For so long I have had to give up pancakes because they are too full of carbs. Not any more. Protein packed pancakes use three sources of protein. And I love pancakes, so this was a wonderful discovery.

These looked like normal pancakes, but didn’t raise my blood sugar or make me feel like taking a nap after eating them. And there’s an easy conversion to be gluten free for those who need it.

This recipe is so simple I had to make it twice the same morning to be sure it wasn’t a fluke. The original recipe used only the white of the egg along with cottage cheese. And it didn’t include baking powder, so I changed those things right away. I do believe in using egg yolks as they provide unique nutrients, at least according to Dr. Oz. The ricotta cheese swap was easy because it is so much smoother than cottage cheese. I wanted my cakes to raise a bit, so the baking powder stepped in to lend a hand.

And of course, I doubled the vanilla from the original and added a generous portion of cinnamon. One of my baking rules is: “Always double the vanilla and triple the cinnamon.” There are few exceptions to this.

1 batch would feed a hungry adult or two kids

Ingredients for 1 batch of Protein Packed Pancakes
2 eggs
1/4 cup ricotta cheese (you can also use cottage cheese, but I like the smooth texture of ricotta.)
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (about 1/4)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 TBS whole wheat flour (or ground flaxseed meal for gluten free)

Whisk them into a bowl in the order given and cook as normal in a hot skillet.

We loved them with sugar free applesauce. I put the extras in a baggie in the fridge and we warmed them up in the toaster a few days later. They were also delicious with my blueberry jam. (No it’s not sugar free, but it was a wonderful treat!)