I wish I could tell you how my energy levels are off the roof, the acne has cleared up, and I feel totally rejuvenated..No, none of that has happened but I am still going strong. It’s day 16 on whole30 but nothing has changed much compared to last week. I craved bread, a good crusty kind with gouda most of last week. But on the positive side cooking whole30 complaint meals feels easier and I have gotten more creative, I think…

I did a lot of walking outside last week..it almost felt like Spring. I could use all the sunshine and Vitamin D right now. Lunch was mostly salads, I discovered that grapes make a fantastic addition..Dinner has been a hodgepodge of things, nothing spectacular but I have a stellar chicken and salsa recipe coming your way soon.For today, let’s focus on vegetable pancakes..I am not reinventing the wheel here. Remember the okonomiyaki, Japanese vegetable pancakes which I originally adapted from Deb’s Smitten Kitchen. I switched a few things around and made them whole30 friendly however, the original recipe is already delicious on its own.

I used almond flour to replace all-purpose flour.The choice of vegetables are pretty flexible but I find that sturdy, fresh vegetables such as kale, cabbage, swiss chard, and bell peppers seem to do better than frozen ones as they tend to be watery. Also, chop vegetables roughly the same size so that they cook evenly. Chopping is probably the only tedious and time consuming process in this recipe but other than that it’s fairly simple and easy to put together.

…Don’t judge if I whip out a bottle of Sriracha from my purse, it’s my spicy crack. I didn’t care to know the ingredients because when it comes to Sriracha and Oreos, I think ignorance is a bliss. Well, with this whole30, I have been doing a little in-depth snooping with ingredient lists and finally had to accept that my crack is laced with potassium sorbate, sodium bisulfite, and xantham gum…#sadbuttrue

If you suffer from Sriracha addiction like I do, whip up a batch with only a few ingredients and give your body a break from the chemicals. I adapted the recipe from here and scaled down the ingredients to make only a cup. The original recipe makes 2 1/4 cups.

Vegetable Pancakes

makes 5-6 pancakes (about 6 inches)

Ingredients

• 2-3 tablespoon oil ( I used grapeseed)

• 1/2 onion, finely chopped

• 3/4 cup shredded carrots

• 1.5 cups chopped cabbage

• 4 swiss chard chopped (remove stems)

• 4 eggs, lightly beaten

• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoon almond flour

• salt, pepper to taste

*It was about 4 cups of chopped/shredded vegetables. 

Directions

• Toss all the shredded/chopped vegetables in a bowl.

• Pour lightly eaten eggs, almond flour, salt and pepper making sure the vegetables are well coated.

• Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat and shape the veggie mixture into a pancake around 6 inches. You can shape them into smaller size as well.

• Gently press the pancakes with a spatula and allow it to cook for 2-3 minutes or until edges are brown and holds the shape.

• Flip the pancake and cook on the other side for another 1-2 minutes

• Serve it warm or can be reheated for later use.

Homemade Sriracha

makes about 1 cup

Ingredients

• 6 red jalapeno peppers, chopped (seed jalapeno if your prefer less spicy)

• 2 tablespoon tomato paste

• 4 garlic cloves

• 3-4 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

• 2 tablespoon coconut amino

• 3 California dates (may need less if you seed jalapeno)

• salt, to taste

Directions

• Put everything in a food processor or a blender until it’s pureed.

Notes:- If you can’t handle too spicy, I recommend removing the seeds. The original recipe calls for cooking the sauce further to concentrate the flavor and it removes the raw vegetable flavor. I enjoyed it as it but feel free to simmer it for 10 minutes…

more on my Whole 30 experience: – Starting Whole 30– Whole 30 Week 1

Hope you all have a wonderful Monday!!