The colder months are here…which means Sunday sleep-ins followed by a hearty breakfast - and what better way to spend a Sunday morning than to be tucking into a stack of pancakes? 

The good news is that while satisfying that sugar craving, this recipe is actually quite healthy. These pancakes are gluten-free, dairy-free and only contain natural sugars which means there is absolutely no reason to feel guilty about eating them!

This easy breakfast option takes no time at all to make - all you need is a blender or Nutribullet. If you don’t have a blender, a whisk and some elbow grease should do the trick.

This recipe can be modified in different ways to suit you and your company; for example you can use cow’s milk instead of almond milk if you like. I personally am trying to drink less milk and therefore prefer the nut milk option. You can also opt for real maple syrup instead of the honey, if that’s what you prefer.

Another useful tip when making these pancakes, is to use a ripe or even an overripe banana. If it’s not ripe enough, it can go a purple colour and produce an unpleasant bitter taste - which we definitely do not want!

Banana, Honey & Oat Pancakes

Ingredients

2 extra large eggs

1 tablespoon of butter, olive oil or coconut oil to grease the pan

1 ripe banana

1 ½ cup of oats (any should be fine)

2 teaspoons of baking powder

½ cup of almond milk

2 tablespoons of Kunzea honey

1 pinch of salt

1 teaspoon of real vanilla extract (optional)

Optional Toppings

Cocoa nibs

Sliced almonds

Fresh banana

Honey or maple syrup

Fresh seasonal berries

Method

This recipe makes about 10 pancakes.

1. In a blender or food processor, pour in all ingredients and blend until smooth. The batter should be thick but pourable.
   
2. Put a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat and add in the butter or oil of your choice. When the oil begins to simmer - (be careful not to let it burn!), ladle in about ¼ of a cup of batter into the pan. You can use a spatula to help shape the pancakes once they’re in the pan. Here, you can add a few blueberries into the exposed batter if you like, but if you’re using frozen berries, don’t add too many as these can also make your pancakes soggy.
3. Let the pancakes cook on one side until you begin to see small bubbles appear on the top - this will usually take just over a minute. Once bubbles begin to appear, you can carefully flip the pancakes and let them cook for another minute or so or until the underside is lightly browned.
   
4. Transfer the pancakes to a plate, add a little more oil/ butter to the pan and then repeat the process until you’ve used all of the batter.
   
5. Serve the pancakes with whichever toppings you like and enjoy!

There we have it - simple, healthy, delicious and nutritious. It ticks all of the boxes for me and I have no doubt that you will love it too!