No Guilt Mardi Gras pancakes!

Today is Mardi Gras! Also known as pancake Tuesday and traditionally we clean out the cupboards and make a big batch of fluffy pancakes. I still remember how exciting it used to be when we would line up in the gym at school, grab a big plate of pancakes and soak them in table syrup. Cue the school wide sugar rush followed by that mid afternoon crash!

While I still love the tradition, I don't love the idea of filling my body with sugar and carbs and just waiting for the crash. So, to maintain the yummy Pancake Tuesday tradition with a healthier twist, I started to make these gluten-free banana pancakes instead.

The recipe that I use is adapted from Tasty.co's Healthy Banana Pancakes.

Ingredients (for 4 pancakes):

1. 2 Ripe or slightly overripe bananas- mashed

2. 2 eggs (or flax eggs)

3. 1 tsp vanilla extract

4. 1 tsp cinnamon

5. pinch of salt

6. 1/2 cup of gluten-free rolled oats

Note: Eggs don't agree with me much, so I substituted them for flax eggs. To make flax eggs you just mix 1 Tbsp of ground flax seeds with 3 Tbsp of water. Let this mixture sit for a few minutes until it has an "egg-like" consistency.

Directions:

1. Mash the bananas in a large bowl until they are smooth.

2. Mix in eggs/flax eggs, vanilla and cinnamon until combined.

3. Add oats and let sit for about 5 minutes (this gives the oats time to soak up water and helps hold the pancakes together)

4. Heat a frying pan/skillet to medium and add the batter, making 4 pancakes.

5. Cook for about 3-4 minutes until you start seeing bubbles in the batter, then flip and cook on the other side for another 2-3 minutes.

6. Garnish with whatever you like! I highly recommend a tablespoon or two of real maple syrup with a side of fruit. But this is your time to get creative!

Enjoy!

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