We rung in New Year’s Day with our favorite go-to “cheat” breakfast, Protein Pancakes! By modifying our base recipe, we added in some sprinkles and almond extract, then topped with light whipped cream for “Confetti Pancakes” in honor of January 1st. These pancakes are low carb, high in protein, and are sugar free! Sounds too good to be true? If you don’t believe us, try them yourself:

3/4 cup Quest unflavored protein
3/4 cup stone ground flour (feel free to experiment- we sometimes use whole wheat flour for banana pancakes, or any gluten-free flour substitute)
1 T sweetener of choice (splenda or agave recommended; use 1/2 if stevia or monk fruit used)
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

-mix dry ingredients above, then add the wet:

1 egg or 2 egg whites
1 and 1/2 cup milk (we prefer almond or soy, which typically requires a bit more, or about 1 and 3/4 cups)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons almond extract
3 heaping tablespoons colored sprinkles

Blend until well mixed but still lumpy. Bake on a griddle slightly oiled and warmed to 350F. Because of the protein powder, don’t overheat the griddle, or you’ll have messy pancakes that don’t flip! Trust me on this one! Flip after about 2 minutes; the should lift from the griddle easily when ready to turn.

The above recipe works great, and can be altered to your liking but substituting the last 3 ingredients. Some of our favorites are banana chocolate chip pancakes (use 2-3 very ripe bananas and whole wheat flour), lemon blueberry (lemon extract in place of almond extract, with blueberries added to the batter once they are on the griddle), or apple spice (pie spice seasoning with stewed and softened diced apples). Enjoy! We’d love to hear if you experiment with some other ingredients!