Cricket Protein Pancakes with Kiwicha Oats

People are talking about food now more than ever before, lately the conversation has expanded beyond just food. It has evolved to talking more about the link and relationship between food and agriculture, the environment, and climate change.

The world of food is changing in North America as there are is an increasing interest in eating real food that is not only good for you but for our world too. One of these conversations has been around alternative protein sources, ones that will be less harmful to our environment and of course to our bodies.

Crickets has sparked quite the conversation and has started making waves in the world of health and food. While most of the rest of the world sees eating insects as a normal thing, North America has trouble opening their minds to this source of protein.

However thanks to start-up companies like Coast Protein and Fit Cricket, cricket protein powder and cricket protein products are becoming more accepted and used by more and more Canadians! So keep reading to learn a little more about crickets and get your pancake fix with these Cricket Protein Pancakes made with Kiwicha oats, a type of grain grown in Peru. ​

Meat is a great source of protein, however the production of meat has cost the environment a great deal in fuel emission gases. Not only that but the farming of animal has become so industrialized that it has negatively affected the treatment and welfare of animals, not to mention the repercussions of these methods on its consumers, us.

The antibiotics found in meat products today would astonish you. Not only that but now more than ever is more difficult to track your food back to its source. You could be eating your chicken from a farm in China and not even know it!

Crickets however can be our saving grace. Crickets, when compared gram to gram against protein sources, uses a fraction of the water and land resources and produces significantly less emissions. Not only that but they are a great source of protein, iron, and calcium with reportedly two times the protein of beef, more calcium than milk, and twice the iron found in spinach.
​
Now you may be a little put off by the idea of eating whole crickets which is why cricket protein powder and products are great! You don’t even taste the crickets!

The idea that I want to put out here is not to cut meat and animal products out of your diet, no. It is about supporting local farmers who raise their animals ethically and produce more natural animal products. We don’t have to stop eating meat but by decreasing our consumption and pairing it with something else like crickets, beans, and grains is a way to create and have a more balanced life and happier planet.

​Now this is a super easy and healthy recipe for anyone to make, not to mention one that is delicious and full of protein. You can use any cricket protein powder but I use Coast Protein’s Vanilla cricket protein powder. Coast Protein was the first cricket protein I discovered and I have been using their powders for over a year now.

All their products are natural. Their natural protein bars and powders are made with fruit, seeds, nuts, and crickets!

Ingredients (Serves 2) 

• 1 scoop of Cricket Protein Powder - I use Coast Protein’s Vanilla Protein
• 120g of Cottage Cheese
• ½ cup of Egg Whites
• 40g of Kiwicha Oats or Regular Oats
• 1 tbsp of Ground Flaxseeds
• ​1 tbsp of Maca Powder 
• 1 tbsp of Ontario Maple Syrup
• 2 tsp of Baking powder
• 1 tsp of Cinnamon
• Pinch of Salt

 
Instructions

• Heat up a non stick pan over low-medium heat
• Combine all dry ingredients in one bowl and all the wet ingredients in another bowl. Incorporate the ingredients in each bowl separately.
• The add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix.
• Optionally here you could add seasonal berries or chocolate chips if you want to add a little sweetness
• Once mixed, brush the pan with a little bit of coconut oil and then grab an ice cream scoop and scoop one ball from the batter and place on the pan. Wait until you see bubbles in the batter before flipping over the pancake. 
• Repeat 7 more times. The batter should make eight small pancakes.
• You can garnish or top these with greek yogurt, bee pollen, nuts, maple syrup or honey and frozen berries. In the summer I like to also top them with edible flowers and seasonal fresh berries.