This recipe is regularly on the menu in my house.  My kids get so excited when they see chocolate pancakes on the table.  They have no idea that mama put a nice collard green-blueberry surprise into the batter.  Don’t worry—you won’t notice either, and it’s a great way to use up all of those hard collard green stems that usually end up in the trash.

Last week, I walked you through my daily routine of preparing greens.  In that article, I mention that you should save all of the hard collard stems in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.  Hopefully, you have those stems ready to use!

(This delicious recipe was inspired by Missy Chase Lapine – aka the Sneaky Chef.)

Ingredients
10 stems from a bunch of organic collard greens
1 cup frozen wild blueberries
2 tablespoons water
1 cup brown rice flour (or any flour of your choice)
½ cup wheat germ
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup soy/almond/rice milk
2 eggs
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
mini chocolate chips (optional)

Step 1
Boil or steam 10 collard stems for 4-5 minutes.  Blend the cooked stems, 1 cup of frozen wild blueberries, and 2 tablespoons of water in your blender.  This should make about 1 cup of puree.  You will only need half of this puree.  Freeze or refrigerate the other half of the puree for another day.  (Or throw the extra into your next smoothie)

Step 2
Mix all of your dry ingredients into a bowl:  1 cup of brown rice flour, ½ cup wheat germ, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ½ teaspoon of salt, and 4 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder.

Step 3
Mix all of your wet ingredients in a bowl:  ½ cup of blueberry-collard stem puree, 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract, ½ cup of soy milk, 2 eggs and 3 tablespoons of pure maple syrup.

Step 4
Combine wet ingredients and dry ingredients into one bowl, and mix well.

Step 5
Drop heaping tablespoons of batter onto your griddle.  Cook over low heat to avoid burning.  Add 3-4 mini chocolate chips to the top of each pancake.  Peek at the underside of the pancakes to determine when it’s time to flip them.  Serve pancakes with pure maple syrup.  Please do yourself a favor and spend the extra money for real maple syrup, and avoid pancake syrups, which are a mix of corn syrup, artificial colors and artificial flavors.

Makes about 16 pancakes.

Tip:  Refrigerate any leftover pancakes.  They make a great portable snack.  When you are hungry, just wrap them up and take them with you.  They are thick and sturdy like cookies!

You know I’m always trying to get more greens and veggies into my family’s diet!  If you are too, you might want to check out Missy Chase Lapine’s cookbook, The Sneaky Chef.