I LOVE PANCAKES! From my earliest childhood memories they have always been my favorite breakfast.

When I was a kid I would put some butter in the center of each stacked cake and once it was melted, cut out the center of the stack, pull out the butter drenched pancake center squares and eat them…OK, more like slowly savor the warm salty butter oozing out of the fluffy hot cake all over my mouth while I shut my eyes and let out a happy sigh. If you also did this as a kid (or now as an adult) please comment below, because we are clearly pancake and butter soul twins and need to connect.

I would then fill the center of the stack with enough syrup to reach the top and patiently let it soak into the remaining pancakes, usually to about halfway of the diameter of the pancake before cutting them into triangle pieces (less the butter end). I had a whole routine. Not weird at all. :) Sometimes I would alternate each pancake with butter and peanut butter. To this day my dad will remind me about my childhood pancake routine and ask, “Do you still do that thing with your pancakes?” to which I reply, “Yes!” Although I must admit, with much less butter than my childhood self indulged in.

As an adult-ish person, I now love to make pancakes in a way that leaves me feeling healthy and nourished as well as tasting amazing. These Banana Oat Blueberry pancakes do just that!

A few years ago my friend and niece-in-law Hailey, who has an awesome blog where she and her friend Steph “Demystify Hobbies” and also provide some great recipes, gave me a pancake recipe that changed my life.

Before this new recipe, I would make good old fashioned buttermilk pancakes from scratch or use Bob’s Red Mill Buttermilk or 10 Grain mix (both delicious by the way and still an option I make sometimes). Once I made these new pancakes, all others took a back seat.

The new recipe I learned about was “Banana Oatmeal Pancakes” by Ambitious Kitchen . These pancakes are made in a blender, have incredible flavor and texture and left us feeling full and energized for hours. They were my go to pancake for a moment but as a baker I can’t help but play with recipes and soon I began to play around with this one, adding in two secret ingredients, wild blueberries and using an alternate ingredient that made these absolute perfection!

The two secret ingredients I added to the original recipe are malted milk powder and buttermilk powder. I also switched out vanilla extract for vanilla bean paste. Both work great but I love the extra vanilla “oomph” that the paste gives. Sometimes I even add both for extra vanilla flavor. I also added in wild blueberries. I like the smaller more compact size and flavor but of course any size blueberry will be great!

After doing my own research many years ago about what made restaurant pancakes have that special secret flavor that I wasn’t getting at home, I learned that it was malted milk powder. The barley in it gives that special restaurant taste. Feel free to play around with the amount you add in once you’ve made the recipe a few times and adjust it to your liking.

I also love the addition of the buttermilk powder. I feel it gives great flavor without adding in too much gooeyness. You can also start with the amount below and adjust to your liking.

Banana Oat Blueberry Pancakes

Ingredients

• 2 medium ripe bananas *

• 2 eggs

• 1/2 cup unsweetened almond, oat or milk of your choice

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste, or both!

• 1 ½ cups old fashioned rolled oats, gluten free if desired

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

• ¼ teaspoon salt

• 2 tbsp malted milk powder

• 2 tbsp buttermilk powder

• 1/2 cup wild small blueberries (or the variety you have on hand). Extra to place on top of the cooked pancakes if you’d like

• Butter, Ghee, Coconut Oil or Olive oil, for cooking. I use a small amount of butter.

(*) The bananas are even better if they have a few brown spots. I usually freeze my bananas when they are over ripe and then thaw them for any banana recipe I’m making. Once you thaw a banana, it will be quite soft and also have liquid inside. I just cut the end off of the banana and turn it upside down into the blender and let the banana and juice fall out and then toss the peel.

Step 1 - Place everything (except for the oats and butter) in a blender and blend on high until all is mixed. Then add the oats and blend until fully mixed and the oats are cut up and no longer their original shape. Do not blend in the butter, that is for greasing the pan.

You may need to add more liquid to get the right consistency so that your batter is slightly pourable and not too thick where it won’t cook fully in the center. Make sure to make a test pancake to start and adjust your liquid accordingly. The size and volume of your medium bananas will affect the liquid levels.

Step 2 - Remove the batter from the blender and place in a bowl. Set aside to rest before using. I learned the hard way that batters made with oats can become like cement when left in the blender too long. It’s also easier to test the consistency of the batter from the bowl and scoop from there than scraping out the batter from the blender along the way.

Step 3 - Heat your pan or griddle to medium heat. You will want to cook these a little longer so the centers are done. If your pan begins to smoke or the pancakes burn, go down to medium low heat.

Step 4 - Lightly coat a griddle with butter or your oil of choice. Once pan is hot, add 1/4 cup of the batter to the griddle for each small pancake. Cook for 2-4 minutes until pancakes slightly puff up and you see a few bubbles along the edges.

Step 5 - Flip the pancakes and cook until golden brown on the underside. If the pancakes are browning too quickly then you need to lower the heat. Make your test pancake and check the center of it to make sure you are cooking them all the way through.

Step 6 - Wipe the pan or griddle clean in between batches to reduce grease smoke and repeat with more butter and remaining batter.

Makes about 12 pancakes total.

These pancakes will be denser and moister than regular wheat flour pancakes, but should still be fully cooked in the center.

Syrup Pro Tip. Thaw frozen wild blueberries in a small saucepan or in a bowl in the microwave so that it creates a watery and flavorful sauce with the fruit and add maple syrup, a little butter and some cinnamon to it and stir. Use a spoon to distribute the syrup over the top of your pancakes.

If your blueberries were fresh and not frozen give them a quick smash and place in the microwave for about 30-45 seconds or smash and heat in the sauce pan to let the juice come out before adding the other ingredients. Makes for a delicious and memorable syrup.

You can also experiment with other fruits in season such as strawberries, cherries, peaches or apples for example.

I hope you love this recipe as much as we do. Please comment below if you end up making them and let me know any additions you made that made the recipe even better. I’d also love to hear about YOUR favorite pancake recipe.

Enjoy!

xo Beth