Banana & Bacon Pancakes
When I placed one of these babies down in front of W, he declared in his best British accent: “bloody hell! That pancake is amazing!” (One of the most entertaining Harry Potter influences is imitations of Ron Weasley, saying “bloody hell” – or more, “bwoody ‘ell“, as if it were the most natural commentary a six year old could give.)
The Club Club girls had their community cookbook launch this weekend. When I went over to photograph them Lisa told me about her contribution to the book – banana and bacon pancakes she had had in Chicago (or New York? somewhere cool and food-centric) that blew her away and inspired her to make them once she got back home. Of course when it came to write the recipe down, it was a bit tricky, as it tends to be when you regularly wing it.
“You just make pancakes, really,” she told me, “and put bacon and bananas in them.”
And so I did. I stirred crumbled bacon and chopped bananas into a batter that already had a pureed banana in it (one that had blackened in the freezer, making it extra juicy and mashable). Bonus: you then get to cook the pancakes themselves in the bacon drippings, if you’re so inclined.
And then just now, when I flipped through the book to Lisa’s recipe did I realize she caramelizes the bananas and serves them OVER the bacon pancakes! Hello! That changes the game entirely! Will make them next Sunday and report back.
But these are pretty awesome. Even 13 year old Em, who like totally hates bananas, devoured hers.
And guess what! I have a copy of their book, warm from the presses, to give away!
Banana & Bacon Pancakes
6 slices bacon, chopped
2 cups all-purpose flour (or use half whole wheat, half all-purpose)
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 large egg
2 Tbsp. melted butter or oil
1 very ripe banana, mashed
1 ripe banana, choppedIn a heavy skillet, cook the bacon over medium-high heat until crisp; drain off almost all the drippings (keep them in a small dish) and set aside.
In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, whisk together the milk, egg and oil. Add it to the dry ingredients along with the overripe mashed banana; stir just until combined. Stir in the cooked bacon and chopped banana.
Warm the skillet up again. (The great thing about cooking the bacon first is that it sort of gets the skillet going, so that the pancakes cook perfectly from the very first go.) If you like, add a bit of canola oil and swirl it around the pan. Ladle in some batter and cook over medium-low heat until the edges look dry and bubbles begin to pop on the surface. Use a thin, flat spatula to flip the pancakes over and cook them for another minute, until they are golden on the other side.
Repeat with the remaining batter. If you need to keep the finished pancakes warm, keep them uncovered on a plate in a 200ºF oven. Makes about 8 pancakes.
September 05 2011 | breakfast | 18 Comments »
