Lemon Ricotta Soufflé Pancakes with Raspberry Glaze

I just love the taste of fresh lemon in pancakes! I have made lemon ricotta pancakes before, but wanted to add a small twist to these. Adding some fluffy egg white gives these pancakes a nice texture. I like to make a nice raspberry drizzle to finish it off.

Ingredients:

¾ cup flour

1 tbsp baking powder

½ tsp nutmeg, ¼ tsp salt

2 tbsp sugar

1 cup low-fat ricotta cheese

2 eggs

2/3 cup of unsweetened almond milk (or any type)

1 lemon (zested and juiced) 

3 tbsp of egg whites, whipped (or use 1-2 egg whites) 

Raspberry glaze:

1/2 6oz container of raspberries
1/2 lemon, juiced

2 tbsp sugar

1/2 cup water

Mix the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet in another. In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites until they form stiff peaks (don't over beat as you will lose these fluffy peaks! Also, make sure there is NO yolk as this will not allow the egg whites to whip up). 

Heat up a griddle, and a touch of butter, and cooked these pancakes until golden brown on each side. 

For the raspberry glaze, add about ½ of 6oz container of raspberries and ½ lemon squeezed into a small saucepan. Add the water and sugar (enough to your own preference) and just simmer over medium heat (until it gets slightly thicker). 

Drizzle that on the pancakes, top with some maple syrup and sprinkle some powdered sugar. Voila!

Farro with Spicy Chicken Korean Sausage

You may know my love for Trader Joe's and other great things it has. While shopping, I noticed a little package of farro. What is farro exactly? Is it barley or spelt? There's some confusion as to what it is. Farro is a type of whole grain that has been used in Italian cooking for years and is becoming increasingly popular in America. The whole grain variety typically take longer to cook because it has the bran and germ intact. More processed farro is quicker to cook but has some of these elements removed. It's nutty, chewy and delicious. It is also packed with fiber and protein, along with magnesium.

I've always wanted to try cooking with farro. This variety I saw at Trader Joe's takes about 10-minutes to prepare the farro and they had a lovely recipe on the side of the packaging. Seeing that I had bought another type of sausage at Trader Joe's, I modified the recipe a bit. I present to you this delicious farro with sausage, mushrooms and onions.

Ingredients:

1 package of Trader Joe's 10-minute farro (about 8.8oz)

2 cups of broth or water (I used beef broth but you can use any kind)

1 package of Trader Joe's Spicy Chicken Sausage (Korean-inspired Kalbi BBQ recipe) - or any chicken sausage

1 package of 8oz mini portabello mushrooms, chopped

1 white onion, diced

2 clove of garlic, chopped

Cilantro (garnish or to mix in)

I used maybe about 2 cups of broth but enough that I felt would cover the farro. You can use any kind of broth (I used some beef broth but added some water because I ran out of broth--still came out delicious!). Let this boil and then add the farro. Let that boil for about 10-12 minutes. Drain this and leave it to the side (there are also instructions on the packet)

To a large skillet, saute the sausages. Make sure to remove the casings! Once it has browned, move to a plate and save for later.

Add onions, garlic, and the mushrooms to the pan with the sausage drippings. Saute until soft and tender.

To this mixture, add your farro and sausage and mix well. Season with red pepper flakes to kick it up a notch, salt/pepper to taste! I added some cilantro as a nice final touch and it really made the flavors pop!