Perfect vegan pancakes in a stack of 4

Been looking for simple pancake recipes for vegans! Although you would think this is an easy feat, the execution, especially when you have to reduce the quantity for one, can result in messy, often tasteless products. But fear not, as practice makes perfect! I hereby present to you, the pancake of life! My tropical pancake. This is enough to feed 1 or 2 people depending on the size of your appetite.

What you would need:

1 tablespoon of grounded flaxseed powder
3 tablespoons of water (lukewarm)
1 cup of flour (I used all purpose but wheat or oatmeal flour would be a nice substitute)
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 tablespoon of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of salt
3/4 cups of almond milk (I used the sweetened almond milk)
2 tablespoons of oil or vegan coconut butter (I used vegan coconut butter)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon lemon juice (I actually used fresh lime)
1 cup of whatever fruit you would like to include (I used 1 over-ripped banana)
1/4 cup of sweetened coconut flakes
Maple syrup

Directions:

• Mix the flaxseed powder and 3 tablespoons of water in a small bowl.
• If using vegan butter, go ahead and melt it here (I use the microwave for 20 seconds) and let it cool.
• Mix other dried ingredients (flour, salt, sugar, baking powder) in a mixing bowl.
• In another bowl, mix the wet ingredients, i.e. milk, vanilla extract, lemon juice, oil/butter, and flaxseed mixture. (Since I used banana as my fruit I mashed it into the wet mixture. If you use other fruits and want to maintain their form, you can add that last).
• Make a crater in the middle of the dry mixture. Pour in the wet mixture in to the crater and mix in slowly.
• Heat up a pancake griddle (or use a flat pan), spray some non-stick vegan oil (or use some of your oil/butter left from the recipe).
• Drop in about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of mixture into hot pan. Reduce heat to low-medium. Flip side within 1.5 - 2 minutes of cooking. 
• Stack pancakes on a plate. Sprinkle coconut flakes on top and drizzle maple syrup on stack.
• Inhale.... I mean enjoy!

Of course you can enjoy this recipe with the base recipe of vegan pancakes: flaxseed, flour, vegan milk, baking powder, and lemon juice. The rest can be included or excluded depending on your preference. 

Hope you enjoy this as much as I did

PS this is a slightly modified recipe from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/food-fanatic/easy-vegan-pancakes_b_3936476.html

*Standing on the shoulders of giants*

Life is a 3 mile run

        I ran 15 miles in the last 4 days. I can only imagine what I can do with the whole week. The sun is out, the weather is amazing (temp of ~40-50F), I’m feeling light on my feet and I have all this pent up energy from hibernating during this winter season. Also, Spring Forward (gained an hour) occurred so that means I have more light in the evening to squeeze in a late run.

I set a goal for 50 miles over the next 4 weeks and my aim is to exceed it. During today’s 3 mile run, I realized that some life experiences are parallel to that during my three mile run:

Do not fear pain, embrace it: for new runners out there, the first 5 runs will be the hardest thing you have ever done. I have been running sporadically for the past 6 years now and every time I get started, I sort of fizz out because of being aggravated for some reason, either because of some sort of joint pain, breathing issues, timing or weather issues. There was always an excuse.Today’s 3 mile run, albeit shorter than my average (usually 5-6 miles) was the one of my fastest runs with the feeling that I could have done more. I didn’t even get a bother from my left knee issue (which I screwed up during a soccer game). I also ran with my dog and still made this my 2nd fastest run by time, so technically, it was my fastest run because as a doggie mama, we have to stop every 1 minute for a quick pee. Practice makes perfect, but if you stop, its okay to start from ground zero.

Always challenge yourself: don’t beat yourself up if you don’t beat a previous challenge, change the challenge to accommodate your level and work your way up. The important thing is to push yourself. There are different ways to do this. You can go a bit faster, you can run longer, you can also increase the frequency of your runs during the week. I find that when I set group challenges with friends, being competitive by nature, I aim to outshine. This is where I take my brain power and convert it to physical power for personal benefit. Growth is only accomplished by winning over an obstacle, and happiness is derived from that victory.

Spice things up: run a different route, ask a buddy for a run, bike instead of a run, run backwards, dance while jogging. Enjoy the experience. Variety is the spice of life. 

Finally BREATHE: you’d be amazed by how less painful an experience is if you just concentrate on inhaling and exhaling. For some reason it knocks down the rating on a pain scale. I am sure my scientists of friends can break down the molecular reasoning but that won’t be necessary here because its simple- You need air to survive! Whether doing yoga or running a marathon, there is a sense of relief, a release of endorphin from the simple act of breathe in, and out! Applying that to your life makes things much clearer!

Don't give up on me (written 12/27/12) but never posted hahahaha!

I am BACKKKKK...
Yes; it has been a ridiculous 2012, filled with joy, sadness, highs and lows. But you know what. That's what I like about the end of the year. It gives you the opportunity to reflect on the past and set goals for the future. Its like being re-born you know! Its an exciting feeling.

So to reflect on missed opportunities to travel, graduating from Pharmacy school, writing a new chapter in my life with the beginning of my residency training, moving up north, re-uniting with old friends, making new friends, so much more, I hereby set new goals for 2013: living a much healthier life (and this includes the long life goal of loosing 20 or so pounds lol).....

To be continued