Coconut Flour Pancakes (for Brinner!)

Sometimes for dinner in our house we have what we call "brinner"- breakfast for dinner!  It is a special treat and is very exciting when we have it.  So last night we decided to have a brinner night so I could try out a new recipe I found for coconut flour pancakes.  Here's the deal:  I was at the natural grocery store the other day and while looking at types of flour, I saw coconut flour.  I have seen it in Paleo recipes a lot, and I assumed it was going to be just like almond flour as a flour substitute.  Well, I was wrong.  It is super dense and makes foods a lot thicker than almond flour.  So after an attempt at using it like regular flour failed the other day, I went in search for recipes that would work. These pancakes were pretty good.  They were definitely dense, but were easy to make and were yummy.  I was happy to have success with coconut flour, and now that I know more about the consistency, I'll be using it more often.  Here is what I did:

Coconut Flour Pancakes
(serves 2)

• 4 egg whites
• 1/2 banana, mashed
• 1/2 c almond milk
• 1/4 t vanilla
• 1/4 c coconut flour

Preparation
Whisk egg whites until frothy (I used my immersion blender stick and it took about 20 seconds.  Get one!).  Add the rest of the ingredients and stir until mixed well.  Heat a skillet over medium heat and melt some coconut oil to grease the pan.  Spoon batter onto skillet in small, round pancake shapes.  Allow them to cook for 2-3 minutes on each side.  Serve them with maple syrup, honey, or fruit (or a combination).

We ate these as part of our brinner with bacon and scrambled eggs and it was a great meal.  I topped ours with honey and sliced strawberries and the fruit definitely made them even better.  This has been my third recipe for Paleo-friendly pancakes, and I wouldn't say it is my favorite, but definitely the least messy!  Stay tuned to see what else I can come up with using this mysterious coconut flour!