Heart Healthy.
Or not so much. It’s ironic that—thanks to sugary sweets, fancy dinners, and rich desserts—a day devoted to matters of the heart can be so dangerous for your heart. Google “red velvet” and your results will be saturated with butter, eggs, heavy cream, and enough sugar to sweeten even the Grinch. Pretty, for sure. But healthy, it is not.
Until now.
Flipping through People Magazine last Friday, I stumbled across a recipe for “Jessica Alba’s favorite red velvet pancakes.” Red velvet pancakes?! I had to create a heart-healthy version.
Mission accomplished. These are like eating cake for breakfast!
Red Velvet Pancakes for One
- 2T flour (I used 20g whole-wheat pastry)
- 2T plus 1tsp oat bran (20g) (you can sub flour)
- red food coloring (For alternatives, see: Natural Food Coloring Ideas.)
- 1/2 tsp plus 1/8 tsp baking powder
- scant 1/8 tsp salt
- 2T cocoa powder (I use regular, but if you want a more brownie-like taste, try dutch cocoa)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup plus 1T nondairy milk (95g, or more, if needed)
- optional: If you don’t like the taste of fat-free pancakes, be sure to add 1 tablespoon oil
- 1-2 T sugar, or 1 stevia packet (I left it out. If using liquid sweetener, decrease milk accordingly.)
Mix dry ingredients. Add wet and mix. Then make your pancakes! (Makes 5-6)
Nutrition Information:
(For the entire batch)
- Calories: 230 (130 if omitting oil)
- Fat: 14g (or less than 1g if omitting oil)
- Protein: 3g
- Fiber: 5g
I topped these with my Healthy Cream Cheese Icing.
Then, really fancy things happened. I dusted the pancakes with cocoa powder and swirled some of the chocolatey fairy dust into the frosting.
If you’re still hungry for pancakes (although I don’t know how that’d be possible, after these!), I have an entire recipe tab devoted to them:
Question of the Day:
What do you do to be Heart Healthy?
Get regular exercise? Eat healthy foods? Spend quality time with people who make you happy? The heart is an amazing little organ; be sure to treat it right!
Wow, these are rich! I needed a late night PMS chocolate fix, and this was it! I topped them with Tofutti sour cream and a dusting of powdered sugar. Yum!
I am quite anxious to try these. Came across your blog via Skinnytaste.com. Gina come up with some amazing alternatives! However, I am lactose intolerant. I have found that vegan deserts work best for me. No chance of getting sick! Your blog has been added to my daily list. Thank you for making recipes I can eat with out substitutions!
Hey Katie! I made these pancakes today and they were delicious! I LOVE CHOCOLATE. I used all whole wheat pastry flour though, and I ran out of vanilla extract. These were still awesome! I also added a small packet of Splenda to add some sweetness. Thanks again for the recipe!
Helen
I used dutch European cocoa and used brown sugar and reduced the milk it tasted
I used dutch European Cocoa, reduced the milk, and used brown sugar. and it tasted EXACTLY like brownie batter!! I ate the whole batch raw!! it was sooo good!!! I even put some on top of my waffles….OH MY GOSH DELICIOUS!
I just love this recipe! I even take out the baking powder and eat them raw, just by the spoonful… delish! Could be a great spread for bread.
Could I do all oats instead of flour?
Now that is my kind of pancake!! I think I just died and went to heaven! OMG! I am making those tonight. Yes, tonight…because I am not waiting for breakfast! OMG!
hi katie,
these were amazing! We just ate these on bed and felt like we got room service at a 5 star hotel.
my only question is, how did you get 5-6 pancakes? I got 4 even after adding a little extra milk. what size do you make your pancakes?
also, do you think you could designate a section for reviews of people who’ve already made or tried the recipe? sometime I want to know how people whove tried the recipe feel about it rather than read posts about how they look amazing (which they do).
I made mine with skim milk, self rising all purpose flour and 1.5 packets of stevia. I topped with a mixture of milk, ff cool whip and ff cream cheese. pretty amazing!
Hi Katie,
I’ve recently stumbled on your blog & I have to tell you I am in love! Red Velvet is my absolute weakness (and the rest of your recipes look amazing!). I do have a quick question for you.. I’m currently on weight watchers points plus program and to calculate the points value based off of nutrional information you need to include carbs as well. Does this recipe have any beyond trace amounts?