Cocoa-Nutty Pancakes

Hey y’all 😀 Now that my second year at uni is wrapped up and (almost) long-forgotten about, I’ve got plenty of time to experiment around in my kitchen this summer to create some new recipes!

The first recipe I’m sharing with you is a breakfast treat featuring Jake’s Boost SuperBoost Butter (aka one of the yummiest nut butters I have EVER tasted!) which will also be posted as part of their exclusive nut butter eBook – how exciting! I actually met the two co-founders, Ansje and Dan (plus their doggo and inspiration, Jake), at a Bloggers Event in Cambridge a few weeks ago and totally fell in love with them, their story, their ethos, and, of course, their products so knew that I had to collaborate with them ASAP – and what better way than a delicious pancake stack recipe!?

Jake’s Boost at the Cambridge Bloggers Event

So without further ado…

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COCOA-NUTTY PANCAKES

Ingredients:
40g oat flour (simply blend jumbo rolled oats)
3tbsp sesame seed flour, or any plant-based flour of choice
2tbsp Creative Nature Cacao Powder 
1/2 tsp baking powder
1tsp coconut sugar (any sweetener of your choice is fine)
200ml unsweetened almond milk, or any plant-based milk of choice
1 medium ripe banana, mashed
1tbsp plant-based yoghurt
1-2tbsp Jake’s Boost SuperBoost Butter

Method:

1. Combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, cacao powder and sweetener) in a deep, medium-sized bowl, leaving a well in the centre of the bowl.
2. Pour all the wet ingredients (almond milk, yoghurt, nut butter and mashed banana) into the centre of the bowl where you made a well in the dry ingredients.
3. Mix thoroughly until the batter is well-combined, smooth of lumps and fairly thin.
4. Heat a small blob of coconut oil in a non-stick frying pan over a low-medium heat.
5. Pour batter (I use two flat tablespoons but it will differ according to the size of your pan) onto the centre of the pan while swirling the pan’s handle, using a circular movement of your wrist, to cover the base and create a thin pancake.
6. Wait until bubbles appear on the top side of your pancake (approx. after a minute) before flipping over with a spatula.
7. Repeat with the rest of the batter until all your pancakes are cooked.
8. Layer up the pancakes, filling with fruit slices and serving with more nut butter if desired.
9. ENJOY!

Serves 2-3 people.

Remember to use the hashtag #mindfullymade on social media platforms to share with me your creations 🙂

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Mindfully, Moni x

Fitness Rockstar Spotlight Interview

A few weeks ago a fabulous and very exciting opportunity came up to work with Julia Buckley and her online gym so I had to participate – I love working with people who share the same ethos and outlook on life as me. Julia offers an incredible online workout programme which you can do in the comfort of your own home – for a fraction of the cost of a gym membership or personal training, you can achieve amazing results!

To spread the word of her online gym and newly published eBook “Ignite” to accompany the online workouts, Julia has set up a group of Fitness Rockstars – and I’m lucky enough to be one of them 🙂 What is a Fitness Rockstar?!

The Fitness Rockstars are a collective of people with a mission to make the world a healthier, happier place.

We’re not professional athletes, or even what many would consider typical “fitness people”, but we all appreciate the privilege of having the ability to move our bodies and we’ve all experienced having our worlds rocked by the astounding difference fitness and health has made to our lives.

Neither are we celebrities, or in a position to spread our message to millions of people, but if something we post can help light the fuse that helps anyone to discover myriad of amazing benefits of doing what takes to be fit and strong which ripple out into all areas of life, then we’ll feel like stars for sure.

To help us Fitness Rockstars get to know one other, Julia conducted a small interview…

1. For me, fitness is all about: Feeling great! There’s nothing more exhilarating than the feeling of blood pumping through your veins, pushing your body to the limit and achieving those fitness goals 🙂 I love the feeling of motivation, determination and productivity which I get when exercising – it makes my whole day feel more positive, active and worthwhile. It also helps my body confidence and makes me more time efficient in other tasks.
2. I get most excited to do my workout when: I’ve had a bad day… If I’m feeling down in the dumps then the best way to clear my thoughts is to have a good workout session; it helps to channel my frustration/ anger/ negativity into adrenaline and motivation to do that extra rep, run that extra kilometre, or to hold the plank an extra 10 seconds.
3. When a workout really pushes me to my limit, I think to myself: Wow, great work! I’m always positive when working out as I love the feeling of progressing, seeing results and achieving the goals I’ve set out for myself.
4. I’m most likely to skip my workout if: It’s raining outside. I suffer quite badly from SAD and the weather/ seasons really affect my mood (which is quite volatile anyway) so the rain outside will dampen my spirits and tempt me to just stay warm inside with a cuppa!
5. In a group fitness session I’ll be the one who: Puts the tunes on – you can’t have a good workout in silence, it’s all about the motivational bangers to take your mind off the strain/ pain!
6. The item of exercise equipment I’d most hate to go without is: My yoga mat! I can’t be doing sit ups (or any ab work for that matter) on the cold hard floor – or even worse, the other day, on the wet grass 😥
7. The last thing I usually do before starting my workout is: Take a selfie at the gym… (Shamefully I will admit to it!!) Yes I’m one of those people who snapchat when they’re at the gym; I mean, I’m going to get hot and sweaty so I’ll be out of snapchat action for the next hour or so…
8. My top 5 workout music tracks are: 1. Pump It – The Black Eyed Peas; 2.Run the World – Beyonce; 3. Just Like Fire – P!nk; 4. Light It Up – Major Lazer; 5. Stronger – Kelly Clarkson
9. If I start feeling ‘meh’ about fitness I give myself a boost by: Putting on one of my favourite workout tracks! I love music, dancing and all things related so nothing will give me more of an energy boost than a heartfelt song by P!nk!
10. The most important thing I’ve learned about fitness in the last year is: Don’t compare yourself to others. It’s easier said than done of course, but there’s nothing worse than comparing yourself to that ultra lean, super fit, uber defined muscleman lifting the equivalent of five times your body weight or that skinny yet toned girl in the gym – it helps no one and will just get you down! Everyone has their own diets, workout regimes; and it’s discovering what’s best for YOU (in terms of lifestyle choices, daily routine, work schedule etc.) which is the important thing.

Let me know in the comments about your fitness regime – What motivates you? Are you working towards a particular goal or just want to maintain a good level of fitness? Do you workout in the gym or at home?

Check out the other rockstars’ interviews by searching for the hashtags #JuliaBFit and #FitnessRockstars on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter!

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Mindfully, Moni x