LEMON RICOTTA PROTEIN PANCAKES for a High-Protein Breakfast Idea!

While I'm usually more of a savory breakfast kind of gal, I am more than happy to whip up these lemon ricotta protein pancakes. They're just as soft and fluffy as my original gluten-free paleo pancakes, but with a protein boost thanks to the ricotta and a little bit of lemon zest, it makes them extra sweet and delicious. So they clock in at about 7 1⁄2 grams of protein per pancake. And if you enjoy two to three of them, you're getting about 15 to 22 grams of protein for your meal. And you get bonus points for a little dollop of Greek yogurt on top. These have been the most requested recipe after I showed my test batch on Instagram a few months back. So let me finally show you how to make them. To get started, add half a cup of almond flour, a quarter cup of tapioca flour, and one tablespoon of coconut flour to a large mixing bowl. If you've made my previous pancake recipes or any of my quick breads, you know that this is my triumvirate of flours for the best texture and flavor. Then to that, add half a teaspoon of baking soda and a pinch of kosher salt and whisk it together. And while we're on the dry ingredients, let's also not forget that some of the protein in these pancakes comes from the almond flour and coconut flour in addition to the ricotta cheese and eggs. In a separate mixing bowl, add half a cup of ricotta, and I'm using whole milk ricotta, but you could use part skim as well, three large eggs, the zest of one lemon to infuse each pancake with all that lemony goodness, one tablespoon of maple syrup or honey for a little sweetness, and one teaspoon of vanilla extract. And then whisk that together as well. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and then whisk everything together until you've got this thick but drizzly batter texture. Preheat a large pan over medium heat and coat it with a little bit of butter. Spoon the batter onto the skillet to form the pancakes. And I like to use a quarter cup measuring spoon to make sure they're all about the same size. You don't want them to get too big in your pan, otherwise it's harder to flip them. Though I will show you an alternative option here in a second using an electric griddle, which is actually my preferred method. Cook the pancakes for two to three minutes on one side, then flip them over and cook an additional one to two minutes. And you'll know they're ready to be flipped when they get lots of little air bubbles on top. This recipe makes six pancakes, but you can usually only get four in a pan at a time. And I have to admit, I was feeling the pressure to flip them without any mistakes. But thankfully, all was good, though the top one may have been up on the sidewall just a bit, but I just slid that one back down. Once they're fully cooked, use your spatula to remove them to a plate and then continue cooking the remaining pancakes. Now, if you have an electric griddle, it's even easier as you can fit eight pancakes at a time. And when you've got hungry bellies in the morning, whipping out pancakes faster and easier is worth the price of the electric griddle. I've had this one for ages, but I've linked a similar one in the video description box below for you. I also transferred the batter to my pancake pan, which makes pouring them out even easier as you can just do a swirl until they're all about the same size and it prevents dripping. Now, if you're artistic enough to do pancake shapes and designs, a pancake pan is also the tool you need. Though the fanciest I ever got was a Mickey Mouse shape, so clearly that's not my skillset and I think I'll just stick to creating healthy recipes. You'll cook the pancakes for the same amount of time on the griddle as you would the pan. And now, since I've just made a second batch of this recipe, I'll go ahead and meal prep and freeze these ones. So to do that, I'll transfer the pancakes to a large plate in a single layer and sort of spread them out. The goal here is to get them to cool down to room temperature as quickly as possible because you don't wanna put a plate of piping hot pancakes in your freezer. That just creates a whole bunch of ice crystals and can accidentally thaw whatever you place them next to. So once they're cooled, transfer them to the freezer and let them freeze fully and harden, which should take a few hours. And now, you can place them into your favorite storage container and I do still recommend placing little bits of parchment paper in between just to make sure that they don't stick together. It also makes it easier to grab a few of them for reheating and you can just reheat them as you would with any packaged store-bought versions. But back to the first batch I made, let's serve those up. You can add two to three pancakes to a plate depending on how hungry you are, then add a pat of butter or drizzle some maple syrup. And if you wanna be super fancy, add a little extra zest of fresh lemon before serving them up. I guarantee you that your family and friends will go crazy for these light and fluffy yet protein-packed pancakes. Now, I of course had to go overboard today and stack them in one tall stack, for social media obviously, and I dolloped some Greek yogurt on top and zested some lemon again before drizzling maple syrup. And not gonna lie, I was afraid the maple syrup was almost gonna topple the stack. You can see my left hand darting in there for a second. Now, unless you're a large bodybuilder, you probably don't need this many calories in the morning, so I'm just gonna separate that large stack into two portions and then slice up one stack for my taste test because all of that lemon aroma is wafting through my kitchen and making me extra hungry today. It is always a good filming day when you get to eat pancakes for lunch because I think it's about lunchtime. I just love how that lemon flavor really comes through in the pancakes, and during the summer months when it's sunny outside, if you have lots of lemons coming off your lemon tree, this is such a good way to use them up. And I have to say, there is a reason why my original paleo pancakes recipe has been number one for about almost a decade now, I think. And because it's using those gluten-free flours with almond flour, tapioca flour, and coconut flour, you would think that they would be more dense, but they're really not dense pancakes. They're still really light and fluffy. Even with the ricotta added, they're still light and fluffy pancakes. And the lemon, again, it just gives it kind of a lightness and a freshness that makes them very, very good. And that is why I keep going back for more bites. When it comes to meal prep breakfast recipes that also happen to be high-protein, you have my breakfast casserole, you've got egg muffins, and these protein pancakes are such a great addition into that mix and just changes it up in terms of flavor and texture to keep your mornings interesting and tasty. And with that, I am going to proceed to polish off this stack of three pancakes, and I think Emily is gonna polish off the other stack of three pancakes here. But if you enjoyed this recipe, make sure to give it a thumbs up. And then after you make it, go on over to my website, give it a five-star review. That always means so much. And I will see you guys in the next video.