It all started because of one overripe banana. There it sat in my fruit dish all by itself. Normally, I would put it in the refrigerator and wait until I had two or three more and make banana bread. This is a different time. I am home practicing social distancing because of the covid-19 virus. I have plenty of time to try something new.
Wouldn’t homemade banana pancakes taste good? Sure. I looked up a recipe on the internet. I find one that looked doable. I printed it out and put it aside for Sunday morning. I always make my husband and me a big brunch on Sunday morning.
The day arrived. I got all the ingredients out to start the process. I had to melt some butter, put it in a glass dish, and turned the microwave on low. A few seconds later, checked the microwave, not quite melted, so I just turned it up to high for a few seconds.
I heard this huge “pop.” The butter had exploded all over the microwave. I now spent the next 20 minutes cleaning the microwave. Who would think that butter would be so hard to clean out of the microwave? Believe me, when I tell you it is. I remelted more butter in a little saucepan on top of the range. There was no way that I was going to trust the microwave.
Then it was time to assemble the dry ingredients. I got out my bag of flour. As I opened the bag, flour flew out everywhere. Into my beautiful fruit salad standing near by, all over the cupboard and even the floor.
I took one look at the mess and totally lost it. I jumped up and down and even screamed. I thought it would bring my husband running into the kitchen, but smart man that he is, he stayed away. I just had to sit down on my bar stool at the kitchen counter and calm down.
Should I just abandon the whole project? No, I was going to make those pancakes. I cleaned up the mess, and threw out half the fruit salad, saving the pieces of fruit that weren’t covered in flour.
I finally got all the ingredients together, took out my griddle, and made the best banana pancakes I’ve ever eaten. My husband agreed. He cleaned the dishes from brunch. If anyone wants to make them, here is the recipe.
BANANA PANCAKES
INGREDIENTS
1-1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 over-ripe banana, peeled
2 large eggs
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons low fat milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
INSTRUCTIONS
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
In a small bowl, mash the banana with a fork until smooth. Whisk in eggs, add milk and vanilla and whisk until well blended. Pour the banana mixture and melted butter into flour mixture. Fold the batter gently with a rubber spatula until just blended; do not over mix. The batter will be thick and lumpy.
Set a griddle or non-stick pan over medium heat until hot. Put a pad of butter and a drop of vegetable oil onto the griddle, swirl around, drop the batter by 1/4-cupfuls onto the griddle, approximately 4 per griddle. Cook until a few holes form on top and underside is golden brown, flip the pancakes and cook until the bottom is golden brown. Transfer the pancakes to a serving platter. Wipe the griddle with paper towels and continue with the remaining batter.
I serve them with chopped, toasted walnuts and warm maple syrup.
Submitted by Phylaine Bemel, San Diego County – Oceanside.