For my little picky eater, my usual tactic involves sneakily adding oats to her pancakes, and surprisingly (read thankfully), she enjoys eating any green foods. This allows me to cook noodles with vegetables instead of relying on pre-packaged flavours. Here are my two recipes that ensure a good start and end to the day.  

Mini oat pancakes 

Ingredients

1 large free-range egg 1 cup milk
½ cup cake flour
Salt to taste 
½ cup crushed oats
1 tsp baking powder
200g blueberries + extra for serving (optional)
Olive oil, for frying
4 Tbsp plain double-cream yoghurt, for serving 
Seasonal fruits, for serving  

Method

1. Whisk together egg and milk. 
2. Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
3. Slowly pour into egg mixture while whisking to create a lovely, smooth batter. Fold through the blueberries, if using.
4. Put a large pan on a medium heat and after a minute or so, add ½ tablespoon of oil. 
5. Carefully tilt the pan to spread the oil out evenly. Add a few ladles of batter to the pan to create little pancakes, leaving enough space between each one so they have room to spread out slightly – each ladleful will make one pancake. Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until little bubbles appear on the surface and the bases are golden. Flip and cook until both sides are golden. Remove and keep warm, while repeating with the rest of the batter.  
6. Serve the pancakes straight away, topped with a dollop of yoghurt, and some extra berries or fruit, if you like. 

Udon veg-loaded stir-fry  

Ingredients

For the sauce 

3 Tbsp dark soy sauce
2 Tbsp oyster sauce 
1½ Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp rice vinegar
  

2 Tbsp vegetable oil
½ cup broccoli florets
½ cup button mushrooms, sliced 1⁄2 cup mangetout or sugar snap peas, halved lengthwise
½ red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1 onion, sliced thinly
4 spring onions, cut into 5cm pieces
200g cooked udon noodles
3 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and milled pepper
Handful fresh coriander leaves  

Method

1. Combine sauce ingredients together in a small jar, seal with a lid and shake well. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large cast-iron pan or wok over medium-high heat. Once the oil is shimmering hot, add the broccoli, mushroom, mangetout or sugar snap peas, peppers and onion in batches, making sure not to overcrowd the pan, and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes each, or until slightly crisp and tender. Remove and cook remaining veggies in the same way.  
3. Return all the vegetables to the pan along with noodles, sauce, garlic and seasoning and cook for another 1-2 minutes, tossing to coat noodles and veggies in the sauce. 
4. Top with coriander and serve with freshly milled pepper. 

Words & recipes: Ntiyiso Makhabela 

Photographs: Fresh Living Magazine