Minted Yogurt Dipping Sauce

If you can't tell I've been in a mediterranean mood lately, with the hummus, naan and now this yogurt dipping sauce.  I acutally made and ate them together and had it for lunch for several days.

I can't remember how I came across this recipe, but I had some fresh mint leftover in my fridge that I needed to use up so I went searching. I wasn't sure what to think when I saw the list of ingredients but I had everything so I went ahead and made it.  I made it right after I made my first batch of hummus and flat bread so I put it all together.  Wow, what a great combination! The salty, chewy hummus and flat bread went perfectly with the fresh and tangy sauce.  I bet it would even be great with some lamb or pork.  The recipe only makes about a cup so if you're serving it to company I suggest at least doubling it!

Minted Yogurt Dipping Sauce
2 cups loosely packed fresh mint leaves (about 1 small bunch)
1 cup loosely packed cilantro (about half a bunch)
1/4 cup finely diced red onion
juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup pain Greek yogurt
1 tsp. raw honey
pinch of salt
pinch of red pepper flakes
drizzle of olive oil


Place everything in a food processor with a chopper blade and process until well blended. Store in the refrigerator.

Garlic Naan (flat bread)

I love a good flat bread.  I confess, every time I go to the grocery store I scan the day old bakery rack for their reduced flat bread and I always snag what's there and throw it in my freezer.  There must be others that think like me because I haven't seen it in a long time!  Since I can't stand to pay full price for something that costs next to pennies (almost) to make I went on a quest to find a great recipe so that I can just make them at home. 

Let me tell you, there are A LOT of naan recipes out there.  I kinda wanted to stay true to a more authentic recipe so I have made one with Greek yogurt and LOTS of garlic.  These are so delicious and never last long at our house.  I love to eat them with hummus but you can wrap pretty much anything up in them and call it good, or serve them with your favorite Indian or Greek meal.

Garlic Naan (flat bread)
3 cups flour (I used whole wheat, you can use white, half/half or whatever combination you choose)
2 1/4 tsp. yeast
2 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup plain whole-milk yogurt (I used Greek)
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup warm water

Place everything but the water in a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.  Pulse to combine, then add the water.  Mix on low for about 1 minute.  If it looks too wet, add a little more flour 1 tablespoon at a time. For all whole wheat flour, mix for 10 minutes; for all white, about 5; for a mix, somewhere in between.  When finished mixing, dough should be tacky but not too sticky.

Place dough in an oiled bowl, covered lightly with a towel or plastic wrap.  Let rise until doubled.

Turn dough out onto a clean work surface.  Cut dough into 8 equal portions and roll into balls.  Let rest another 10 minutes.

Preheat a skillet or griddle to medium high.  On a lightly floured work surface, roll out each ball, one at a time, either into a long oval or teardrop shape.  If the dough keeps springing back, let it rest another few minutes. 

Transfer rolled out dough to skillet or griddle and cook until bubbles start to form on top and underside is lightly golden; about 30-60 seconds. Flip and do the same on the other side.  Remove to a plate and brush with melted butter or ghee. Repeat with remaining dough.

Serve warm alongside your favorite Indian or Greek meal, or cut into wedges and serve with hummus.  Store in an airtight bag or container for a week on the counter.


SOURCE: Adapted from Arctic Garden Studio

Hummus

I'm so happy to finally have a hummus recipe that I love and is quick and easy to throw together.  I know it's not rocket science and there's about a bajillion recipes out there for hummus but this one's a keeper for me.

I have recently had this obsession with Trader Joe's Organic Hummus, which is so good if you have never tried it.  Every time my hubby goes into Salt Lake I plead with him to stop at Trader Joe's for me to pick up a few key items, hummus being one of them. Sadly though, we don't make it there far enough, haha, so I decided it was time to make my own, and spend a fraction of the cost!


Hummus
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 15-oz canned chickpeas (garbanzo beans)-drained
1/2 cup sesame seeds, toasted
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
1 clove garlic, minced
pinch of salt

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat.  Add sesame seeds and cook until lightly browned. 

