gut health

So let's talk about it! We'll chat briefly about your gut and maximizing your gut health with 3 easy steps you can try RIGHT NOW to make positive changes in your whole healing journey.

The flavor screams “Fall,” and the ease of this recipe + the additional pro tip for mamas allows this one to be weekday morning appropriate!

Pumpkin Spice is, not surprisingly, EVERY. WHERE. I honestly hate to even contribute to the madness with yet ANOTHER recipe containing the name, but truly, I had to. It’s just so good. Even if you’re not the biggest pumpkin fan, this hearty pancake comes through in a mildly pumpkin, boldly spiced, moist, pleasantly orange-colored way. The secret to the spicing of it will leave you with a mouthful of flavor AND additional health benefits, so mamas everywhere are rightfully singing “hallelujah” over this one!

Plus, pumpkin itself is a healthy food full of antioxidants, fiber, vitamins, and so much more. I realize the flavor of pumpkin alone can be a bit dull, but we’re going to fix that right up today! 

And yep, as usual this recipe is gluten and dairy free! I see you, healthy and allergen-free mamas! 

I’m sharing how we make this for our family of 6 - this typically allows for leftovers, which is my goal. But if nothing else, we all have full, happy bellies. Stay with me until the end for the greatest flapjack mom hack everrrr that will revolutionize your pancake making for a crowd!

INGREDIENTS:

• Your favorite pancake mix or recipe. NOTE: We love Aldi’s LiveGFree Pancake and Baking Mix! I use a whole box at one time, which is a triple recipe (makes approx 30 pancakes), in order to make leftovers. This recipe is based on that ratio

• 3/4c-1c organic pumpkin puree (I love THIS brand)

• 2 drops Thieves Vitality Essential Oil

• 2-3 drops Orange Vitality Essential Oil

• 2 drops Ginger Vitality Essential Oil

• 2 drops Nutmeg Vitality Essential Oil

• 1 drop Cinnamon Bark Vitality Essential Oil

• 3 drops Copaiba Vitality Essential Oil

DIRECTIONS:

1. Mix up your pancake batter per directions on box or your base recipe, plus pumpkin puree and essential oil additions, WITH THESE ADJUSTMENTS BELOW:

2. Omit 1 egg from your recipe (the pumpkin is coming into play as a partial egg sub here!)

3. For milk/liquid called for in the recipe, sub homemade dairy free “buttermilk” - mix the same amount of dairy free milk of choice listed plus 1tbsp vinegar per cup of milk in a separate bowl, stir, and let sit until curdled. May not need ALL of this in batter - I suggest using half and adding more if needed for batter consistency. 

4. Once mixed, grease up a griddle (I like THIS ONE for large families and quick flapjack flippin’! ) and fry up some pancakes! (Takes about 1.5-2min per side, or until browned to your liking) ORRRR

5. MOM HACK OPTION: pour all batter into a greased 9x13 jelly roll pan (HERE is a great one made in the USA) and BAKE in the oven at 350F for approx 20-25min. Cut into squares to serve! It’s like pancake CAKE! (I forget where I first heard this idea, but I cannot take credit for it myself!)

6. These pancakes taste PERFECT topped with real maple syrup and toasted chopped pecans! Go crazy with some homemade or dairy free whipped cream or coconut cream too if you're feeling especially festive!

Need a hook up for your Vitality Essential Oils? I’d be blessed for you to use my referral link HERE. 

Ready to grab my FREE guide to boost your immune system like my family has? Get started TODAY on your immune system reboot and grab it HERE!

Disclosure: Amazon affiliate links are used in this post and are a blessing to our family if you choose to use them. There is no additional cost to you.

To maximize our health, we are a gluten and *mostly* dairy free household here. I love to create EASY, fast, nutritionally dense food, and I also prefer to batch cook it too when I can. Since I work evening shifts as a nurse, there are just some nights I'm not around to cook. While the Hubs does a GREAT job managing the home too, batch cooking - or cooking double+ the amount of food one night so we can eat for a couple meals - allows me to make it just a little bit easier on all of us.

One genre I find easy to batch cook, and flexible on ingredients, is gluten free pasta dishes. Add in seasonally fresh/garden fresh ingredients, some kind of meat/protein, and VOILA! Quick, nutritious, one pot fuel for the fam! AND kid approved too! 

I have a pot large enough to just barely cook 2lbs of pasta at once, so that’s where I start. We need that much for our family of 6 to eat this meal at least 2x. So take whatever your family size would normally eat and plan to at least double it for this! The quantities are VERY flexible here. The goal is to use what you have, don’t overthink it, and keep it both tasty and healthy (I’ll help you with that!). Grab your biggest pasta pot and let’s go!

Summertime One-Pot-Wonder Pasta

~2lbs gluten free pasta of choice - penne and fusilli are recommended (we love Aldi’s options!)

~1-2 med zucchini, cut in bite-sized chunks

~1 lg or 2 sm tomato(es), cut in cubes

~2-4 generous handfuls of baby spinach

~Any other seasonal veggies you choose! Some suggestions: onions, asparagus, squash, beets, broccoli, etc! You really can’t go wrong here!

~Meat of choice. I use anywhere from 1-2lbs typically. Sausage is a favorite, but chicken, venison, and ground beef also work great! If you prefer to be meat-free, try some white beans thrown in.

~1 can black olives (optional)

~4Tbsp EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil!) or any other healthy fat you choose

~Fresh garlic, minced - I think 3 cloves is a great amount! But you do you!

~Additional seasonings as you prefer. Think about throwing in fresh, dried, or essential oil* forms of Oregano, Mountain Savory, Marjoram, Parsley, Black Pepper, etc. These herbs not only amp up flavor, but they all have great healing properties too. Keep in mind that the dried version will naturally have the lowest level of healthy constituents left though. 

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving about 1c of starchy pasta water.

2. While pasta drains, in same pot you cooked the pasta in, add a few Tbsps oil and meat. Brown in oil. Ideally for this step I’d use ground or cut into bite sized pieces, depending on the meat type, to keep it cooking fast, and to keep cost down. If going meat free, skip this step!

3. Once meat has browned, add in chopped veggies and saute roughly 3-5min. Do not overcook.

4. Add in minced garlic and give in a swirl. If using canned white beans, add them here and make sure they are heated through before proceeding.

5. Toss pasta back into pot and mix with “sauce.” Add olives too, if using them. Add reserved pasta water if needed to keep pasta/sauce moist and help disperse sauce. 

6. Add in herbs/seasoning/essential oils of your choosing. Adjust salt to taste preference.

7. Voila! One pot, yummy goodness you can eat over a couple days!

*I recommend looking for garden-fresh or organic options for all ingredients here if possible, especially meat and any produce on Dirty Dozen list (found HERE). Minimizing chemical exposure is a key for healing.

*For me, I like to take it easy on the carbs and grains (they just don’t serve my body well right now), so I like to do the toppings for this recipes over roasted spaghetti squash or cauliflower rice for myself.

*Ingesting essential oils may not be for everyone, but our household loves this option. We are VERY specific about using oils in this way, and I cannot endorse ingesting oils whose origin and growing practices are unknown. Please do your own research and take caution with essential oils you are using. While they can have great benefits, they are also very concentrated and powerful. If you’d like to discuss what I have learned and what oils I recommend, feel free to contact me!

If you’re looking for a wellness community for support and information while you heal, I’ve got you covered! Join us HERE!