Making Almond-Banana Doily Pancakes

This was supposed to be a vegan post, because I didn’t want to leave out my vegan followers for the first post of the Valentine’s Day breakfast. I tried, really, which is why the ingredients photo doesn’t include the egg or the all-purpose flour. I thought it would work and so I made the initial [egg-less] batter and went to test its consistency. It kept falling apart (my guess is that the almond flour was too dense) and so I tried adding some flour in as a binder and to keep it vegan. It didn’t work and I kept at it until I finally gave up and cracked in the egg. It was like magic - everything just seemed to come together. So apologies, again.

The pancakes itself is pretty easy to make once you get the hang of creating the patterns. The key is to have the frying pan on low heat at all times to prevent the pancakes from burning. And really, what’s prettier than doily pancakes? A little frivolous, yes, but the combination of the two aphrodisiacs (almonds are high in libido-boosting vitamin E and bananas are loaded with nutrients like potassium, magnesium, B vitamins and also an enzyme that is said to enhance male libido) really make up for the cheesiness.

ALMOND-BANANA DOILY PANCAKES:

[ 1 cup almond flour + 1/4 cup all purpose flour + 1/4 teaspoon salt + 1/4 teaspoon baking powder + 1/3 cup water + 1 ripe banana + 1 egg + 1/8 cup vegetable oil + 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract + 1-2 tablespoon dark brown sugar ]

Mash the banana in a mixing bowl. Whisk in the egg, water, oil, vanilla extract and sugar.

Whisk until combined.

Add in the almond flour and beat until smooth and the batter reaches a thick pouring consistency. Watch out for any lumps as this will complicate the piping process. You want to the mixture to flow out easily through the nozzle, but you don’t want it to pour out too quickly either.

Put the batter inside a plastic bottle fitted with a nozzle, or you can also use a ziploc or piping bag with the end snipped off.

Heat a non-stick frying pan with a little butter or oil. You will need it on low, as the pancakes are so delicate and light it will burn before you have finished piping.

Start by piping the outside shape first.When this is done, pipe swirls and loops inside the shape. You can add a solid centre, you can add spots to the outside. Whatever you do, it’s endless, just make sure everything touches.