as eating.
I drink 12-24 ounces of pure spring water first thing before I ever think about food. Then I’m mixing super greens powder with water and drinking that. Then I’ll mix medicinal mushrooms and shilajit powder with herbal tea or coffee, along with coconut oil and drink that. Dehydration is often misunderstood by our brains to be hunger, so when you think you’re hungry, drink plenty of fluids first. See, if you want great health, you have to be intentional about it.
OK, but nothing above is sexy and it certainly doesn’t fill your stomach or give you the same time of endorphin release that a tasty meal does. I did want to share one of my favorite recipes and the various healthy aspects that go into it. And yes, these power pancakes are amazingly delicious.
Protein Power Pancakes
- 1 cup almond flour
- 1 cup oat flour (easy to make yourself by using a coffee grinder with steel cut oats)
- 1 cup (trader joe’s) bourbon vanilla baking mix OR 1 cup coconut flakes or coconut flour. Both the vanilla baking mix and the coconut impart unique and delicious flavor. Nice to have the flourless option if you are trying to cut wheat out of your diet.
- 3 tbsp. of chia seed powder (I like Sunfood’s organic chia seed powder)
- 1 tbsp maca (Optional) *I don’t eat maca in summer
- 2 scoops of Growing Naturals Vanilla Blast Pea Protein (or 1 ½ scoops of Growing Naturals Strawberry Burst Rice Protein)
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- Dash of sea salt
Mix dry ingredients first and then fold in your liquids:
- 1 cup coconut or almond milk
- 1 cup water
The consistency after incorporating the liquids should be such that the batter will fall off a spoon easily. The chia seeds soak up so much liquid that if it seems too thin, just let it sit for a minute and the mix will thicken up.
I cook my pancakes 2 different ways depending on time and clean up motivations. The stove top should yield 12-15 pancakes. I then make a berry compote to top my pancakes with. Simply pour frozen berries into a pan, along with dash of sea salt and 8 drops of Sweet Leaf Vanilla Crème stevia. Simmer on medium heat for 5 minutes, crushing the berries with a fork when then soften up. Let the compote rest and the pectin from the berries will help it thicken into a syrup.
(Use a non-stick spray for each the oven method or stove top)
Or you can spread the mix out in a rectangular baking pan and bake for 35-40 minutes at 400 degrees. With the oven method, I simply incorporate berries into the batter before I spread it into the pan. Much easier to bake berries inside than fry berry filled pancakes on the stove. Bon Appetit!
OK, back to being a nerd for the end. One of the reasons I love these pancakes is because they are truly healthy versions of a comfort food that really is pretty bad for us. Also, this isn’t simply a recipe that adds a superfood ingredient to an unhealthy mix to make it sound better. There is a balance of healthy fats, protein and whole grain carbohydrates and a ton of fiber which satisfy and fuel for hours.
If you’re trying to get more protein in your diet, this pancake recipe has a whopping 50-60 grams of protein for the batch!
Russ Marchewka is a professional beach volleyball player on the AVP Tour. His commitment to better nutrition has earned him the title of “Mr. Healthy.” Fans and players alike seek out his advice to be better athletes and lead healthier lives. He created WorldHealthHub.com to share only the best brands of health foods and supplements that he personally uses in his everyday life.
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