It was a cold morning, like it has been lately in San Diego, and I have been craving pancakes. The issue I have with ordering them from a restaurant is...well...I know I can make better ones at home! But we typically do not eat them due to the fact that they are not that beneficial healthwise. I wanted to change that, and so began my search for some delicious pancakes loaded with healthful ingredients that would fill us up without leaving us empty.
Prepare your mise en place. Get all your ingredients together, and begin.
Secret: For a more attractive and presentable look, sift your walnuts after chopping them. It gets rid of the powder. However, if you do not mind it, feel free to add it as-is to the mix.
Mix all dry ingredients together and then add the chopped and sifted walnuts.
You can mash the bananas with a fork, a pastry blender, or your fingers! It all depends on how messy you feel like getting. This would actually be a great "job" for any of your tiny chefs.
Man, am I glad I added this! The original recipe from Saveur.com did not call for vanilla. But I figured this would be missing. The vanilla complemented the banana and walnuts perfectly!
Carefully flip over and cook a few more minutes until done. Add to plate of pancakes and start getting your plate ready!
Perfectly fluffy in every possible way.
Delicious and ready to be enjoyed with your favorite buttery spread and sweet syrup, or with a simple sprinkle of delicate and powdery icing sugar.
For a Printable Copy of the Recipe, click here.
Banana Walnut Pancakes
As adapted from: http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Banana-Nut-PancakesRegular Size = 2 Pts+ {WW unofficial} {I added the ingredients to the Recipe Builder at WW.com...but omitted the banana because bananas are free, however if you add them to your recipe, they increase the pts+ value...my bananas are FREE}
MAKES 10 Regular Size Pancakes {1/4 C batter}
MAKES 40 Tiny Size Pancakes {1 T batter}
** Or mix and match
Many banana pancake recipes call for slices of fruit. This one incorporates the mashed banana into the batter.
1 1⁄4 C sifted all-purpose flour {I used King Arthur Flour}
1 T. baking powder
1 T. sugar
1⁄4 cup chopped shelled walnuts
2 very ripe bananas, peeled
1 egg
1 1⁄4 C buttermilk {if you don't have any, pour 1 T of white vinegar into a 1 C measuring cup, and fill rest with milk. Let sit for 5 minutes} {I had/used 1% milk}
2 T. Bummel & Brown {could be omitted altogether}
1. Sift together flour, baking powder, and sugar into a large bowl. Add walnuts and set aside {when chopping walnuts, sift afterward before adding to your recipe for a more professional look}. Using a fork, mash bananas in a medium bowl to a lumpy paste. Whisk in egg, buttermilk, and 2 T. of the butter/margarine, then add to flour mixture, whisking until well combined. Set batter aside to rest for 10 minutes.
2. Coat a large skillet with nonstick spray, or blot a paper towel with vegetable oil and swipe across the pan {before and after every pancake} and heat over medium heat. Make 2–3 pancakes at a time by ladling about 1⁄4 cup {or 1 T} of the batter for each pancake into skillet, keeping about 4" between pancakes. Cook until bubbles form on tops of pancakes and bottoms turn golden, 1 1⁄2–2 minutes. Flip pancakes and continue cooking until bottom is golden and center is cooked through, about 2 minutes more.
3. Repeat process with the remaining batter. Serve with softened butter and maple syrup, if you like...these are also delicious with a light sprinkling of powdered sugar.
Tip: The tiny pancakes actually cooked better for me. The larger ones were still a bit gooey inside, but delicious just the same.
For a Printable Copy of the Recipe, click here.
-Becky Charms