Zesty Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

A fresh and flavorful twist on classic pancakes, these fluffy zingers are best topped with blueberry preserves!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup buttermilk

• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese

• 2 eggs (yolks separated)

• 1 1/2 cups flour

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 tablespoons sugar

• 2 tablespoons lemon zest

• nonstick spray or coconut oil

Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. Then mix buttermilk, egg yolks, sugar, ricotta and lemon zest in a large bowl. Beat egg whites with a mixer in a clean bowl until soft peaks form. Add the dry ingredients to the large bowl with buttermilk mixture and stir until combined, then gently fold in the egg whites. Put your griddle or pan on medium heat and lightly coat with nonstick spray. Spoon about 1/4 cup of batter onto griddle and cook until light golden brown on both sides. Keep cooked pancakes in a warm oven to finish the whole batch, or serve as you go. If your meal prepping, allow pancakes to cool on racks before storing in fridge or freezing.

Makes about 12 pancakes.

Overnight Oats

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup rolled oats

• 2 tablespoons chia seeds

• 1 teaspoon ground flax seeds

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1/4 cup almond milk

• 1/2 cup blueberries

• 2 teaspoons maple syrup (optional)

• 2 tablespoons chopped nuts (optional)

Add rolled oats, chia seeds, ground flax and cinnamon to a pint (or larger) mason jar. I highly recommend using the wide mouth jar for this. Then pour in the almond milk and maple syrup and stir thoroughly. Cover with lid and refrigerate overnight. You can “rush” this time to a minimum of 1 hour, but for best results I recommend 6-8 hours. Top with blueberries and chopped pecans before serving. You can substitute any berries and/or nuts of your preference. Occasionally I use sliced banana and a few spoons of peanut butter instead, the topping combinations can be anything that sounds good to you. As a meal prep, overnight oats will last 3-5 days in the fridge without toppings.

Roasted Chicken Sausage and Veggies

Ingredients:

• 6 links smoked chicken sausage

• 2 medium zucchinis

• 2 medium yellow squash

• 1/2 red onion

• 1 1/3 cups sprouted brown rice

• 2 2/3 cups chicken broth

• salt and pepper (to taste)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. and spray two baking sheets with non-stick cooking spray (I recommend avocado oil). Cook rice in a medium pot or rice cooker, using chicken broth instead of water. While rice is cooking, slice squash, zucchini, and red onion into bite size pieces and scatter onto baking sheets. Then slice chicken sausage into bite size pieces and add to baking sheets. Make sure everything is spread out evenly on baking sheets, it will not roast correctly if bunched up. Roast veggies and sausage in oven for about 20 minutes or until done. Allow rice, sausage and roasted veggies to cool, then portion into meal prep containers.

Cottage Cheese and Oat Flour Pancakes

Ingredients:

• 2 cups oats

• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/4 cup pecans

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 16oz cottage cheese

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• 1 cup milk

Pulse oats, baking soda, pecans and salt in a blender or food processor until oats are ground. Then add cottage cheese, cinnamon, vanilla, milk and blend until combined. Be careful not to over mix or pancakes will be flat and dense. Put large skillet or griddle on medium high heat and use coconut oil or nonstick spray. Pour out pancake mix into 5-6” cakes and cook until bubbly, then flip. Pancakes are ready when golden brown on both sides.

Makes 10-12 pancakes depending on size. For meal prep- spread out on cooling racks and store in freezer bags after they come to room temperature. Freeze for up to a month.