Put everything in the blender in order listed.  You may need to pulse it a couple times to get it going.  Let blender run until it reaches desired consistency.  If you want to thin it out a little, add either water or olive oil about a tablespoon at a time.  Check for seasoning and adjust if necessary. 

Serve with pita chips or fresh veggies.


SOURCE: Blendtec

Jim Lahey's No-Knead Artisan Bread

Good artisan bread is absolutely divine! Crunchy, crispy exterior, soft open crumb inside.  It kind of makes me drool.  I've been making all sorts of bread for my family for years and never did I imagine that I would be able to make artisan bread in my own oven!

The glory of this bread is just about anyone can make it. The dough is  a very wet dough so it's just stirred together a bit, hence the "no-knead" aspect.  The magic happens during the long proofing time.  With a mere 1/4 teaspoon of yeast, the dough will raise anywhere from about 12 hours up to 18  hours.  During this time the dough will develop a wonderful flavor, almost verging on a light sourdough flavor. 

Before you endeavor to make this delicious bread, make sure you have a heavy covered pot that is either cast iron (Dutch oven), enamel, ceramic or Pyrex.  And that's it!  It'll only take a time or two making this bread before you'll be doing it weekly.


No-Knead Bread
3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, plus more for dusting
1/4 tsp. yeast
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups plus 1 Tbsp. water

In a large bowl, combine flour, yeast and salt. Add water and stir until combined.  Dough will be sticky.  Cover with plastic wrap or a loose fitting lid and let rise, undisturbed, at least 12 hours, preferable 18 hours at room temperature; about 70 degrees F.

Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.
      

At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 20 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

SOURCE: Adapted from Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery via nytimes.com

Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cake

This was my birthday cake this year and I'd say I spoiled myself!  I haven't indulged this much in a long time! But birthdays for me are that time of year where you can break all the rules, eat whatever you want make it all about YOU.  It's ok for one day a year....tomorrow I can go back to everything being about mostly everyone else (just fine by me), and eating more green things than brown (aka chocolate).  In my defense I did drink a green smoothie today AND ate a green salad as my dinner...so it all balances out right?

So, I think I actually wanted to make this cake for my birthday two years ago but it didn't happen, and last year either, so this was the year.  I do have to admit that while I love the cake as a whole, the chocolate cake recipe I used is not my favorite, a bit dense and crumbly for this type of cake. So, the chocolate cake recipe below is one I've made for a previous cake, and is lighter with a more tender crumb. 

Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cake

for the cake:
1 3/4 cup plus all-purpose flour
12 Tbsp. dark cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 large eggs
2 cups buttermilk
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract

for the ganache filling:
4 oz. heavy cream (1/2 cup)
4 oz. dark chocolate, chopped

for the raspberry filling:
1 1/2 cups frozen raspberries
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. water

for the raspberry buttercream:
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
4 cups powdered sugar
3 Tbsp. strained raspberry puree (need about 1/4 cup frozen raspberries)

for the chocolate glaze:
2 oz. dark chocolate
2 oz. heavy cream (1/4 cup)
2 Tbsp. light corn syrup
1 tsp. vanilla extract

for garnish:
a small handful of fresh raspberries (about 3 oz.)

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Grease and flour the edges of 2, 9-inch, round cake pans, shaking out the excess flour. Line the bottom with a round of parchment. In a small bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt; whisk to blend and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the sugar, oil and eggs. Beat on medium speed until smooth, about 1-2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, blend in half of the dry ingredients, beating just until incorporated. Blend in the buttermilk and vanilla just until smooth. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake, rotating halfway through, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool in the pan for 20 minutes. Run a knife around the edges, then turn the cake out onto the rack and let cool completely. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill at least an hour, up to overnight. (note: I usually bake the cake part the night before and once it's cooled, wrap it in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge so it's nice and firm to work with the next day.)

