Coconut Flour Pancakes, Bacon, Maple Syrup and Toasted Coconut Flakes & a Green Smoothie

On a Saturday I always try to eat as ‘cleanly’ as possible to combat the constant eating I do as a chef. Granted, this didn’t get off to a good start with a fish and chips takeaway and the pub last night(!), but this morning I wanted to make up for the bad with a huge health-filled brunch. I also wanted to try out cooking with coconut flour – a great wheat flour alternative I’d spotted in Wholefoods last week - to make some gluten-free pancakes. The mix is similar to when using regular flour, you just need to use more eggs as the flour absorbs so much liquid. The pancakes themselves were very easy to cook and delicious with crispy bacon, maple syrup, fresh berries and toasted coconut flakes. They’re not as fluffy as wheat flour pancakes but I actually liked their denser texture for a change and adding a dollop of Greek yoghurt helped combat this. All washed down with my favourite green smoothie (see my recipe below), it was a delicious start to a sunny bank holiday!

Coconut Flour Pancakes

Makes 5 medium pancakes

• In a bowl sift together 50g Coconut Flour and 1 tsp Bicarbonate Soda, 1 tsp Cinnamon. Crack in 3 Eggs and whisk to a paste. Whisk in 2 tbsp melted Coconut Oil and enough milk to make a loose but still thick batter.
• Put a frying pan on a medium heat and grease with a little Coconut Oil. Spoon 2 tbsps of the batter into the pan and cook for a few minutes until set on the underside, then flip over and cook for another few minutes. Keep warm while you make the others.
• Serve with toasted Coconut Flakes, Streaky Bacon, Maple Syrup, Fresh Fruit and Greek Yoghurt.

My Green Smoothie

Serves 1

The ingredients list makes this look like torture but is is addictively good. I always keep frozen bananas (chopped first) in my freezer so the only fresh ingredients are any veg you have at the time. The green powder is vile on it's own but whizzed into this is completely masked and makes you feel fab! 

• 1 Frozen Banana
• 1 Medjool Date
• 1 handful leafy green veg like spinach or kale
• 1 tbsp Flaxseeds
• 1 tbsp Lucuma Powder
• 1 scoop Super Greens Powder (by Synergy Natural)
• Almond Milk (homemade or the unsweetened bought variety)

Whizz all this together and loosen with the Almond Milk until you have a thick but pourable smoothie.