Pink Berry Pancakes (gluten-free, vegan)

Happy Mother's Day, to all of you mothers out there! I think I have more respect, love and thankfulness for mothers since becoming a mother myself. Especially for my own mother of five children and also for all the many many moms I have witnessed their sacrifice and love over the years.

I feel like when I became a mom I all of a sudden got accepted into this special club of mom-hood. It was like all at once I 'got it'. I understood the deep deep love for your child. The sacrifice, headaches and worries that grace your heart each and every day. Or like when you are at the grocery store and you or the other mom's kid are all of a sudden having a meltdown and you just look at each other and give each other silent support. We understand and remind each other that nap time is just around the corner!

So this 'day to celebrate mom's' means a lot more to me now than ever. I am all about having a day just for us! Seriously. Let's live it up. Have the kids make you breakfast, clean the kitchen, buy you flowers. You deserve it, and you need to let yourself be loved and cared for (even if it feels like maybe this is your only day per year!)

I think that being a mom means that you understand the tension between the simplicity and complexity of life. We get to experience the simple heart of our child and yet know that life, growth and love can some times be so complex there are no words. We can ache and have joy in the same emotion. Being a mom has been one of the greatest gifts I could ever ask for.

So this recipe comes just in time for a nice mother's day breakfast or brunch, and you may need a daddy or other helper if you have smaller children. Or, make it all together and enjoy. The pancakes have a good amount of fresh strawberry puree in them to give them a pink hue and with a touch of fresh berries, or bananas or your favorite topping these pancakes are absolutely divine!

Now that's a perfect bite. A slice of strawberry, a slice of banana and a slice of pancake. All kissed with a gentle touch of raw honey and lemon. Hmmmm, good. Love, love, love!

Whole Grain Pink Berry Pancake Recipe 
(gluten, dairy, egg, nut, sugar-free and vegan) 

1 cup of buckwheat groats 

1 cup of gluten-free rolled oats 

*Grind each grain, separately in magic bullet or high powered blender 

to make a heaping cup of flour- about 1 1/4 cup of each flour*

2 TB of aluminum-free baking powder

2 TB of chia seed meal

2 TB of grape seed oil or light olive oil

2-3 TB of maple syrup or coconut palm sugar

1 ts. of pure vanilla extract or 12 drops of liquid vanilla stevia extract

2 cup of non-dairy milk (I use So Delicious coconut milk beverage)

2/3 cup of pureed fresh strawberries (or raspberry)

1 fresh lemon juiced (1-2 TB)

optional: zest from one lemon (about 1-2 tsps.)

optional additions or toppings:

fresh strawberries

fresh raspberries

fresh sliced bananas

goji berries

local maple syrup

raw and local honey

Pancake Instructions:

*First, grind your buckwheat groats and oats separately so that you have your flour for the pancakes. Then, mix the flours and all of the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Then add the wet and whisk well together. You know your batter is doing well when you start to see the batter-bubbles appear and the batter thickens.   

*Then, warm either your skillet or griddle and use some coconut oil or ghee to grease up the frying area. Then use a 1/4 or 1/3 measuring cup to pour batter over the hot skillet to make a good sized pancake. 

*Let cook for about 2 minutes and you will see bubbles on the top and then you know to turn to the other side. Cook for an additional 1-2 minutes. Make sure you keep the heat on low to medium so avoid burning! This recipe makes 1-2 dozen cakes depending on how large you make them.

Well, that's my kind of special 'mom' breakfast. Pink pancakes. Lots of colors, fresh sweetness and spring time lovin'. I hope you have a great weekend filled with love, flowers and the great outdoors!

Much love as always! And to all the momma's, Happy Mother's Day!