Next, prepare the raspberry and ganache fillings.  In a small saucepan boil raspberries, sugar and water.  Boil about 5 minutes, until mixture thickens slightly. Set aside to cool.  For the ganache, chop chocolate and place in a bowl.  Bring cream just to a boil then remove from heat and pour over chocolate.  Cover with a clean plate and let sit about 4-5 minutes.  Stir chocolate and cream together until smooth and allow to cool a bit.

While ganache is cooling, carefully cut each cake round in half vertically, making two layers. (note: you may have to level your cake off a bit first.)  Place bottom layer of one cake round on a cake plate or other flat serving dish. Pour half of the raspberry filling on the layer and spread out just about to the edges.  Replace the top layer of first cake round, making sure edges are even and flush with each other.  Next, pour the ganache over the layer you just placed down and spread it evenly out all the way to the edges.  Refrigerate until firm, about 10-15 minutes. 

Remove cake from fridge.  Next take the TOP layer of the remaining cake round and invert it over the ganache layer.  Spread the other half of the raspberry filling on top, then place the last layer of cake on top of the raspberry filling BOTTOM UP!

Next prepare raspberry buttercream.  Puree about 1/4 cup raspberries and strain through either cheesecloth or a fine mesh sieve.  (note:you can also boil them a minute or two to get more juice out of them.) Set aside to cool.  In a mixing bowl fitted with a whisk attachment, place butter and whisk about 2 minutes.  Add strained raspberry puree and powdered sugar and whisk again another 2-3 minutes, until light an fluffy. 

Crumb coat the cake.  Take a very thin layer of frosting and coat top and sides of cake.  Chill about 10 minutes.  Remove cake and frost the top and sides of the cake with the rest of the frosting.

To make the glaze prepare chocolate and cream as for the ganache.  Stir chocolate and cream until smooth and combined.  Add in corn syrup and vanilla extract.  Allow to cool a bit; enough so that you can pour it and it will make it's way slowly over the edge, but not so thin that it all goes over quickly. Pour glaze; allow to drip over edges.  Garnish with fresh raspberries and chill about 10 minutes before serving. 

(yes, that is finger swipe in the frosting; my daughter's to be exact!)

 

 

 

 

SOURCE: Inspired by Annie's Eats

 



Menu Plan Monday Week 21 (2013)

If you read the menu post last week, you'll know that I celebrated my birthday last week.  It was fun and wonderful and I had chocolate cake coming out my ears, especially since my mom sent us home with some on Sunday after a Mother's Day dinner.  BUT, that didn't keep us from eating it.  It was all delicious.  I can't wait to share with you the cake I made for my birthday.  A little time intensive, but WELL worth it!

So I tried to keep everything on this week's menu in the quick and tasty department.  As we are going into warmer weather and spending more time outside I need things I can prep ahead or whip up in a flash. 

Dinner Menu Week 21 (2013)
Monday
Split Pea Soup with Smoked Ham and Kale
Artisan bread

Tuesday
Sun-dried Tomato and Basil Fettuccine
Salad

Wednesday
The Perfect Hamburger (homemade burger buns)
salad, fresh watermelon

Thursday
Thai Quinoa Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing

Friday
Homemade pizza night!!!

Saturday
Pretzel Crusted Chicken Strips with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
salad
steamed broccoli

Sunday
Lentil Veggieballs in Lemon Pesto
Roasted Fennel Salad with Raspberries

Berry Chicken Salad with Arugula and Basil

This was another one of those dinners on the fly.  It was getting late, everyone was getting hungry, it was hot and I didn't want to heat up the house.  So, I actually came up with it right before I had to whip it up and feed my family before they all starved to death!  I had just picked up a bunch of fresh berries and thought they would go perfect in a chicken salad.  The rest just came to me as I put it together.  Luckily it all worked out and the salad was mouthwatering!

This salad will be perfect for spring and summer, definitely going to find it's place into the dinner rotation.  And who doesn't love dinner done in under 20 minutes?


