The Not-Quite-Rotten Banana Saves the Day

This is a tale of breakfast, involving a certain three-year-old and a demand for pancakes. After I agreed to this demand, I realized I was in trouble. My usual recipe calls for two eggs.  I didn't have any eggs. Saying 'no' to the three-year-old is hard. Saying 'no' after you've already said 'yes' (especially to much-loved pancakes) is to be avoided at all costs. It's a very bad place and you don't want to go there.

My eyes darted around the kitchen in a panic, until they seized upon this sorry looking banana lying in the corner, meek and forgotten. Salvation! It wasn't usable for peeling and eating straight up. But it was usable mashed  and mixed into pancakes, as a replacement for eggs! In fact, being a mushy, almost alcoholic mess is a pancake banana's ideal state, so it worked out perfectly, and I'm proud to say, wasting was also avoided.

I happened to have buttermilk hanging out in my fridge, so I took advantage of that happy accident, and added that to my pancakes as well. Buttermilk makes pancakes fluffy and tender, both of which are highly desirable traits in a pancake. I think a little plain yogurt thinned with milk or water would also serve the same purpose.

I really wanted to add some chopped pecans. However, in the three-year-old's construct of the world, pancakes must be entirely soft, and not crunchy.  I didn't want to mess with her worldview, so what I ended up with was Banana Buttermilk Pancakes, but if you're making them for yourself or someone who doesn't mind pancake texture, feel free to turn them into Banana Buttermilk Pecan Pancakes.

I served them smeared with butter and honey. Maple syrup would be even better if you can afford it, but only the real stuff. Or don't use anything at all, as these are actually pretty sweet on their own, because of the banana. You can pack the extra pancakes and take them with you to the park for a snack.

Banana Buttermilk (Pecan) Pancakes (adapted from Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone)
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon sugar
Salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon*
1 very ripe banana, mashed (some lumps OK)
3 tablespoons oil
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped roasted pecans (optional)

Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl with a fork. In a second bowl, beat together the bananas, oil, buttermilk, and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir just enough to combine. Gently stir in the pecans, if using. Don't worry if there are lumps, they'll smooth out during cooking.

For each pancake, pour about 1/4 cup of batter onto a well-oiled nonstick skillet set over medium high heat. Flip to the other side after bubbles appear all over the surface of the pancake. Cook the other side until browned, about one minute. (I found that these pancakes tended to stick to the skillet a bit more than my usual egg-y ones, so I added just a tiny bit more oil than normal to the skillet, and that helped immensely.)

Serve with butter and honey or maple syrup.

*Jeannette Ordas of Everybody Likes Sandwiches recently posted a similar waffle recipe. She adds a pinch of cardamom to her waffles. I love cardamom, and thought it would be great added to these pancakes as well. So if you do it, let me know. I'll be trying it next time.