Oat pancakes (wheatless)

I have found that I do not tolerate a lot a wheat, especially white flour. I do love breads and grains and have found ways to eat less wheat and still have some of my favourite foods.
These pancakes are high protein and low fat, but most importantly, are delicious.


1 cup rolled oats
1 cup creamed cottage cheese (low fat or regular)
2 eggs, separated
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

Whirl oats in a blender to make a coarse meal. Add cottage cheese and 2 egg yolks and blend well. You may need to add a little milk or yogurt to get it to blend. The mixture is thick.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff. Fold them into the oat batter.
I added some blueberries to this batch as well.

Drop by spoonfuls onto a hot, oiled pan and turn when edges are lightly browned.
Makes 10 pancakes the size shown in the photo.

Serve with fruit or syrup.

Butternut Squash and Chicken Pilaf

I love the spicy flavours in various curry dishes. In this dish, the rice is cooked along with the spices, chicken and vegetables. Most of the ingredients are ones used frequently in Indian cuisine. I often use cubed tofu instead of chicken. This pilaf tastes even better the next day.

Heat 1-2 tablespoons of oil in a wok or skillet
Add 1 tbsp mustard seeds, 1/2 tbsp cumin seeds and 1/2-1 cup chopped onion
Cook the spices and onion in the oil until the seeds start to pop.
Add 1-2 diced chicken breasts
1/2 a cinnamon stick
Dash of cinnamon, turmeric, saffron and cayenne pepper
Handful of raisins and chopped almonds
Add 1 cup basmati rice and make sure rice gets coated in the oil
Fry the ingredients together for a minute or two, then
Add 3 cups water or broth
1 tsp salt (if you use water)
2 cups of vegetables ( I like to use green beans and/or cauliflower)
2 cups diced butternut squash

Cover with a lid and simmer until done and the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes if you use white rice.

Variations for vegetarian versions-

• I use brown rice if I have extra time as it takes about 40 minutes to cook. I add the vegetables a little later, about half way into the rice cooking time. If I use tofu instead of chicken, I add it with the vegetables.
• Add 2 -3 tsp miso to the water instead of using broth. Add a package of diced tempeh with the cauliflower and fast cooking vegetables.
  

Chocolate Custard

This recipe is from the New Moosewood Cookbook and is perfection from my chocoholic perspective.

In the top of a double boiler melt
3/4 to 1 cup of pure chocolate chips in
2-1/2 cups of milk (regular, skim, soy, whatever)

Let the mixture cool a little, then mix the chocolate milk in a blender with
4 eggs

Pour into buttered custard cups. Place the cups in a pan of water and bake at 350F for about 45 minutes until set. This makes 7 custard cups as shown in the picture.
You may want to eat it right away, but the custard is better when chilled.