My heart is heavy this morning. Our little Sketchie cat is going through a surgery right now. It broke my heart saying good-bye this morning. He has no idea what he’s in for, what he will wake up to, and have to recover from. I haven’t written much about Sketchie’s bowel problems (most likely because it doesn’t tie into the topic of food very well!), but our vet suspects that he has Irritable Bowel Disease. Many days he is running to get to his litter box in time. I won’t get into details, but it’s so sad to watch. His problems were there as a kitten and have gotten worse over the years. We’ve tried relentlessly to find a cure for his problems – grain-free food, the raw food diet, single protein food sources, pumpkin, probiotics – you name it, and nothing seemed to help for long and he’s also extremely picky with food so that complicates things too. He has had blood work and stool testing galore! I feel so bad for him because he obviously doesn’t understand what is going on with his body.
Our vet recommended that Sketchie have exploratory surgery where they will take a biopsy of his intestines, examine his organs, and look for anything unusual like cancer. If we just put him on medication it might cover up a serious problem that’s going on, so we decided it was best to know what’s really going on inside him. His recent blood work came back that he has low B12 which could be a result of IBD or it could be due to something more serious like lymphoma. The hardest part about this decision is that we don’t know for sure if it will end up finding a solution to his problem, but we figure it’s worth a shot for his long-term health and happiness. We really don’t know what else to do at this point. One thing is for sure; this wacky, quirky little cat has left such a mark on my heart, I can’t imagine my life without him and I would do anything to help him.
The house feels so empty and quiet this morning (there’s no one rubbing his head on my computer screen right now or meowing at me!), but I know he’s in great hands. And he will be spoiled and taken care of 24/7 when he’s home, so hopefully his recovery goes well. I’ll keep you posted on how he’s doing. Hopefully he doesn’t hate us too much, especially with that cone around his head and mystery incision.
There’s no good way to transition into a pancake recipe today, but let’s just go with it. I need a little comfort food right about now! I made these pancakes for Eric and I after the hockey game on Sunday to celebrate the Olympics. It was an event we looked forward to for weeks and I couldn’t think of a better way to treat ourselves. It’s been a LONG time since I wrote about pancakes on this blog…too long, in fact! Hopefully this makes up for lost time.
Featuring all new, protein-packed salads, hearty toppers, flavour boosters, and dressings you'll want to drink, my new cookbook will transform the way you think about salads. Oh, and be sure to flip to the back for a surprise dessert chapter!
Easy Vegan and Gluten-Free Pancakes (Strawberry Shortcake + Whipped Cream)
Yield
9 pancakes
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
These vegan pancakes are made with raw buckwheat flour, rice flour, and arrowroot flour - making them naturally gluten-free - and chopped bananas are folded into the batter to provide a fluffy, pillow-like texture. You can enjoy them plain (they are seriously really good without anything added!), or you can get fancy and serve them with some coconut whipped cream, fresh berries, vegan butter, and/or maple syrup. The sky is the limit, pancake lovers. They are also fantastic with some finely chopped chocolate thrown into the batter or blueberries! You can tell I’ve made this recipe a lot! One word of caution: The combination of gluten-free flour is sensitive to changes. I don’t recommend subbing any of the flours with oat flour, for example - it tends to create a pancake that cracks, sticks to the pan, and falls apart. I don’t have any issues with this recipe when I follow it as written and use a non-stick skillet though. This recipe is adapted from my Vanilla Blueberry Buckwheat pancakes.
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw buckwheat groats, ground into a fine flour
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1.5 cups + 3 tablespoons almond milk
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup (or agave nectar)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 heaping cup diced ripe bananas (about 2 small/medium)
- Coconut Whipped Cream, for garnish
- Chopped Fresh Strawberries, for garnish
Directions
- Preheat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. A drop of water should sizzle on the skillet when it’s ready.
- In a blender, blend the buckwheat groats on high speed until a fine flour forms. Place into a large bowl. Now whisk in the rest of the dry ingredients (rice flour, arrowroot, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon).
