A Lazy Weekend Feat. George Foreman Blueberry Pancakes

Happy February! My first weekend off is going exactly as planned -- relaxing being the number one activity :) I've gotten caught up on TV shows and have made my way halfway through Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (which falls between Amy Poehler's and Tina Fey's books on my reading list...which for some reason consists exclusively of celebrity comedic autobiographies these days).

I've slept in the past two mornings, just because I could, and by the time I got out of bed this morning it was approaching 10:30 am -- the perfect time for brunch. As I have a big box of blueberries in my freezer, I decided on blueberry pancakes.

I mixed up a simple oatmeal-based pancake batter and added blueberries:

• 0.5 cup oats (blended into oat flour)
• 0.5 tsp baking powder
• 1 egg
• 0.25 cup milk
• 0.5 cup blueberries

This base batter is a little bland and I sometimes I add a bit of cinnamon, brown sugar, or mashed banana to make it tastier. I've made savoury pancakes from this base as well, including a pretty delicious batch inspired by Lady Marmalade's cheddar and spinach waffles.

For cooking pancakes, I usually use my little George Foreman grill. It's super easy -- they're done in 2 minutes and never stick (no oil required!). I set up the grill in the same way as I do to fry eggs, propping up the front two legs with the overturned drip tray to create a flat grilling surface.

pre-heat the grill

scoop some pancake batter onto the grill and close the lid

2 minutes later -- done!

The result is a dense yet fluffy pancake. The only thing missing was syrup! Though I'll admit that they aren't as tasty as your Aunt Jemima boxed variety, I like that these pancakes contain some extra fibre and protein from the oats and egg, and are so very simple to mix up. I think I'll have to start making pancakes whenever I'm home on weekends!

My pancake brunch was followed by the usual weekend tidying and laundry. For dinner I've fried up an eggplant and zucchini that had been sitting in my fridge for too long (three weeks, oops).

eggplant and zucchini -- fried with garlic, soy sauce, and sriracha

In the interest of further procrastination, when I finish this post I'll walk (briskly! it's -18 °C) down to the store to buy eggs and when I get back will finally settle down with tea and the USMLE QBank. Now that it's February the pressure is on to get through as many questions as possible before my subscription expires!

That timer gives me so much anxiety!

As for the rest of the day, I'll take a break to get an elliptical session in and I'm sure will read a little more Mindy before going bed. Overall, it's been the perfect lazy weekend!