My new Idol + Recipes + Meet Ellie + More!!

Yes, I have a new idol, and she is GREAT!!! I have been making Ellie Krieger recipes for more than a year now and every single one I have tried turned out delicious, and now I am even more excited because she just released a Cookbook, and it is the best cookbook ever!!!
I simply LOVE her book, it is pretty, full of pictures and recipes that are not only tasty and flavorful but also good for you! The book is filled with tips and ideas which beside being helpful and useful also teach us a lot about nutrition and why some foods are so good for us, plus all the recipes have nutritional information.
I love, love, love the book, so much so that I decided to make as many recipes from it as I can!!
And I have already an advantage, as I have made many of her recipes just from watching her cooking show on TV during the past year.
Ohh, but what is better than watching your idol on TV?? Of course, meeting her in person, and I did it too!!!
Ellie was in a city close to where I live in the beginning of the month for a "Luncheon" at a very nice specialty food store. In December I saw on the store's website she would be coming and immediately signed up and couldn't wait for February to come. (and I also pre-ordered the book - which was released in January)
Well, the day finally came and I got to meet Ellie, and to sit at the same table that she was! (and there were another 10 tables on the same place) Am I lucky or what?? She is the nicest person, delicate, pretty, fun, and most of all she talked just like one of us, not someone superior just because she was famous.
I loved talking to her, asking her question, and even talked a little about me, as she got interested that I was from Brazil!
It was a lovely luncheon where we tried 4 of her recipes (from the book), we talked, had good food and I even got a picture taken with her and had my book signed!
So, for now on be prepared because a lot of Ellie's recipes will show up around here!

And if you missed, take a look at the ones I have already made:
Cornmeal-Crusted Roasted Ratatouille Tart : My very favorite, I love this recipe!!
Greek Style Stuffed Peppers : Declared to be the best stuffed peppers ever at our home!
Green Pea Soup : easy, delicious and with a beautiful green color, another one I like a lot!
Turkey Meatloaf : by far the best turkey loaf, I only use this recipe ever since I made it for the first time!
Dark Chocolate Mousse : creamy and chocolatey, yum!

Since it is the weekend and we have some time to play in the morning I will start by posting a delectable breakfast treat, and what better than pancakes for breakfast right?! Ellie's Pancakes, of course!! :-)
These Whole-Wheat Pancakes with Strawberry Sauce were delicious, light and fluffy and the strawberry sauce added just the right sweetness to it all!
Super simple and easy to make, plus the sauce can easily be made with frozen strawberries (which is what I did!), which make it even more convenient to make these at any time of the year!
Matheus drizzeld his with honey as he loves it, but the sauce was enough to make the pancakes amazingly good!
I will leave here with the recipe and will be back pretty soon with more from this amazing book!
Thanks Ellie!!
Ana

Whole Wheat Pancakes With Strawberry Sauce
(Adapted from Ellie Krieger's book "The Food You Crave")

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
1/2 cup nonfat milk
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (flour through salt). In another medium bowl, beat together the eggs, buttermilk, non-fat milk, honey and vanilla.
Coat a large nonstick griddle or skillet with cooking spray and preheat over medium-low heat.
Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, mixing only enough to combine them. The batter will be somewhat lumpy.
Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to ladle the batter onto the griddle or skillet. Flip the pancake when the top is bubbling and it is golden brown on the bottom,after about 1 1/2 minutes. Then cook until the other side is golden brown, about another 1 1/2 minutes. Keep the pancakes warm in a 200F oven as you finish cooking the remaining ones.
Ladle about 1/3 cup of the strawberry sauce onto each plate, place pancakes on top and sprinkle with confectioners' sugar if desired.

Strawberry sauce:
16 ounces fresh strawberries, or 4 cups frozen unsweetened strawberries, thawed
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons honey (I used 1 tablespoon)

In a blender process strawberries to a chunky puree. Heat the sauce in a small saucepan over a low flame, until just warm. Stir in lemon juice and .

Yield: 4 servings

Oh look, look, it's Me and Ellie!!