Pumpkin Pancakes with Hazelnut Syrup

Despite not being a big fan of pumpkin, I had a weird desire to make pumpkin pancakes and once tasting them I knew exactly why I wanted them. Their faint squash flavor married with sweet hazelnuts, vanilla and spices make for a really rewarding breakfast and start to the day.

Pumpkin Pancakes
makes 8-10 pancakes
2 cups water
1 cup hazelnut or almond milk
1 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 tbl organic cane sugar
2 tbl plus 1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp allspice
1 cup toasted, chopped hazelnuts, divided
canola spray

Combine the water, hazelnut milk, pumpkin, vanilla and vinegar in a large bowl. Add the flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg and allspice. Whisk to combine. Let sit for 10 minutes. Use this time to preheat a griddle if using.
Stir in half of the hazelnuts.
Lightly spray a griddle top with oil and cook the pancakes on each side until lightly golden brown. Serve with the remaining hazelnuts and hazelnut syrup.

Hazelnut Syrup
1/3 cup hazelnut butter
2 tbl maple syrup
water, to thin out

Combine and adjust to your liking of sweetness.

Sweet Apricot & Hazelnut Pannini

This sandwich is not only delicious and unusual but incredibly versatile. Cut it into small strips or triangles for brunch. Eat it as an alternative to peanut butter and jelly for lunch or skip the boring toast in the morning and make one of these killer sandwiches, opened faced.
Every component was meticulously thought out to have a perfect balance of sweet, salty, soft and crunchy.

Sweet hazelnut butter, apricot jam, ripe apricot slices and salty pretzels crumbled on top of cinnamon raisin swirl bread and toasted to perfection.

Sweet Apricot & Hazelnut Pannini
Cinnamon raisin bread ( I used Dave's Killer Bread-Sin Dawg)
1/4 cup sweetened hazelnut butter
1/4 cup apricot jam
1-2 fresh apricots, thinly sliced
a handful of pretzels, crushed

Spread the jam and hazelnut butter on the bread. Top with fresh apricot slices and crushed pretzels.
Toast in a pannini press or in a dry pan with a heavy weight on top.