I’ve said it plenty of time before, breakfast is my
favourite meal of the day. I’m usually pretty varied with my breakfasts, while
keeping things fairly healthy. Since moving to London my breakfasts have mostly consisted of
cereal and a piece of fruit that I can eat quickly before heading out to work.
I’ve made myself porridge twice but it’s definitely not been up to my usual
standards.
This weekend, I decided to treat myself to an extra special
breakfast – pancakes! I still need to gather a wider range of ingredients for
my baking cupboard, but did had an overripe banana and a few chocolate chips
and a bag of buckwheat flour at my disposal, so banana chocolate chip pancakes
was it was to be.
Banana is the magic ingredient here, as not only did it add
natural sweetness to the pancake mix but also replaced the egg in the batter,
adding moistness and binding properties. I also had the last remnants of a jar
of peanut butter so in that went too, along with a pinch of mixed spice which
always compliments the flavour of banana.
While the pancakes were cooking I hunted for something to
serve them with and hit a snag. I had no yoghurt, jam, sauce, syrup, nutella,
berries, or any more peanut butter with which to serve them. I could have eaten
them on their own but I like dipping or spreading my pancakes with something –
it’s part of the enjoyment of eating them. Then I saw a small glass of
chocolate mousse that I’d made earlier in the week…..ohhhh chocolate mousse on
warm pancake, that would work!
I assembled the pancakes, added a dollop of the dark
chocolate mousse and scurried away to my room to eat them in bed. Warm pancakes
with chunks of sweet banana, melty chocolate chips served with cold light and
airy dark chocolate mousse is amazing! I believe that all pancakes should be
served with chocolate mousse in future. The combination is fantastic! The light
airy mousse was rich and silky smooth while being the perfect soft and
spreadable consistency. The little bubbles dissolving in the mouth and melting
into the warm pancakes. Best thing I’ve eaten all week!
I happily devoured the lot and didn’t feel the remotest bit
guilty about eating chocolate mousse for breakfast. The pancakes themselves are
egg-less, butter-less and sugar-less so I feel justified in being a bit more
extravagant with the accompaniment. The chocolate mousse in question is also
dairy free and contains only 40g sugar in the entire recipe (serves 6 and I
only used half of 1) so it didn’t feel too sweet or dessert-like. In fact they
are probably healthier than many sugary cereals or jam slathered slices of
toast people eat for breakfast without batting an eye. Pancakes and chocolate
mousse, who’d have thought?! So so good, you’ve got to try it!
The perfect bank holiday weekend breakfast. I should also
mention It’s an essential requirement to eat them on a tray, in bed, while
still in your PJ’s.
Buckwheat Banana, Peanut Butter & Chocolate Chip
Pancakes with Chocolate Mousse
Ingredients
4 tbsp buckwheat flour
1 tbsp dark chocolate chips
½ tsp mixed spice
½ tsp baking powder
1 large banana (¾ batter and ¼ to serve)
1 tbsp smooth peanut butter
4-6 tbsp milk*
1 tsp oil
To Serve
Banana slices
Large scoop of chocolate mousse
OR, chocolate sauce, nutella, yogurt, peanut butter, fruit
compote, maple syrup etc
Method
Heat the oven to 75C and place a plate inside to warm up.
Weigh the buckwheat flour, chocolate chips, mixed spice and
baking powder into a small mixing bowl.
Slice the banana into thin slices and reserve 5-6 slices for
serving. Roughly chop the remaining banana and add to the dry mix.
Add the peanut butter on top along with 4 tbsp milk. Mix to
form a batter. Add more milk as required until you have a thick batter that
will drop off the end of the spoon, but is not too runny.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Spoon the batter into
the pan in 4 blobs to form 4 pancakes, leaving room between each one.
Allow to cool gently for 1 minute, until bubbles start to
appear on the surface and the edges are just set. Flip each pancake over
quickly and allow to cool for a further 30-45 seconds until lightly golden and
cooked through.
Serve the pancake on the warmed plate. Top with the slices
of reserved banana and extra toppings or your choice. It’s just to have
something spreadable or dippy to eat them with – yoghurt, compote, mousse,
cream, sauce etc.
Eat and enjoy – preferably on a tray in bed for a relaxing
treat
Serves 1 – easily doubled.
*Note: Replace the milk with almond or coconut milk to make
these pancakes dairy free and vegan too! Also, make sure your baking powder and
buckwheat flour are gluten free, as some are not.
Oooohhhh... Yum! I've just come back from the gym and could happily east several of these right now! Fab recipe xx
ReplyDeletewow this is my sort of breakfast - we usually have maple syrup on pancakes but I love when I have a more interesting sauce to serve on it - sometimes vanilla yoghurt or stewed fruit or both but chocolate mousse sounds very decadent and fun
ReplyDeleteOooh chocolate mousse sounds like an excellent side to pancakes :)
ReplyDeleteOoh my Katie, what a breakfast. It sounds so decedent, yet when you look at the ingredients it isn't at all. Chocolate mousse for breakfast I might just have to try it. I've never made eggless pancakes before, so might have to try those too.
ReplyDeleteHope you are getting on well with your new life in London.