Berry Chicken Salad with Arugula and Basil

for the salad:
2-3 chicken breasts, butterflied
1/2 head of romaine lettuce, chopped and washed
3 oz. arugula (3-4 big handfuls)
1/2 lb. strawberries, hulled, rinsed and sliced
small clam shell fresh blueberries
small clam shell fresh raspberries
thinly sliced red onion (some like more, I like less, so however much you want)
handful of large basil leaves, about half a cup, chopped
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

for the dressing:
1/4 cup light olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (really versatile though; you can use red wine vinegar, rice or white wine vinegar or even fresh lemon juice)
2 Tbsp. good quality strawberry jam (I prefer homemade freezer jam)
pinch of salt
a few good cracks of black pepper; about 1/4 tsp.

Preheat outdoor grill or indoor grill pan.  Drizzle chicken with olive oil and liberally salt and pepper.  Cook chicken until no longer pink.  Allow to cool and chop into bite-size pieces.

In a large salad bowl, gently toss salad ingredients together.  Whisk dressing ingredients together and serve with salad.  Store leftovers in the fridge.

Roasted Strawberry Muffins

I'm so happy to have another muffin recipe in my collection.  I like to have a lot of healthy options for breakfast since I dont' really buy boxed cereal anymore and these are great.  My girls loved these muffins, but I was really surprised when they ate them without picking out the strawberries.  Usually  they don't like pieces of fruit in baked goods, but whatever...they ate them, loved them and didn't complain! I'd say that's a win!

Roasted Strawberry Muffins
Makes 1 dozen

1 lb. strawberries
2 eggs
1/2 cup greek yogurt
1/4 - 1/2 cup milk
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
coarse sugar, for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Rinse, hull and cut strawberries into small pieces.  Lay on a cookie sheet and sprinkle with a few pinches of sugar.  Toss to coat.  Roast in oven for about 15 minutes, then set aside to cool.  Increase oven temperature to 425 degrees F.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together by hand eggs, yogurt, 1/4 cup of milk, vanilla, sugar and melted coconut oil. Add flours, baking powder and salt. If the batter seems thick, add a little more milk, but do not over stir.  Scrape strawberries off the cookie sheet into the bowl and gently fold them in.

Put paper liners in muffin tin and divide batter evenly between them.  Sprinkle tops with a pinch of coarse sugar.  Bake at 425 degrees F for 13-15 minutes. Allow muffins to cool about 5 minutes in the pan before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely  Store in an airtight container.


SOURCE: Adapted from Annie's Eats

Menu Plan Monday Week 20 (2013)

I hope everyone had a happy mother's day yesterday.  We were busy celebrating with my mom so I didn't have time yesterday to get this week's menu up.  Luckily I had been thinking of some things already so all I had to do this morning was jot them down.  I actually had a couple leftover meal ideas from last week.  Since we spent a couple long days putting in our garden, dinner got pushed aside and they were kind of fend for yourself nights...unfortunately.   Oh well garden is in and looking forward to a great summer of fresh produce.

Dinner Menu Week 20 (2013)
Monday
Sweet Potato and Tamarind Curry with Basil and Lime
Thai Coconut Rice
fresh veggies

Tuesday-Celebrating my birthday!!
Fettuccine with Mushrooms and Hazlenuts
Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Rosemary and Pine Nuts
fresh fruit
Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cake

Wednesday
Macadamia and Coconut Crusted Tilapia with Mango Salsa
leftover rice
Salad

Thursday
Roast Chicken with Balsamic Sweet Peppers
Creamy Polenta
steamed broccoli

Friday
Lentil Veggieballs in Lemon Pesto
salad
fresh fruit

Saturday
Leftovers

Sunday
Pasta with Cilantro-Peanut Pesto
fresh veggies

Blackberry Balsamic Pie with Sea Salt Walnut Crumble

I don't eat much pie, even less fruit pie, so it goes without saying that I pretty much NEVER even make pie, except this one maybe once a year on Thanksgiving. Sad for my husband because he likes pie and, again, I rarely make them.  So, making this pie was BIG for me! 

