In Pursuit of Perfection: Cottage Cheese Pancake Recipe

Meal Monday

Picky eaters, I understand. I was one as a kid. I wouldn’t even eat French fries. Or potato chips. Or dark chocolate. I have *definitely* since come around.

Fickleness, I can understand. One day something is *amazing*. The next day it’s served, I’m just not in the mood. Been there, done that. Just ask my husband.

Random discrimination, however, I do not understand. Not one bit. And that’s the latest challenge I’m facing.

The culprit is the Dude. He has developed a discriminating palate, but not at all in a good way. It’s more of an OCD way. One minute, he is happily eating cut-up mango. Suddenly he notices one piece is a bit stringy, holds it with two fingers and extends it out to me with his face turned askance as if it were a chunk of spam, and asks for more. This—literal—exchange is repeated until he gets a piece that doesn’t offend his delicate sensibilities.

This coming from a kid whom I’ve caught eating his sister’s shoelace?  I mean, come on!

The OC Dudeness will no longer eat a pancake if I cut it up for him. Fine, no big deal, he can eat a whole one. I make mine on the smaller side anyway. I give him the pancake. He examines it with his nose in the air, notices rough edges, and hands it back. I search for a perfectly smooth, perfectly round one. He inspects it skeptically before deciding whether its shape is suitable for his royal dudeness. 

I suppose I could simply be grateful that he does indeed eat some of the food he so thoroughly inspects. But most food I make—homemade food in general—is not perfect. Tasty, yes. Perfect looking? Rarely.

French toast sometimes has egg over the edges of the bread. When I make baked pasta, the topping is harder than the inside. And when I make cottage cheese pancakes, there will be curds clinging to the edges that make them imperfect circles.

Cottage cheese pancakes, in fact, are not just flapjacks to a triplet mom.  They’re our ace in the hole. They are super easy to make. One batch can last two or three meals. I always have the ingredients around. And they have the carbs the kids love, the dairy/protein I love, and the grated veggies I really, really love to sneak in.

Bitty is the opposite of the Dude. She does not inspect food. She grabs it with both hands and shovels it into her mouth until it looks like it might come out her little button nose. Zeke takes smaller bites, thankfully, but he grooves on it, too.

Two out of three triplets love the cottage cheese pancakes. And so does my little OCD Dude, when the edges are cropped just right.  I’m still working on my form.

Cottage Cheese Pancake Recipe
Adapted from wholefoodsmarket.com

½ cup all purpose flour
½ cup white whole wheat flour
½  teaspoon baking soda
¼  tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tablespoon sugar
4 eggs
1 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup milk
3 carrots, peeled and grated
2 tablespoons canola oil
½ tsp vanilla (optional)

Preparation:

In a large bowl, stir together both flours, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and sugar. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, cottage cheese, milk, carrots, oil, and vanilla (if using). Add flour mixture to egg mixture and whisk until completely blended.

Spray a large skillet or griddle with cooking spray then heat over medium heat. Working in batches, form each pancake by spooning about 1/4 cup of the batter onto the skillet. Cook, flipping pancakes once, until golden brown on both sides and cooked through, about 5 minutes total. Transfer to plates and serve.