Lightened-up red velvet pancakes made with a blend of white whole wheat flour and all purpose, then topped with a light cream cheese topping.  I adore red velvet, so I can’t think of a more fitting time to make red velvet pancakes, then for Valentine’s Day!

I don’t eat pancakes every day, instead I save them for special occasions, like holidays, birthdays and blizzards! This weekend Nemo hit the North East, which kept most of us indoors or digging our way out. We got around 8 to 10 inches which wasn’t too bad, my daughter was really excited to finally use her snow suit and sled.

While my daughter and husband played outside in the snow, I decided to test out these pancakes. My puppy wanted no part of the snow, so he found a cozy blanket and just laid around all morning.

I spent quite a bit of time testing these pancakes out to get them just right. Finally after my third attempt I got them perfect! Fluffy, with just the right amount of sweetness. This was modified from my whole wheat pancake recipe^[1], I simply added some cocoa powder and food coloring and since this is topped with a cream cheese topping rather than maple, I felt the batter needed to be sweetened a bit, so I added a touch more sugar.

My husband, was my taste tester and tasted each and every round until we got a winner.

If you’re watching your sugar intake, you can certainly substitute the sugar for Stevia or Splenda, or whatever sweetener you prefer to use.

You can prepare the batter the day before and keep it refrigerated for up to 2 to 3 days. The cream cheese topping will also last about 3 days refrigerated.

I used my heart shaped pancake molds^[2] which only makes one at a time, so if you plan on doing this and making a lot, I recommend buying more than one mold. It also tends to stick so spraying the mold first helps prevent this.

Red Velvet Pancakes with Cream Cheese Topping
gordon-ramsay-recipe.com
Servings: 5  • Size: 2 pancakes + cream cheese topping • Old Pts: 5 • Points+: 6 pts
Calories: 231 • Fat: 4 g • Protein: 7 g • Carb: 43 g • Fiber: 2 g • Sugar: 24 g
Sodium: 436 mg

Ingredients:

For the cream cheese topping (makes 3/4 cup):

• 2 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese (recommended: Philadelphia)
• 3 tbsp plain fat free yogurt
• 3 tbsp honey 
• 1 tbsp fat-free milk

For the pancakes:

• 1/2 cup white whole wheat
• 1/2 cup unbleached all purpose
• 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup raw sugar (Splenda or Stevia would work)
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup + 2 tbsp fat free milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 tsp red paste food coloring (I used Wilton no-taste paste)
• cooking spray

Directions:

Combine the cream cheese topping ingredients, set aside.

Mix the flours, baking powder, cocoa powder, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.

In another dissolve the food coloring with the milk; whisk in egg and vanilla.

Combine the wet and dry ingredients until there are no more dry spots, careful not over mix.

Heat a large non-stick griddle pan on medium-low heat. When hot, lightly spray with oil to coat and pour 1/4 cup of pancake batter onto the pan.

When the pancake starts to bubble and the edges begin to set, flip the pancakes. Repeat with the remainder of the batter.

To serve, place two pancakes on each plate, then top with about 2 1/2 tbsp of cream cheese topping.

Yields 10 pancakes.

References

1. ^{^} whole wheat pancake recipe (www.gordon-ramsay-recipe.com)
2. ^{^} heart shaped pancake molds (www.amazon.com)