There's Nothing Like Pancakes on Sunday...

I figured it would be fitting for my first shared recipe to be my favorite new discovery... Banana Pancakes!!  Now, I've had pancakes with banana before, but none like this!  

I have to say when I began my vegan transition, I was worried about baking.  I come from the school of butter is better and was hesitant to try "egg substitute."  I found this recipe HERE, from a great blog The Minimalist Baker, and immediately needed to try it.  I made one batch and split it between my husband and I, and almost immediately started whipping up a second batch for us to split as well.  These weren't just your ordinary pancakes - they were better than any I'd had before.  Maybe it was my newly refined vegan palette talking, but I will never make another pancake recipe, as long as my kitchen has all of these ingredients!!  And, by the way, none of the ingredients are that crazy - I had them all in my kitchen to begin with!

I varied from the original recipe a bit by not making the streusel.  I'm a pancake minimalist, I guess, and served them with just a bit of Grade B Maple Syrup.  I also added frozen blueberries because I had them on hand, and who doesn't love blueberries in their pancakes?!

You start by mashing a banana (all of our bananas are usually in the freezer for smoothies, so I nuked one for 30 seconds which made it very easy to mash!)  Mix it up with a pinch of salt, 1/2 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp baking powder.  Add 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (I don't think this is too important so don't worry if you don't have it or forget like I sometimes do!)  1 Tbsp ground flaxseed meal and 2 Tbsp water and let it hang out for a minute.  If you're not vegan and don't happen to keep flaxseed meal in your fridge, here's where you would use an egg!
Then you add 1 Tbsp of fat (the original recipe calls for melted margarine, but I used olive oil because my husband was feeling anti-margarine) and 1/2 cup of your choice of non-dairy milk.  I usually use almond milk, since I make my own (lightbulb! I'll do a post about it soon!) but I've used soymilk when I'm in a pinch.  Once it's combined, add 1/2 cup flour.  The first time I made it all I had was all-purpose unbleached, but my lovely mom got me some awesome King Arthur whole wheat blends so I've been playing with those lately and they make the pancakes very filling and just as delicious!
Let the batter rest for about 5 minutes - this is when I usually turn on the stove to get the pan nice and hot.  This is also when you can add your extras - frozen berries, nuts, chocolate chips, let your imagination run wild!

 I always use my 1/4 c measuring cup to measure the flour in the last step, and then I keep it out to use for measuring batter into the pan. 














If you have a griddle, cooking will go much faster, but I'm pretty bad at managing multiple pancakes at one time so I stick to a small saute pan and cook them one at a time!

Finally, as I mentioned before, I top them with just a drizzle of Grade B Maple Syrup (don't ask me why, but it's the best - once you try B you'll never go back to A!)

Here's the recipe once more :)

• 1 ripe banana, mashed (if you're in a rush, freeze and thaw the banana)
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• pinch salt
• ½ tsp pure vanilla extract (optional)
• 1 Tbsp flaxseed meal 
• 2 Tbsp water
• 1 Tbsp fat - melted margarine or oil
• ½ cup non-dairy milk
• ½ cup flour (whole wheat is the best, of course!)
• add-ins of your choice - berries, nuts, chocolate chips, etc

Mash the banana and add the baking soda, baking powder, salt, and vanilla.  Add in the flaxseed meal and water and let it sit for a minute.  Add the fat and milk, and once blended add in the flour.  Add in any extras and let the batter sit for 5 minutes while your pan or griddle heats up.  Drop batter by about 1/4 c onto the pan, and flip when the edges look cooked and the bubbles in the middle stop.  Top with extra fruit, or the syrup of your choice, and Enjoy!  No need to thank me :)