Chocolate Shakeology Protein Pancakes

Ever since I wrote the blog about the fluffy oatmeal pancakes, I've been craving pancakes!!! First I talk about the crazy craving I got for pancakes then I get another craving. Haha. Crazy right? So yes! I decided to make pancakes. Instead of the fluffy oatmeal pancakes, I decided to make a healthier alternative. I have been doing the Focus T25 program so I didn't want to ruin my workout!

Recipe adapted from getfitjess.

Yields: ~6 pancakes

Place all the ingredients into a blender and combine.

1 banana
1/2 instant oatmeal
4 tbsp unsweetened almond milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking powder
1 egg
1 egg white
1 scoop of chocolate Shakeology

This is how the batter looks after all the ingredients are combined.

Drizzle olive oil on the pan and heat to medium-low. Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to scoop the batter then place the mixture into the pan. Once the pancakes bubble, flip them. Cook the pancakes on the pan for another minute then remove.

I topped the pancakes with strawberries and bananas then drizzled them with agave nectar. You can choose any toppings you like. Enjoy! :)

2-3 slices of strawberries
1/2 banana sliced
Drizzles of agave nectar

1 serving size is about 2-3 pancakes (not including strawberries, banana, and agave nectar)!

Source: Calorie Counter

Fluffy Oatmeal Pancakes

I always have these crazy cravings for pancakes and it always happens during odd hours of the night. I guess the cravings shouldn't really be a problem since there are some places open late at night. I feel that there's never the right places open in the middle of the night and even so.. who wants to pay $10 for pancakes? There's one location with amazing pancakes but again... it's always pricey to eat out. The place is called Baby Stacks in case anyone wants to check it out. They have all types of pancakes. Bacon pancakes, red velvet pancakes, banana cream pie pancakes, and they always come out with specials.

I went on a search for a pancake recipe. The reason is 1. I love trying new recipes and 2. I can have pancakes whenever I want. I came across a recipe for matcha pancakes and they seemed perfect. It was amazing. The pancakes were fluffy and delicious but there was still something missing. I guess the problem was that I did not know how to even cook pancakes. There's always a first time for everything. I also wanted to eat pancakes with some type of grain in it. I made a few changes to the recipe that I found and also manged to master how to make the perfect pancakes. They were fluffy and for once I did not burn them. Score!!! :)

Recipe adapted from Diane, A Broad.

Yields: 6 pancakes

Place the egg, milk, olive oil, sugar and vanilla extract into a large bowl and whisk to combine.

1 egg
1/3 cup milk
2 tbsps olive oil
2 tbsps sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place instant oatmeal into a blender. Blend until the oatmeal is grounded. Place oatmeal, flour, baking soda and salt into the mixture. Combine mixture with a whisk.

1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup instant oatmeal
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
a pinch salt

Heat a skillet on high and wait for the pan to warm up then turn the heat to medium-low to cook the pancakes. Drizzle some olive oil onto the skillet and spread it around the pan. Use a 1/4 measuring cup to scoop the pancake batter and place the mixture onto the pan. Wait until the edges of the pancakes pop up and the surface of the pancake bubbles; flip the pancake and cook the other side.

Place the pancakes on a plate and serve with sliced bananas and strawberries then drizzle with agave nectar.

2-3 sliced strawberries
Sliced bananas
Drizzles of agave nectar - amber

Quick & Healthy Banana Oatmeal

I'm always looking for an easy and healthy breakfast in the morning especially if I wake up early. My go to healthy breakfast is instant oatmeal. I saw this recipe idea on an instagram post but modified the ingredients to how I like it. 

This is a quick, tasty and healthy breakfast! Those three combinations make the perfect breakfast in my opinion. What can beat that?!

Yields: 1 serving

Mash 1/2 of a banana into a medium/large bowl. Add instant oatmeal and combined with banana. Add 1/2 cup of almond milk (more or less depending on the consistency you like).

1 medium ripe banana
1/3 cup instant oatmeal
1/2 cup unsweentened almond milk

Microwave for 1 minute 30 seconds. Slice the other half of the banana into the oatmeal. You can add other toppings that you might like as well.

1/2 tbsp peanut butter - optional

I added sliced bananas and peanut butter into my oatmeal :)

1 serving of oatmeal including banana, unsweetened almond milk, and 1 tsp peanut butter.

Source: Calorie Counter

Authentic Tiramisu

When I was younger, my parents did not allow me to drink coffee. The only thing we were allow to eat with coffee in it was tiramisu. From what I remember, we only started eating tiramisu when I was a teen. My uncle makes the best tiramisu. I guess I never really tried the ones in restaurants because I got homemade tiramisu. You can never go wrong with homemade especially if the cook used to work in a casino as a chef :) My uncle could always just look at the ingredients and know if the food tasted good or not. I started cooking and baking not too long ago. I still wonder how he does it though. I guess you just adapt some type of magical sense after years of cooking. Even so, he doesn't cook much now a days. My aunt is the one who does a lot of the cooking but yet everything is always "easy" for him to make.

