V is for Vitamins

Back in January, I started that whole work-out-to-build-muscle-and-be-more-healthy thing. And I am proud to say, I've stuck to that (insert proud look here). Unfortunately, working out has made me more aware of the unhealthy food I eat on a daily basis. There's something about lifting weights and running on a treadmill that makes deep fried, beer battered fish and chips seem less appealing than it used to be.

So lately, I've tried substituting bad-for-me ingredients, with less-bad-for-me ingredients (hey, I'm a baby-step type of girl). The latest substitution: organic wheat flour instead bleached white flour.

I know what you're thinking, How could substituting wheat flour help anything? I used to think the same thing until I read "Ugly Truths About White Flour". The truth is that this simple substitution can boost your vitamin intake and reduce your bad carb count (and chemical consumption - sorry, my hippie side couldn't resist). Plus, it's easy to substitute wheat flour for white flour and not expensive - wheat, organic flour costs about $2.50 for a 5 pound bag.

Here's a recipe where I substituted wheat flour, without substituting the flavor.

Wheat Pancakes with Strawberries, Pecans, and Honey: I love this recipe for two reasons. It's quick and it's healthy. Normal pancake recipes usually call for sugar, fatty milk, and a calorie packed syrup. This one doesn't have any sugar at all in the batter, uses skim milk, and substitutes honey for traditional syrup. What you're left with is a healthy breakfast that sticks to your ribs, and not your thighs.

Dry Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cup of wheat flour
• 2 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder

Wet Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 1 1/4 cup of skim milk

In a bowl, mix the dry ingredients together, then form a well by pushing the ingredients to the side of the bowl. Set Aside.

Mix together wet ingredients in a bowl.

Add a little bit of the wet mixture to the dry mixture, and mix together. Continue this process until the two mixtures are combined.

Heat a frying pan to medium-high. Spray a non-stick spray lightly on the bottom of the pan. Pour enough of the batter in the pan to make a medium sized circle. Cook until bubbles start to form throughout the batter, then flip. Cook for about another minute or two, then remove.

Take honey and pour over pancakes (depending on what honey you use, you may have to add some water to it to thin in out). Cut up strawberries and put on top of pancakes. Crumble pecans and put on top of pancakes.