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond milk, syrup, and vanilla extract. Pour this onto the dry ingredients and whisk the batter until no clumps remain.
- Dice the banana until it's the size of peas or a bit larger. Fold the diced banana into the batter.
- Lightly grease skillet (I spray olive oil on it). Scoop a heaping 1/4 cup of batter onto the preheated skillet and quickly spread the batter out into a circle. Cook until some bubbles appear and the edge looks deeper in colour and more firm. Flip and cook for another couple minutes until golden. Adjust heat as needed. Repeat for the other pancakes. I spray the skillet with oil before each pancake is cooked and this seems to work well.
- Stack and serve with Coconut Whipped Cream and fresh chopped strawberries, if desired. Or simply serve with pure maple syrup!
Tip:
- If using frozen blueberries, pour batter onto skillet first and then top with blueberries to prevent bleeding.
- I tried subbing the rice flour for oat flour and the pancakes stuck to the pan, so I would advise against that substitution.
- If at any time your batter is too thick or if you want thinner pancakes, simply thin it out with a splash or two of almond milk.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
Lastly, I want to thank all of you who have let me know you received the cookbook a bit early (Indigo is shipping early and stocking the book in some stores, FYI). I’ve received so many tweets from you sharing pictures of the book in your home, recipes you’ve already made, and the like. It’s really brightened up my week and I’m so grateful for your excitement and support. One week from today, the book will be officially released and out in the world. I feel nervous, excited, anxious, scared, and grateful all at once.
Don’t forget, if you haven’t taken advantage of the Bonus Recipe Bundle with 10 bonus recipes you can still do so until next week. Details here.
Now go on and treat yourself to some pancakes!
I hope Sketchie is alright! I always love seeing pictures of that adorable kitty! I have a cat too and can’t imagine what you’re feeling.
Excited to receive your cookbook soon!
Hello Angela, Not sure if you care for me but here is a way to show you Im ok…Remember there was a point in your life when you changed, when maybe you immersed your heart and soul with healing and whole foods, well there is in deed a way to take care of Sketchie more than buying the best holistic food, or alkaline water or possibly some homemade vegan kitty treats, I mean you can do herbal therapies and here is a reliable resource their called myhealthyzoo.com its the very best herbal nutrition for your pets( they have many formulas for cats even for pain,immune boosters, a super cat formula) , I will be honest with you Ive been going to the stomach doctor also and I was scheduled last week for my biopsy myself but I canceled to get my finances aligned, the cost add up quick even with insurance but im praying for ulcers only. well hope your pet gets well I use to make your recipes about 3 times a day now not so much as my stomach does not process food well at this point. Much love, One love
If cancer look into Essiac Formula as a alternative treatment as well.
You are amazing. This website is amazing. Every time I hop online to look a recipe, I am always redirected to this website… IT ALWAYS HAS THE BEST LOOKING RECIPES!!! I have only tried a few so far and I loved them.
I am a new vegan so there are a lot of new ingredients that I am not too familiar with. Now I live with two very good friends, who have been vegans for years now. They cook all the time. and buy all sorts of stuff.
I haven’t been a big fan of the squash family, but you’re making me want to give them another try. “Butternut Squash Mac ‘n Cheeze” looks amazing. The baked squash actually looks very appetizing to me. I will be making this VERY soon.
Thank you for making these recipes available. I will definitely be ordering your books, not just for myself but also for the independent bookstore which I work.
:)
Thank you so much Rose!
you can contact Farin at Avery to inquire about stocking the book: [email protected]
Crossing fingers for your kitty! Best of luck!
Still waiting for my book ….so exciting !!!
Oh Sketchie! Animals are just the best thing ever. Get well soon sweet kitty x
I’m so sorry to hear about Sketchie :( He is such a part of Oh She Glows and I can only imagine how quiet your house must seem with him in surgery! I hope by now he is home safe and well and perhaps there’s some news to help you manage his IBS issues from now on too.