I have been looking forever for a recipe similar to my Uncle's recipe and I finally found one! I guess I could have just asked my uncle for the recipe but that's not how he cooks. He cooks by just tasting the food, not measuring. On the other hand, I like to have measurements for the most part, especially for baking. I remember actually asking him for the tiramisu recipe and he ended up just making two big trays of tiramisu. This is why I decided to look for a recipe online. I found one that was similar to the recipe he makes.

It was my first time making tiramisu and it didn't turn out as bad as I thought it would. Turned out to be very moist and I loved the strong coffee taste! :)

Recipe adapted from Key Ingredient, shared by rosabela 

Makes: 9x14 inch rectangular pan or two smaller containers - I would suggest using a container with a lid so that you can store the tiramisu in the fridge.

You can make your coffee or buy it. I bought my coffee at Starbucks since I don't have a coffee maker. Set coffee aside to cool.

~2 cups of strong espresso - cooled at room temperature

Separate the egg white and egg yolk. I don't have two stand mixer bowls so I usually just use regular mixing bowls. Put the egg whites in the stand mixer bowl and the egg yolks in a small bowl. Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form - transfer to another bowl and set aside. Wash your stand mixer bowl then add the egg yolks and sugar. Beat the mixture until it is creamy. Be sure to beat the egg yolks well or they will end up with an egg-like taste. Add mascarpone cheese to the egg yolk mix and combined until there are no lumps. Fold the egg whites into the mascarpone/egg yolk mixture with a rubber spatula.

5 small eggs/4 large eggs
3 to 5 tablespoons sugar (depending on how sweet you want it)
16 oz mascarpone cheese - sold 8 oz each at Walmart

Below is how your egg whites should look when they are stiff peaks.

Dip the ladyfingers in espresso (try not to over soak the ladyfingers) and lay them into a pan. You may choose to leave a space between the ladyfingers or place them close together. My uncle who makes Tiramisu usually places them together so that is my preference. Pour the mascarpone mixture on top of the ladyfingers and spread evenly. For each layer, change the rotation of the ladyfingers.

2 boxes of Trader Joe's soft ladyfingers - sold only during the holiday season
- You can also use a different brand of ladyfingers.

Refrigerated for 4 hours minimum but overnight for best results. Sprinkle with cocoa when served.

~2 tbsp cocoa powder - optional

Oatmeal Cookie Butter White Chocolate Chip Almond Cookies

Hi everyone!!

Welcome to my first blog post EVER. I hope you enjoy the recipes that I have adapted from other websites. I will also be posting some of my simple healthy recipes later on.

Over the past two years, I have looked at hundreds of blogs. I always wanted to create my own but I have a difficult time writing down my thoughts. I still thought it was a good idea anyways to create a blog to share the little changes I make in the recipes I find.

Baking helps me relieve stress but at the same time, it gives me stress. Isn't that a little ironic? I love to bake. I enjoy the happiness my baking brings to my family. At the same time though, I am always stress about my baking because I want my family to enjoy my baking. I guess I just need to learn that I can't impress everyone and just love what I do.

I shop at Trader Joe's every week and sometimes I end up going there at least three days. I know it's a little ridiculous but I always end up forgetting something or thinking of something new I want to make. I also hear people talk about cookie butter all the time. One day while I was at check out, I saw a jar of cookie butter. I decided it was time to try it. When I got home though, I looked at the ingredients and realized that cookie butter was extremely UNHEALTHY. I couldn't get myself to eat cookie butter alone. I hopped onto Pinterest and found a recipe that incorporated cookie butter. I could spend HOURS on Pinterest looking at recipes that I probably never end up making. I enjoy it anyways.

Recipe adapted from The Cookin' Chemist.

Yields: about 46 cookies w/sliced almonds, 49 cookies w/o sliced almonds (when use 1 tablespoon cookie scooper)

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.

Combined the following ingredients in a small bowl. Whisk together and set aside.

3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt (a little more than a pinch)

In a stand mixer bowl, slice the stick of butter into small pieces. Combine the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (the mixture should look like the image below).

Add the egg and vanilla; mix until well incorporated. Add the cookie butter; mix until combined. Add the flour mixture (This is when the mixture starts to smell AMAZING).

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter - at room temperature
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar - packed
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup Cookie Butter from Trader Joe's

Add the ingredients below using a rubber spatula. You mix the oats in the stand mixer to make it easier.  

1.5 cups of old-fashion instant oats
1 cup of white chocolate chips - you may also use milk chocolate chips instead
1/2 cup of sliced almonds - optional

The mixture should look like the image below when all ingredients are combined. The batch of cookies below do not contain sliced almonds. 

After all the ingredients are mixed together, use a 1 tablespoon cookie scooper to form the cookie dough. I find that using a cookie scooper is way easier to form the dough and it keeps your hands clean. :) Place the each scoop on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicon baking mats. I usually place 12 scoops of cookies per baking sheet and use two baking sheets to alternate.  

Bake the cookies for  8-10 minutes depending on your oven. I find that my cookies bake best in 9 minutes. Using a spatula, move the cookies onto a cooling rack. Let the cookies cool and enjoy :) 

Note: Keep the cookies in an airtight tupperware to ensure freshness.