Green is the magic colour.
Saturday morning pancakes are a lovely treat. Not only do they let you spend some quality time with your kids and give them the chance to learn their first cookery skills, they're also quick and easy to make (well, if you don't count the clean-up time and effort).
Plenty of parents dish out their pancakes with a nutritious side of fruit, but have you ever thought of going the veg route instead? These tasty spinach pancakes are your answer – and a really clever way to get children eating their greens.
Made by super chef Jamie Oliver, the recipe comes from his book
VEG, which is packed with creative vegetarian recipes. The chilli sauce topping may be too hot for little ones to handle but you can swap in your preferred toppings or, as Jamie suggests, serve them up with a fried egg.
Super spinach pancakes
Avocado, tomato, cottage cheese, chilli & coriander
Serves 6
25 minutes
Ingredients
1 ripe avocado
350g ripe mixed-colour cherry tomatoes
100g baby spinach
3 spring onions
1⁄2 a bunch of fresh coriander (15g)
1 lime
extra virgin olive oil
1 large egg
1 mug of self-raising flour
1 mug of semi-skimmed milk olive oil
300g cottage cheese
hot chilli sauce
Method
Halve, destone, peel and finely slice the avocado and quarter the tomatoes, then place in a salad bowl with a quarter of the spinach. Trim, finely slice and add the spring onions and pick in the coriander leaves, then squeeze over the lime juice. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, season to perfection with sea salt and black pepper, toss to coat and put aside.
Crack the egg into a blender, add the flour, milk, remaining spinach and a pinch of salt and pepper, then blitz until smooth. Place a large non-stick frying pan on a medium heat, rub the pan with a little olive oil, then pour in a thin layer of batter, swirling it up and around the edges. Cook on one side only for 2 minutes, or until lightly golden, then stack up on a serving plate and repeat.
Top each pancake with dollops of cottage cheese, the avocado salad, and a few good shakes of chilli sauce. Really nice served with extra lime wedges for squeezing over, and a fried egg on top, if you fancy.
Tip
Instead of spinach you could use a mixture of soft herbs, such as parsley, mint, basil or tarragon – whatever you like!
Nutritional information
Energy 331kcal
Fat 13.3g
Sat Fat 4g
Protein 13.5g
Carbs 42.3g
Sugars 6.3g
Salt 1.2g
Fibre 3g
VEG by Jamie Oliver, published by Penguin Random House, €26. Food photography by David Loftus. Cover and portrait photography by Paul Stuart.
