Manage Your Weight with These Pancake Recipes

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Manage Your Weight with These Pancake Recipes

I love pancakes. I am sure you all do but restrain yourselves because you consider them high-calorie sweet treats. This is not necessarily true. A few simple changes in the pancake base will reduce their calorie content. Plus, pancake recipes allow experimenting with other ingredients that will make them even healthier without spoiling their deliciousness. Like those rich in chromium.

Chromium is a mineral needed by the body in small amounts for healthy functioning. It has been associated with less weight gain, reduction in the risk for obesity, and may positively affect food intake. Studies have shown that increased intake of chromium supplements resulted in reduced hunger levels, fewer fat cravings and a decrease in body weight. Other benefits of chromium are:

• regulation of blood sugar
• diabetes control
• heart health and control of cholesterol
• brain health, including concentration, memory and mood regulation
• skin health
• eyes health

Find out which ingredients are rich in chromium and choose an easy pancake recipe to incorporate them into.

How to Reduce the Calorie Content in Pancakes

As I said, you need to make a few important changes in the pancake batter to make it healthier and reduce its calorie content. You can’t expect to lose weight by eating sugary sweet treats based on white refined flour, can you?

• Replace regular flour with whole wheat, oatmeal, coconut flour, almond flour or soy flour;
• Replace regular refined sugar with honey, pure maple syrup, molasses, agave syrup or stevia;
• Replace regular milk with non-dairy milk, like almond, soy, rice or coconut milk. If you are using yogurt for fluffiness (I highly recommend that you do), choose a low-fat or nonfat variation or soy yogurt;
• Use healthier vegetable oil alternatives both in the batter and for frying, like olive oil or coconut oil.

Chromium-Infused Pancakes

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Here are some suggestions on how to incorporate chromium-infused ingredients into your pancake recipes.

Ambitious amateur cooks know very well that pancakes don’t have to be sweet. I usually prepare savory pancake recipes whenever I have “tired” vegetables in my fridge or when I am not in the mood for serious cooking. I usually make the Korean pancake version that usually combines different vegetables, with meat/seafood or without it. I have prepared the variation that combines broccoli, chili peppers and soybean paste. It is usually served with a dipping sauce consisting of soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar.

If you decide to include meat, choose grass-fed beef or turkey that are especially rich in chromium. Serve with a glass of red wine (also chromium-rich).

Another delicious food that is full of chromium is potatoes. If you haven’t made potato pancakes now is the right time to do it. Mix them with onions, garlic (also rich in chromium), peppers, eggs, a little flour, and cheese (choose low-fat variation to maintain control of the calories intake) and prepare the fastest and tastiest lunch ever!

Choose another chromium-infused ingredient for spicing – basil. Note: Basil can be also added to sweet pancakes. Idea: add 1/3 cup fresh minced basil to lemon pancake recipe and cover in a blueberry compote.

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Back to sweet pancakes. Fruits that are rich in chromium include:

• Banana is a perfect ingredient for pancakes. It can replace both flour and sugar at the same time because of its thick texture and natural sweetness. Serve with banana slices on top, together with pure maple syrup and cinnamon;
• The Orange Buttermilk Pancake recipe recommends zest of one orange in the batter and blueberry syrup on top;
• Add a cup of diced apples in the batter and spice with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg;
• There is an amazing recipe that calls for 1 ½ cup of blue grapes in one big pancake that is oven-baked.

Photo credit: kalyan02 via Foter.com / CC BY

Photo credit: Jamie McCaffrey via Foter.com / CC BY-NC

Photo credit: KFoodaddict via Foter.com / CC BY