Recipe Round-Up: Hot Banana & Apple Pancakes

03 October 2022

Start your day in a deliciously healthy way.

Written by Kate Percy – athlete, cook and author of ‘Go Faster Food’, ‘FuelSmart for Race Day’ and ‘Go Faster Food for Kids’.

Incredibly light and fluffy and so oh-so-tasty, these pancakes will put a spring in your step! Packed with slow release, sustaining, low fat carbohydrate, good quality protein and heart-friendly omega 3 fats to boost both mood and immune system, as well as vitamins C and E and plenty of minerals, they’ll fuel your day without weighing you down.

A runner’s favourite and staple of the Mexican Tarahumara people, renowned for their endurance and seemingly endless energy, Chia is an amazingly nutrient-dense superfood. Drizzle with agave nectar, a wonderful alternative to sugar.

Prep time: 5 mins

Cook time: 5 mins

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup (100g) wholewheat flour
• 1/2 cup (50g) quick-cooking oats
• 2 tbsp Chia seeds, milled (optional)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
• 1/2 tsb ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 large free-range egg
• 1 small eating apple, unpeeled and grated
• 1 ripe banana, smashed with a fork
• 7 fl oz (200ml) buttermilk
• 2 tbsp cold-pressed canola (rapeseed) oil
• 1 tbsp water
• Half a knob of unsalted butter, melted
• 2 tbsp agave nectar to serve

1. Combine the dry ingredients (the flour, oats, Chia seeds, spices, baking powder, baking soda and salt) in a mixing bowl.

2. Break the egg into a separate bowl and beat lightly with a fork. Stir in the buttermilk, apple, banana, 1 tbsp oil and the water.

3. Using a metal spoon, gently combine the buttermilk mixture with the dry ingredients to make a thick batter.

4. Heat a pancake pan or non-stick frying pan, add just enough oil and melted butter to coat the base of the pan. Depending on the size of your pan, cook 4-5 pancakes at a time over a gentle heat, using a tablespoon of batter for each one. Cook for 3-4 minutes until bubbles start to appear on the surface of each pancake, then flip over and gently cook on the other side for another 3-4 minutes, until cooked through. Repeat until you have used all the mixture.

5. Pile three pancakes per person onto each plate, pour over a little agave nectar and enjoy.