[It would have been more appropriate if I would have named this post "Toddler Breakfast," but alas I did not because most of the time I still refer to my twins as "babies." Moving on.]
My friend Julie has made these really healthy pumpkin pancakes for her daughter, Finley, for a long time now and when my "babies" got old enough to eat things of that sort I asked her for the recipe. (I love being able to glean tricks of the trade from smart mommies who started into motherhood before me.)
I've made them 3 times now and I learned that when feeding two hungry mouths at a time, it's better to multiply the recipe roughly 7 times in order to make a big enough batch to make the process worthwhile. Also, after standing at the stove top messily pouring, burning, and flipping pancakes I decided that there had to be a better way to make them in mass quantities. I tried several different baking dishes and I've come to the conclusion that thinly spreading the batter evenly onto parchment lined cookie sheets is the best option.
I found that baking each sheet at 350º for about 10-15 minutes worked really well. After letting the sheet cool completely, I slid the parchment and baked "pancakes" off the cookie sheet and cut it into squares. I placed the squares in a large ziploc baggy, alternating layers of pancakes with layers of wax paper/freezer paper and put them in the freezer. At breakfast time I just pop them in the toaster (like a frozen waffle) until they're warm throughout and serve them up.
The "babies" love them and I feel so good feeding them these pancakes because they are such an easy healthy option. I know I'm always needing ideas to feed my little ones, so I wanted to pass this along (and get it documented for me to refer back to). Feel free to comment with any recipe ideas for self-feeding babies/toddlers. I would love to have them!
adapted from source
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10-15 minutes
Ingredients:
1 15 oz can pumpkin
1 3/4 cups cottage cheese
4 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
8 eggs
4 tsp cinnamon
8 tbsp honey
Note: Quantities have been multiplied ~7x from source recipe to make a large freezer batch
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and blend with an immersion blender until batter is relatively smooth and all ingredients are fully mixed. Thinly spread batter evenly onto parchment lined cookie sheets and bake at 350º for about 10-15 minutes or until firm and edges slightly harden. Let the cookie sheet cool completely and slide parchment along with baked "pancakes" off cookie sheet and cut into uniform squares.
Freezer prep:
Place the pancake squares in a large ziploc baggy, alternating layers of squares with layers of wax paper/freezer paper and freeze. To serve put 3-4 squares into toaster (like a frozen waffle) until warm throughout and serve.
