Just like mom used to make...

I remember being very embarrassed to have sleepovers at my house. It wasn't that I didn't like the idea of friends spending the night--I did! Who doesn't like getting to stay up late watching movies and eating junk food? What I didn't like was that in the morning, my mother would be downstairs making pancakes. They were pancakes that, had I not had friends over, I would have been delighted to eat, but because friends were over, they were embarrassing. These were not your typical pancakes, although they were (and still are) my favorite pancakes. They were whole wheat banana pancakes. Nowadays, I can happily admit that they are my favorite pancakes. But I distinctly remember being made fun of when I was in elementary school for being "too healthy" (go figure, kids will pick on you for anything, no?). Having friends sleep over meant that in the morning, they would see that I really was too healthy. My mother really did make whole wheat health foods with fruit in them. YUCK! How un-cool could I possibly be?
When I look back on these memories, I don't blame myself for being self-conscious, but I can at least see how ridiculous I was. I now warmly embrace the very diet I embarrassingly grew up with!
Here's my newer version of whole wheat banana pancakes, with a twist.



1 c whole wheat flour
1/2 t salt
a tad less than 1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t baking powder

1 T molasses
1 egg
1.5 T melted butter
1 c plain yogurt (or buttermilk)
2/3 c milk

2 T raspberry jam
1-2 ripe bananas, sliced or mashed, depending on your preference
sliced baked pear (optional)
In a large bowl, mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine molasses, egg, butter, yogurt and milk. Add the wet mixture to the dry, and stir until just mixed. Lumps are okay. Swirl in the jam--it does not have to be fully incorporated (I like leaving it in clumps). You may add mashed banana now, or add it, sliced, to pancakes as they are poured into the skillet. Either way works.

Pour by the 1/4 c full into lightly greased skillet on medium heat. Remember that the first pancake is usually the "tester", so if it doesn't come out perfectly, don't worry, but use it as a gauge to tell if the temperature is too high or low and adjust accordingly. Pancakes should typically cook on the first side until they are bubbly and look dry around the edges, about 4-5 minutes, then about 3-4 min on the other side, as well. Serve plain, or with baked pears and maple syrup, as I did this morning!