On a more positive note, these pancakes look amazing :)
That tower of pancakes with cream and fresh strawberries…you did that on purpose! You did that to make anyone who see it to drop everything and run and make a batch too! Nicely done;) They DO look delectable…
Wow! Found this blog by accident and saw this huge mound of pancake with strawberries and cream. I think I just decided what’s for breakfast tomorrow :D
Firstly, those pancakes look A-MA-ZING! Secondly, I can’t wait for your cookbook! I pre-ordered it to my home in Canada, but Im in Scotland until end of March so Im going to have to wait a bit, booo. Your extra recipe bundle is helping tide me over though!
I just wanted to add that I’ll be thinking of you and Sketchy. I completely understand what you are going through. IBD is a really hard disease to diagnose in animals, its basically a diagnosis of exclusion after ruling out all other possible causes, so I know how frustrating it has been for you trying to manage Sketchy’s bowel issues. I hope the biopsy samples come back with a definitive answer for you. Wishing Sketchy a speedy and event-free recovery.
I made these for breakfast today and they were so good! I rarely have any success making pancakes – they either get stuck, won’t flip, burn or break! These are the first pancakes I have made that didn’t do any of that. I also made sure my pan was hot enough (which I never do) and that must have also helped. I topped mine with blueberries instead as I didn’t have strawberries – amazing!
Angela, I hope all goes well for Sketchie. As I’m typing, George the Cat is shoving books off of my desk onto the floor one-by-one. They do like attention don’t they? And again thanks for another lovely recipe. I ordered your cookbook from my little book shop. I am pleased to know that I will have it in a week.
Love that you love the cat’s soul…..admirable ….get well soon most-beloved feline!
Also love these goodies! You always share such wonderful recipes. Thank you SO much from sunny Arizona at 5:30A LOL….okay, not sunny…yet.
Pam. Designer # 37495. Origami owl
angela,
sending white light to sketchie and you and eric! know that the vets will take very very good care of him and that animals are stong and he will be so happy to see you when he comes home, not angry.
i really hope he gets better soon. i love people like you who are so devoted to their pets that they help them however they can. i’m sure sketchie feels that enormous amount of love and he is a lucky kitty because of it!
Sketchie will be in my thoughts today!! I hope all goes well. It’s never fun to have to make decisions for your animals health. My dog has to have surgery next week and I’m already nervous about it. But I’m sure your vet is wonderful and Sketchie will be healthy and happy in no time!
And mmm those pancakes look fantastic! I think I know what I’ll be having for lunch today!
Poor Sketchie :(. I, too, unfortunately have been down that road and it is so hard for all. I’ll keep him and you all in my thoughts.
All my best to Sketchie. IBD in cats is, unfortunately, very common. You’re doing the absolute right thing by obtaining a diagnosis via biopsy. Thankfully, once properly diagnosed, in most cases, it can be treated, even if it turns out to be intestinal lymphoma. You and Sketchie are in my thoughts.
I had a cat that had to go under surgery to remove a growth by her eye. It ended up being a subcutaneous mast cell tumor, so I am very glad we had it removed! It behaves benignly and the vet is very optimistic. But man, was is so hard to drop her off and not *know* what the result would be, or how she would fare, or what it would mean for her prognosis. She had to wear a donut for a couple weeks, but she just had the stitches out on Monday (which means the donut came off) and is back to her normal self.
So hang in there! I know how scary this is. But you are a really great person for doing this, and it is because you care so much that this is so scary. *hugs*
Sending good vibes for Sketchie! I hope he is home and healing now. We have an asthmatic cat so I understand the anxiety around not being able to explain to your lovely cat that you really are trying to help him!
Love me some pancakes. I’m already planning my day around a trip to Whole Foods to get Buckwheat Groats!
I’m so sorry to hear about poor little Sketchie. We are also parents to a fur baby and I can relate to the helpless feeling when they are sick. I’m sending my love and prayers his way. Stay positive! :) xxoo