BAH-nana NUT! Pancakes For Breakfast

When I was little, I could usually bribe my father into making pancakes on Saturday or Sunday morning. (I usually did this by bringing him and my mother coffee in bed. I was the only second grader who knew how to brew coffee.) If there were some old, black bananas in the house, my father would sing "BAH-nana NUT Pancakes for breakfast - BAH-nana NUT pancakes today!" to the tune of Mahna Mahna from the Muppet Show. The pancakes never had nuts, but it fit the song better. And the banana pancakes were always delicious!

The Physicist does not like the typical bananas you find in the store, which are the Cavendish variety. He thinks they taste "too banana-y" (that's a technical term). But, my fears of never being able to enjoy banana pancakes with him were averted when we found baby (or mini) bananas. The Physicist absolutely *loves* to snack on these, and by the end of the week, usually some have turned the overripe black color that means it's time to mash them into the bottom of a mixing bowl and heat up the griddle.

I am not going to give you a recipe for pancakes. I make mine from a mix (Jiffy!), and have found that most people already have a favorite pancake batter. I'm not here to mess with your pancakes.
I will give you a few tips though.

1) Pancakes are for anytime. These were our dinner. :)

2) Mix-ins are your friend. Adding fruits, nuts, chocolate chips, or even bacon can liven up your pancakes. We had some chocolate chips in our banana pancakes.

3) Don't pour the batter on your griddle until it's hot enough that water drops dance (not just sizzle, not evaporate, but a skittering dance) on the surface.

4) Don't flip the pancake until bubbles form in the middle (see picture above). They don't have to be fully formed bubbles if you like your pancakes a lighter color, but they do have to at least be forming.