Protein Pancakes

Serves 1

These are ridiculously simple, packed full of protein, cheap to make and oh so versatile. Plus they are gluten, dairy and refined-sugar free! You can add oats to the mixture to make them heartier, or a scoop of protein powder if you’re the sporty-type. You can also sneak in some greens such as spinach (you won’t be able to taste it, don’t worry!) or just make them pure and simple with lots of nutritious toppings. As you gain more confidence and familiarize yourself with the recipe, you can experiment for example by adding a teaspoon of cacao powder to make them chocolatey.

Ingredients:

 1 egg

1 banana (the riper the better as it’ll be easier to blend)

1 tsp of chia seeds or 1tbsp of oats

a handful of spinach (optional)

1 tsp of coconut oil (for frying)

 Possible toppings:

-        Chopped fresh fruit - I like berries best

-        Almond butter and blueberries (as pictured)

-        Honey, pure maple syrup or low-sugar jam

-        Peanut butter and a sliced banana

-        1 tsp of cinnamon

Method:

1.     Whizz the egg, banana and chia seeds in a blender until smooth. If you don’t have a blender, mash up the banana with a fork and then add the egg and beat until you have a pretty smooth mixture.

2.     Put a teaspoon of coconut oil in a frying pan and turn up to a high heat. I prefer to use coconut oil rather than olive oil as it’s much healthier to fry with, plus you can buy it very cheaply at some Indian-run newsagents and Aldi now sell it for £2.99!

3.     Put about two spoons worth of the mixture into the pan per pancake – don’t worry if it’s a bit runny!

4.     Turn the pancakes over when the sides start to look a little toasted.

5.     Lift out of the pan and enjoy!