Oatmeal Pumpkin Pancakes

I have a goal to make my children breakfast at least five days a week.  I fall short of this goal almost every week but I refuse to give up.  I do this for two reasons.  The first is because I have the privilege of being home in the mornings with my children.  This gives me the time to prepare a good breakfast that will help fuel their day.  (Confession:  There are some mornings that I do not consider this a privilege, it feels more like a ball and chain. Sigh)  The second reason is because I am trying to stay away from instant foods such as cereal.  I feel like it is far more expensive than eggs, oatmeal or grits and the nutritional value does not make this momma happy.

My breakfasts are not usually very fancy or time consuming but I do like to try and keep a  little variety with what I make.  Through Pinterest I stumbled upon a recipe for oatmeal pancakes and I fell in love with them!  They are easy to make in the blender and easy to add different flavors.  There are many different recipes to use online but here is a basic one that will get you going in the right direction.  I simply added a can of pumpkin as well as some cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves to the basic recipe and they turned out great.  Some other modifications I make are to use coconut oil instead of vegetable oil and I remove the sugar.  A little bit of maple syrup on top makes them plenty sweet for our taste.

CAUTION:  The batter gets thick as it sits and you may need to add a little water or milk along the way to keep it thin.  The other day I decided to use the thick batter and it was very hard to keep the pancakes from being mushy on the inside.

Once breakfast is made we sit down at the table to enjoy it while I read a chapter from the bible to the kids.  We also make a plan for the day while we are around the table to help get our day heading in the right direction. ( I will share with you another day on how that plan often crashes and burns before we ever leave the table.)  These morning moments take a little effort but they sure do add a little joy to my life!