(Almost) flourless simple, delicious and healthy banana pancakes!

These are the absolute yummiest Sunday morning breakfast treats! And in fact, made with (almost) just banana and egg they're full of slow-release carbohydrates to carry you through to lunch time and the eggs make them high protein, so they'd be brilliant as a post-workout breakfast. What's wonderful about them is that the ingredients are so simple and you'll probably already have the main ingredients: egg and banana. I did actually add 2 tablespoons of flour to mine, but if you're feeling up to the challenge, leave it out! Pancakes are never the easiest thing to make, so I've added some tips at the bottom of this page to read before you start.

This recipe, I would say serves two, and that's a couple of small pancakes each (about 3/4 each).

Cooking and preparation time: 20 minutes

You will need:

• 1 1/2 large bananas or 3 mini bananas
• 2 medium eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• Butter and olive oil for frying (coconut oil is even better)
• Yogurt, fruit and honey for toppings (optional)

Steps:

1. Firstly, mash the bananas with a potato masher or fork and add to a mixing bowl. Crack the eggs and add the other ingredients. I blended these with a hand-blender, but you can use a whisk if you don't have a hand blender.
2. Add a small knob of butter to a pan and a very small dash (half a teaspoon of olive oil) on a medium heat or a teaspoon of coconut oil. As these melt and heat, mix gently in the pan with a wooden spoon trying to keep the butter and oil in a circle in the centre of the pan if you're using a large pan, if you're using a very small pan you can cover the base of the pan.
3. I used a large serving spoon to spoon the mixture into the pan (probably about 2 tablespoons of mixture.
4. Let this cook on a medium heat for a little while. Use a spatula to just lightly lift under the edges. Lift the pancake up slightly to see when the base is golden-brown. When it is use the spatula to flip the mini pancake over and cook the other side also until golden-brown. The pancakes tend to take 2-3 minutes. Once both sides are golden-brown, use the spatula to serve the pancakes onto plates.
5. To cook the next pancake, remove any leftover bits as they'll burn otherwise, and you may need to add another small amount of butter and olive oil.
6. Add your toppings and enjoy!

Tips!

• Now, I must admit, they don't look exactly the same as normal pancakes... The banana, once cooked, makes the pancakes almost brown, and the pancakes are quite thin, BUT they are absolutely delicious!
• I must say that the bananas do have to be overripe - preferably with the brown spots. This means that the bananas cook much more easily and are so much sweeter and nicer.
• This recipe is a great way to get rid of old bananas that are hanging around.
• Do not let the pan get too hot! Medium heat is enough, otherwise they will burn.
• I added low-fat greek style yogurt, fresh raspberries and a drizzle of honey over my pancakes and it was absolutely delicious. Any type of yogurt with berries will work wonderfully.