I found this recipe on Pinterest and pinned it quite a while ago but never found much occasion to make it...'cause I never make pie, hehe!  But the ingredients intrigued me and it did look good. Anyway, blackberries came in season and I got a killer deal on a bunch recently so I bought quite a bit, mostly to freeze for smoothies but I saved a few containers out. 

We had some friends over for dinner and served these sliders and I thought this pie would be a good accompaniment, especially since my friend loves fruit desserts.  WOW!  It was love at first bite. I couldn't wait to devour the whole piece.

Now, I'm sure you pie lovers have your own favorite pie crust recipe that you use, so go ahead and use whatever you like .  For the rest of you non-pie makers, like me, go ahead and buy a crust, I give you permission.

Pie-lover or not, you need to make this pie!!  It will convert even the stubbornest.


Blackberry Balsamic Pie with Sea Salt Walnut Crumble

for the crust:
1 store bough deep-dish pie crust, or your favorite homemade one

for the filling:
4 1/2 cups fresh blackberries (about 3 6-oz containers)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. cornstarch
2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
zest of 1 lime (I squeeze a little juice in there too)

for the crumble:
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp sea salt
4 oz. unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pieces

Prepare pie crust and preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Combine all filling ingredients in a mixing bowl and lightly toss to evenly coat blueberries.

In a food processor with a chopper blade add the ingredients for the crumble.  Pulse a few times until mixture resembles a coarse meal-same process for making a pie crust. If you don't want the oats to become powder, you could leave them out until the butter is cut in, then add them in a pulse a time or two more to mix them in.

Spoon pie filling into prepared (unbaked) crust.  Sprinkle the crumble over the blackberries, completely covering them.  Bake for 45-50 minutes or until filling is bubbly and topping is brown and crisp. About half way through baking, lightly tent a piece of foil over the pie so it doesn't brown too quickly.

Cool and serve warm or at room temperature.


SOURCE: Design Sponge

Menu Plan Monday Week 19 (2013)

So, this week I have not emptied out my fridge like I should have been doing.  We started a 30 day challenge to eat more greens, especially in the form of green smoothies.  While we've been getting our smoothies in, I haven't made as much salad as I normally do because of it.  So I have a huge bag of spinach and kale we're slowly knocking out each day, as well as some risidual veggies from last week that didn't get eaten.  So, I'm  gonna use up the rest of those veggies this week, hopefully before I have to go grocery shopping again.

I am also in LOVE with hummus lately!!  And not just any hummus...Trader Joe's Organic Hummus.  It's absolutely delicious. I know it's VERY easy to make but the few times I have made it, the flavor was just off for me so I didn't really want to try again.  Finally I realized I think it was the olive oil I was using when I made it. It's a big part of the flavor so it's important to get a good one.  So I'll be making a go at that again this week, along with some garlic naan and mint chutney to make a well rounded Mediterranen meal.

Dinner Menu Week 19 (2013)
Monday
Burritos with homemade flour tortillas and smashed pinto beans (I know we just had these but my kids LOVED them and asked for them again.)
corn on the cob

Tuesday
Hamburgers
Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Rosemary and Pinenuts

Wednesday
Tortilla Soup w/ Southwest Slaw

Thursday
Spicy Garlic Shrimp with Tomatoes and Snow Peas

Friday
Leftovers

Saturday
Sweet Potato Curry with Basil and Lime

Sunday
Easy Sesame Peanut Noodles
chopped peppers, carrots and cucumbers


On the side...(feeling ambitious this week )
Garlic Naan
Mint Chutney
Hummus
Banana Scones with Brown Butter Glaze
Spicy Bok Chow Rice Bowl-lunch (can't get enough of this, I'm already salivating!)
Strawberry Mint Smoothie

Chicken Enchilada Pizza

By the time I get to Fridays I'm spent, totally and completely!  I leave pizza for the weekend because, HEY! it's Friday, it's the weekend! Let's have something fun and easy.  My girls ALWAYS choose cheese pizza, I just don't ask anymore.  One day, their taste buds will be a little more distinguished, ONE DAY!

