Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

Have you ever tried to find a recipe for vegan pancakes? Have you ever eaten them? I lost count on how many recipes I tried that were a FAIL to the highest degree. They were dry, hard, grose excuses for pancakes and we had given up on this family delight - until now.

This is a recipe that I've altered and perfected. They are absolutely delicious, no one will ever know they are vegan - unless you feel like spilling the beans.


APPLE CINNAMON PANCAKES
1/2 cup vegan butter (we use Earth Balance)
2 cups rice milk
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup raw sugar (or agave)
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp vegetable oil (like grapeseed)
2 tsp vanilla
1 large organic apple, peeled and sliced thin
Cinnamon to sprinkle

Melt butter and set aside to cool. Stir flour with sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Make a well in center. Add milk, lemon juice, oil and vanilla and stir until just blended. The batter should be a bit lumpy. For fluffy pancakes, mix as little as possible.

Lightly coat a large frying pan with butter and set over medium heat. Pour 1/4 cup batter into pan (you can also use a pancake griddle). Place apple slices on pancakes and sprinkle with cinnamon.



Cook until bubbles form on the top of each pancake and edges begin to brown, about 2 min. Using a wide spatula, flip and continue cooking until the bottoms of pancakes become golden, 1-2 min. Don't press or they will become tough. Serve right away or place on a plate and keep warm in a low-temperature oven while cooking remaining pancakes. They're delicious drizzled with maple syrup!

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies

Hello. My name is Yadira and I am a recovering sugarholic. There was a time in my pregnancy with Annabelle before going vegan that I was eating bags of skittles and microwaved chocolate cake daily. Oh how I wish I was exaggerating. I even made a video with instructions for 5 minute chocolate cake. Watch it for the cuteness of my kiddos, not for the recipe. Smh.

Anyway, since I've been vegan, my sugar cravings have dropped to almost nothing. It's a fabulous thing. However every once in a while I get the urge to bake something fun. That's when this cookie comes in handy. It's almost like breakfast, in a cookie. In fact you probably could bake up a batch and have them as a quick breakfast for the week. I don't even want to tell you they're "sugar-free" because those are usually fighting words, but these are pure and simple goodness.

OATMEAL PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES
1/3 cup peanut butter
2 ripe bananas (overripe is even better)
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp unsweetened rice milk
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 1/2 cups quick cooking or rolled oatmeal
1/4 cup flour

Mash bananas with a fork until smooth. Add peanut butter, rice milk, vanilla and maple syrup and mix well. Add remaining ingredients and stir until well combined.
Shape the dough into cookies and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 13-16 minutes at 350 degrees. Voila! The kids love them!

Quick and Easy Eggplant Parm

I have yet to meet a Puerto Rican that doesn't adore Italian food. That might be a stereotype, but it's a pretty safe bet. Seriously, who doesn't love pasta, tomato sauce, oozy cheese, delectable herbs and spices? What we don't love is the saturated fat, cholesterol and high calorie content of these foods.

Lucky for us, there are healthier ways to indulge!

This dish is perfect as an appetizer, or served on top of whole wheat linguine (make that brown rice linguine and you've got a gluten-free dish). It's great to serve to guests, or as a quick lunch for yourself. Either way, there's something gourmet about it. Fancy yet simple - perfection.

Eggplant Parmesan

1 Large Eggplant
Your Fave Spaghetti Sauce*
Mozzarella Daiya Cheese
Fresh Basil Leaves
Garlic Powder
Black Pepper (optional)

Peel and slice the eggplant into 1/4 inch thick rounds. Arrange side to side on a cookie sheet. Place the sauce, cheese and basil leaves on top of each round.

Stick it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 5 minutes, until the eggplant gets a little darker and the cheese melts. Stack 2-3 rounds on top of each other, sprinkle with garlic powder and black pepper to serve. *Feel free to substitute a 1/4 inch slice of tomato for the sauce. Yum.