Whole Wheat Blender Pancakes

This recipe is adapted from the Family Recipes book from the LDS Dry Pack Cannery. It calls for wheat, but I typically use other grains in place of 1/2 the wheat. I haven't tried replacing all of the wheat with another grain, but I imagine it would work. I've adapted it for my family. I always double the recipe for my family of 7 (includes a baby at the time of writing). This is the recipe from my Facebook note that Bonnie mentioned previously.

Whole Wheat Blender Pancakes

Prepare the following before starting the blender. This ensures that the blender doesn't get bogged down because of the thickness of the wheat and water before you can add more wet ingredients.

Mix in a bowl together:
2 eggs
2 Tbs. Oil (I use canola or coconut)
2 Tbs. Honey or Sucanat (sugar works too)

Combine in another bowl:
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 1/2 tsp. Salt

Put the following ingredients in the blender on high for 4-5 minutes (1-2 if you use a Vitamix or Blendtec).

1 cup Water or Rice Milk (you can use cows milk)
1 cup Wheat Berries (uncooked) - OR replace 1/2 with another grain like oats or millet

Then add egg mixture and then the rest of the dry ingredients. Cook pancakes on a hot griddle.

For Blender Waffles
Add one additional Tbs. of Wheat or other grain. Also increase the oil to 4 Tbs. Cook in hot wafflemaker.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Chicken or Turkey Noodle Soup

5 cups of Chicken Broth (I make my own)
2 Chicken Breasts or Turkey, cooked and shredded or cut into cubes
Celery, chopped
Carrots, chopped
Peas
Corn
Green Beans
Zucchini
Egg noodles or other pasta (about a half of a 1# bag-add more broth if necessary)

Boil or cook your meat. This takes about 20 minutes if you use a couple of chicken/turkey breasts. Run under cool water and use a fork to shred or cut into cubes. In a large saucepan add chicken broth and rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil and simmer while noodles cook. It should be done in 5-7 minutes after boiling starts.

I start by making the broth and then I toss everything else in. I shred extra chicken from other meals and put it in the freezer. I use a bag of frozen veggies or freeze my extra veggies before they go bad. If you have the veggies and meat all in the same place in the freezer you only need to open bags and dump it in the pot. This is a quick soup for after a baby or even during labor at home if you prepare the ingredients and freeze them.

Corn Salsa

We make a small meal out of this salsa. It's a huge hit with my family and my book group.

Corn Salsa
1 can Corn, drained
1 can Beans, drained - any kind (black, kidney, black-eyed peas, etc.)*
4-6 Tomatoes, seeded, chopped
4-5 Green Onions, chopped
1-2 Avocados (optional)
1/4-1/2 bunch of cilantro, chopped (to taste)
1 package Good Seasonings Italian Dressing Mix (mix as directed
OR 1-8 oz. bottle of the above mentioned dressing.

Mix together and serve with chips. It tastes better if made several hours (or even a day) before eating.

*If you want fresh beans you can prepare and cook 1/4-1/3 cups of dried beans, but it takes a lot longer.

I haven't tried using another italian dressing, but I've been told that the salsa is just not the same if you don't use the Good Seasonings Italian Dressing. Play around with it by adding different beans, black olives, or other veggies. Enjoy!