White Bean Pancakes
Every Sunday my husband takes my daughter, Ivy, to the diner for pancakes while I try to catch up on a weeks-worth of sleep.
Ivy LOVES pancakes.
And when I found out that her iron levels were a little on the low side, I started thinking about how I could get more iron into her diet.
Pancakes were just the thing!
I’ve done Acorn Squash Pancakes, so I figured why not try a new version by adding an iron-rich bean instead of the squash?!
I put a can of drained and rinsed cannellini beans in my batter, and I’m telling you, the result looks and tastes JUST LIKE regular pancakes!
It was so simple (opening a can of beans!) to turn a semi-indulgent breakfast into one we can feel really good about eating!
It’s easy to “eat healthy” when you’re eating like this!
White Bean Pancakes
makes: 10 to 12 medium (4 to 5 inches in diameter) pancakes
Ingredients:
- One 15-ounce can cannellini beans (about 1¾ cups), rinsed + drained
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole milk
- 5 ounces frozen spinach (about 1 cup), thawed + drained (optional)
- 2 large eggs
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Directions:
- Add the beans, flour, milk, spinach (if desired), eggs, baking powder, vanilla, and salt to a blender, and blend this mixture until it is smooth.
- Next, add the butter to a large skillet over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, pour about ½ cup of the batter into the pan; this will make one pancake about 4 inches in diameter. Cook the batter until bubbles start to pop on its surface. Then flip the pancake and cook it until the other side is also brown and the edges are dry—about 3 to 5 minutes per side. Repeat with the remainder of the batter.
- Serve with extra butter, syrup, fruit, or whatever you like!
Notes:
- If you prefer fluffier pancakes, separate the yolks and whites of the eggs. Rather than following Step 1 as written, add the beans, flour, milk, spinach (if desired), egg yolks, baking powder, vanilla, and salt, to a blender, and blend this mixture until it is completely smooth; then transfer to a large bowl. Meanwhile, beat the egg whites in a medium bowl with a handheld electric mixer on medium-high until they are white and fluffy and have soft peaks (they should be about 4 times larger than their starting size)—about 2 minutes; you could also whisk by hand or do this in a stand mixer. Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the bean and flour mixture, deflating them as little as possible. Then proceed to Step 2 as written above.
