OUR FAMILIES FAVORITE PANCAKE RECIPE'S Buttermilk & Blueberry Banana Pancakes

We have two favorites in our family;  Our Grandmothers homemade recipe that has been handed down from generation to generation which is made with Buttermilk, and Yellow Cornmeal, two ingredients I never really cared for in pancakes; that is until I had Grandma Q's pancakes. They are fantastic, thin and go down very easy. These are the kind where you'll lose count as your eating them and not care because they taste so good.

GRANDMA Q'S OLD FASHIONED PANCAKES

Mix Together:
1 cup Flour
2 Tbsp. Oil
1 Tbsp. Sugar
3/4 tsp. Baking Soda
A handful of Yellow Cornmeal (about 1/4 cup)
2 cups Buttermilk
A dash of Salt
2 Eggs

Wisk to a smooth consistency. Pour onto a hot griddle in silver dollar sized pancakes. They cook quite fast, almost like a crape but a little thicker. I usually double this recipe because they disappear so quickly. Serve with butter and your favorite syrup. My Grandma preferred Karo Syrup, it's is a lighter syrup, not as heavy as maple syrup. Either way, they will melt in your mouth.

 

Family favorite number two is your traditional American quick recipe…Yes, OK, I'll admit it…it’s Bisquick with a twist. I’ve tried others, but we keep going back to our old faithful. Most people who taste my pancakes think they are some complex fancy recipe. When I tell them it's Bisquick, they can't believe it.  It’s quick, easy, and doctored up can taste just like homemade...even better.  Topped with my rich Sautéed Banana topping, it’s more like a dessert than it is for breakfast. Every bite is filled with a creamy caramelized banana.

I prefer the caramelized bananas instead of syrup but some of my family members disagrees, they prefer butter and syrup or my husband’s favorite is caramelized blueberries.  Everyone has their own taste and if you’re like me, depending on whose home; I normally end up making two choices.

BLUEBERRY BANANA PANCAKES

 

Melt in your Mouth Pancakes 

       

Depending on the size of your pancakes, I can usually get about 14 medium sized cakes. 4 per pan.

1.       Mix together:

2 Cups of Bisquick Mix

1 Cup of milk (we use whole milk)

2 Eggs

1 Tbsp. Sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 Tbsp. lemon juice (fresh squeezed is best)

1 Tbsp. Vanilla (I prefer Madagascar or Mexican real Vanilla)

Stir ingredients until blended.

2.       Pour slightly less than ¼ cupfuls onto a hot greased griddle.

(I use Pam Natural lightly sprayed once in the beginning)

3.       I then quickly place fresh or frozen (thawed and drained) blueberries on top of batter. You can mix two cups of blueberries into the batter, but I prefer to place them on top of the batter, it makes the blueberries plump up with flavor, and makes your pancake more mouthwatering and allows your pancake to cook all the way through.

4.       Cook until edges are dry, and pancake is filled with air bubbles on top of pancake. Flip and cook until golden brown.

For thinner pancakes, you can add a little milk to thin the batter, but with the blueberries, it works better with the thicker batter.

While the Pancakes are cooking I start sauteing the banana's (or blueberries).  I thought I took a picture of this step, but can't find it anywhere... I'll post one soon, I promise.

Sautéed Banana Filling
4 tablespoons butter (I prefer Land O Lakes regular)
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
6-8 large bananas -- peeled and sliced about 1/4-inch thick

Make the sautéed banana filling:

In a large heavy skillet, over low heat, combine the butter and brown sugar, stirring to combine. When heated through, add the bananas and sauté gently, stirring occasionally until evenly golden, about 5 minutes. Let cool slightly.

You can use Fresh Blueberries instead of the bananas (My husbands favorite). For today, I've served it with butter and syrup, and with warm irresistible mouthwatering caramelized bananas. Enjoy!

If you prefer just banana's, you can add the banana topping right to your batter just as I did with the blueberries above. It makes a very dense cake like pancake filled with luscious silky bananas, top with syrup and enjoy. I was inspired to make this pancake by a restaurant in Hawaii. One night while in Honolulu on a lay over while waiting for our doggies to arrive from Alaska, we went out for dinner at a restaurant a couple blocks down from our hotel. It was the only restaurant open. The menu was limited, serving old fashioned home-style cooking. My son ordered the Banana Pancakes. 

When the server asked him if he wanted the short stack, explaining that it was a large order of pancakes...forewarning him. He chuckled, remembering the sourdough pancakes from Alaska and how big they were. He was certain that he could polish off a large order... 

"No...I'll take the full order." He told the server... 

She laughed, "OK... but I warned you..." she giggled as she walked to the kitchen. Several minutes later, she brought out my and my husbands dinners, telling us shed be right back, "the plate is too heavy to carry with  the other plates..." she commented.  Now we were giggling... thinking... We just came from the home of the sourdough pancake...where it filled the entire plate.  A full stack was two, they were always dense and very filling. We had no idea that the Hawaiian version was more like a cake than a pancake... it gave a new meaning to the word pancake...lol.

     "I told you so!" our server said with a beaming huge smile. "If you eat it all, your dinner is on us." She said.

My son tried his hardest to eat as much as he could, but it was so much. My husband and I both nibbled after eating our meals, it was a wonderful dessert. We took the rest back to the hotel and ate it for breakfast...all three of us.

Here is my smaller version.

ENJOY!