Don't get me wrong, my cheese pizza is pretty dang good, especially when I make it on my garlic bread pizza dough (which I have yet to post), but I don't want to forever and always eat cheese pizza when I do eat it.  So, this is my latest installment of our adult pizzas.  It was really delicious, especially all that fresh on top and the zingy lime juice! If you don't like or want the chicken, it is easily swapped out for black beans and just as tasty. 


Chicken Enchilada Pizza
1 recipe Perfect Pizza Dough
Enchilada Sauce
1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded
1 - 1 1/2 cups Colby Jack cheese, shredded (or use half Cheddar and half Monterey Jack cheese)
Romaine Lettuce, thinly shredded; about 1 leaf
1-2 Tbsp. cilantro, chopped
Avocado, sliced
grape tomatoes, halved
fresh lime

Mix up pizza dough according  to directions and allow to rise. While dough is rising, cook the chicken, shred and set aside.  Also, make the enchilada sauce and strain as instructed. Add about half of the onion mixture and a couple tablespoons of the sauce to the shredded chicken and toss. 

Preheat oven (along with pizza stone if you are using one) to 450 degrees F.  Roll out dough and brush edges with olive oil.  Spread about 1/4 cup of the strained encilada sauce onto the dough.  Layer with about half of the cheese, then the chicken/onion mixture and top with the other half of the cheese.  Slide pizza onto hot baking stone (or inverted baking sheet) and bake for about 8-10 minutes, or until cheese has browned a bit and is bubbly.

While pizza is cooking, prepare the rest of the toppings; lettuce, cilantro, avocado and tomatoes.

Remove pizza from oven and allow to cool slightly.  Top with remaining toppings, then squeeze fresh lime juice all over pizza and serve.

*Use some remaining enchilada sauce for dipping, if desired, and the rest plus the onion mixture can be stored in the freezer for later use (more pizza yay!!!).

Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Apple Pancakes

Just what I need right? Another pancake recipe.  My mom was on here a while back looking for a recipe and told me I had way too many.  Hmm, I don't think so.  I am always up for a new pancake to try.  It's one of my absolute favorite things to make for breakfast.

So the story behind this pancake is this...hubs' birthday was last month and my mom baked him an apple cake. I had just made homemade buckeye (peanut butter and chocolate) ice cream and threw it on top of a piece of leftover cake one night (also drizzled homemade caramel sauce on top) and it was so good!! A match made in heaven if you ask me. And from there, the flavor combination morphed into pancakes; 'cause it doesn't take much to get me thinking about pancakes.

So, these are really delicious and don't take much more effort than a typical batch of pancakes. All the extra you're going to have to do is just peel, cut and shred an apple and thin out some peanut butter to drizzle on top and that's it. 

Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Apple Pancakes
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 fresh egg
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. natural peanut butter , plus more for topping
1 1/2 whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 large apple, peeled, cut into fourths and shredded

Prepare apple and set aside.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together peanut butter and sugar.  Gradually whisk in egg and buttermilk, a little at a time. *If you add too much liquid at once, the peanut butter will not mix in well and will be clumpy.  You can also warm the peanut butter a little first to make it easier to whisk in.  Whisk mixture until smooth and uniform.

Add the dry ingredient and whisk until just incorporated.  Stir in shredded apple last and let batter sit while griddle preheats.

Drop batter by 1/4 cup onto hot griddle and cook until bubbles start to form and edges begin to look dry; about 2-3 minutes.  Flip and cook another 1-2 minutes. 

Serve warm.  If you want to drizzle peanut butter on top, just whisk in some water until it's pourable.  Otherwise you can just spread it on top with a knife.  Drizzle with syrup.