These flapjacks are vegan, gluten-free and sweetened only with DATES! Who needs sugar in the batter when you will be devouring these with a blackberry date sauce?!
My creative juices were flowing and I quickly made a 2 ingredient fruit sauce – adding antioxidants, vitamins and minerals to this otherwise conventional carb heavy dish!
As a treat, I decided to spread some handmade dark chocolate hazelnut cream that I bought in Florence this summer.
Sprinkle some walnuts or hazelnuts and you’ve got a complete balanced meal of healthy fats, protein and complex carbs. Buon appetito!
Ingredients:
Makes 9 pancakes
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (i made my own by steaming 2 cups cubed pumpkin or you can buy it in a can but make sure its NOT the pumpkin pie filling as that is loaded with sugar!)
1/2 cup gluten-free flour (I used https://bobsredmill.com
3 flax eggs (in a small bowl place 5 tbsp ground flax and 6 tbsp water, mix and let stand for 5-10 minutes)
3/4 cup almond milk
1 tsp vanilla extract (non-alcohol)
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp freshly grated ginger 
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 tbsp chocolate hazelnut sauce (optional)
blackberry sauce (recipe below)
a few walnut pieces
Directions:
- In a medium sized bowl, place all ingredients and mix well with a whisk.
- Using a silicon brush, spread some coconut oil in a small frying pan and heat on med-high. Reduce to medium and place 1/4 pumpkin batter in pan in a round shape.
- Flip pancake when sides are browning or bubbles form on top.
- When serving, layer 3 pancakes with chocolate hazelnut sauce. Pour some blackberry sauce over and around the pancakes and sprinkle walnuts, maple syrup is optional but I splurged. Enjoy!
Blackberry Sauce:
1 cup thawed blackberries with liquid
3 dates pitted and chopped
Directions:
- Place thawed blackberries with their juice in a sauce pan and bring to a simmer on medium-high heat.
- Remove from heat and strain seeds through a smaller hole colander. Reserve the liquid and place in a small bowl.
- Add dates and let dates soak for 10-15 minutes to soften them.
- Place in a Magic Bullet or Blender and blend well into a smooth sauce.
- Will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days.