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Banana Pancakes are delicious and filling with tropical vibe. A sweet and simple recipe that can easily be made any morning of the week.
Banana Pancakes
If you are a fan of banana bread, you are going to fall in love with this banana pancake recipe! You won’t believe the flavor a few ripe bananas can add to pancakes. As the pancakes cook to a golden brown, the bananas slightly caramelize becoming sweeter.
When it comes to breakfast, especially on the weekends, a stack of pancakes are always a great idea! Not only are they easy to whip up, they go so well with every other breakfast food. Once you have the basic pancake recipe down, the possibilities for syrups and toppings are endless. Try something new and fun, like our orange syrup, caramel syrup, or coconut syrup.
A Tropical Flair
When my husband and I visited Hawaii recently we ate breakfast at the “Hukilau Cafe” in Laie on Oahu. If you have seen the movie “50 First Dates” you will recognize the name. This was one of my FAVORITE breakfast places when I lived there, namely because of their decadent banana pancakes. I tried to replicate that famous banana flavor with all kinds of complicated recipes. But in the end, simplicity won out. These easy pancakes taste just like the ones we had at Hukilau Cafe These really are the best banana pancakes you can make at home. Whip these up, turn on a little Jack Johnson, and cue “Banana Pancakes.” I am pretty sure these are the pancakes he wants to make when he pretends it’s the weekend!
Ingredients for Banana Pancakes
You’ll only need a few pantry staples to put these pancakes together, but they’ll look and taste fancy and so yummy! Here’s what you need:
- All purpose flour – white or wheat or a combination of the two
- Sugar – regular, granulated white sugar
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Buttermilk – if you don’t have buttermilk on hand, add a tablespoon of vinegar to a cup of milk and stir.
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- Bananas – you’ll need about half a cup of mashed bananas in the wet ingredients, and a couple of bananas sliced to add after the batter is mixed.
Topping Ideas for Banana Pancakes
Since this recipe is so simple, you’re free to go nuts with toppings. We love to create a pancake bar on lazy Saturday mornings, where I keep the pancakes coming while my husband supervises the topping station. Try some of these tasty toppings:
- Fresh blueberries
- Chopped macadamia nuts
- More sliced bananas
- Shredded toasted coconut
- Diced pineapple
- Chocolate chips
- Peanut butter
- Our creamy Coconut Yogurt Syrup
- Maple Syrup
- Drizzle of honey
- Sprinkle of cinnamon
- Strawberries
- Kiwi
Tips for Light and Fluffy Pancakes
- Make sure to mash one banana in the pancake mixture, then gently place the sliced bananas onto the pancake batter while it cooks. The sliced bananas cook right along with pancake giving the sliced bananas a slightly browned, caramelized coating.
- If you don’t want to take the time to make homemade pancakes, Krusteaz Buttermilk Pancake mix is actually a terrific way to get fluffy pancakes without a lot of fuss.
- Don’t over-mix the pancake batter! In this rare instance, a few lumps are okay. The more you stir, the less fluffy your pancakes will turn out.
- Grease your hot griddle or skillet with a cold stick of butter or cooking spray to avoid sticking.
- I like to use an ice cream scoop or measuring cup to ladle the batter onto the griddle. This ensures they all turn out roughly the same size so there’s no fighting for the biggest pancake (or is that just in my house?)
- You’ll know it’s time to flip the pancake when the little bubbles on top of the first side start to pop. Then once you turn them, they only need to cook another minute or two. You’ll have golden brown banana pancakes in no time!
Questions About Banana Pancakes
The pancakes should be soft and moist on the inside, but if they turn out soggy and mushy try turning down the heat on your skillet and cook them lower and slower.
Overripe bananas are terrific to mash up in the pancake batter. But try and use less ripe bananas for slicing so they’ll keep their shape and won’t turn out soggy.
Store any leftover pancakes in a Ziploc baggie in the refrigerator. You can also freeze them in a freezer-safe container.
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What to Serve with Banana Pancakes
Banana Pancakes are yummy enough to stand all on their own, or feature them with bacon or sausage in a huge breakfast feast. Try a few of our favorite breakfast recipes to serve alongside these tantalizing hotcakes.
More Pancake Recipes
How to Make Banana Pancakes
Banana Pancakes
Equipment
- Electric Griddle
- Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 cup flour white or wheat
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup bananas mashed
- 1-2 bananas sliced
Instructions
- Mix flour, sugar, soda, and salt together in a large bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the buttermilk, egg, and and vanilla extract together.
- Pour buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and stir. Stir in the mashed bananas.
- Heat griddle to medium heat (approximately 375 degrees). Pour ¼ to ⅓ of batter on the griddle for each pancake (depending on the size you want the pancakes). Place banana slices on top of the batter while it cooks, then carefully flip to cook on the other side.
- Serve with butter and hot maple syrup.
Great recipe, and quick to make.
The fluffiest pancakes! Love the chunks & banana flavor!
Take me to Hawaii! I love bringing the Hawaiian flavors in my home & of course, they are amazing!!
These do remind me of Hawaii and make me wish I was there right now. I think these are great dessert too. My kids are always so happy when I make these for breakfast!
Super love this banana pancakes! Thanks a lot for sharing this super easy and tasty recipe!
These came out awesome! My son devoured them! And I have made banana pancakes before but I never had sliced them up and added them like in this recipe and that part of it made these pancakes way more delicious than any banana version I had ever tried before! I’m definitely going to always make them this way in the future!
These are super fun and flavorful! We cannot wait to make them again!
Love all the banana flavor in these, SO GOOD!
These sound amazing! Bananas are my favorite toppings on pancakes, but can’t wait to put them in the pancakes!
I know what I will be having for breakfast tomorrow! These sound epic!
Oh my gosh this looks amazing! Thank you so much!
I was raised in Hawaii, and lived there from 1962 to 1975, I went to Laie Elementary School and Kahuku High School. The food there is awesome, and here were many mornings we would go to Hukilau beach, and watch while the fishing hets were pulled in. What years where you there???
2003 to 2004.. So not way long. Only 18 mos but long enough to fall in love with it and get some great recipes!
Hello
beyond the banana pancakes …
What is usual to have a breakfast in Hawaii?
A common breakfast in Hawaii.. a true Hawaiian breakfast… would consist of Spam, eggs, and rice (one of my favorite breakfasts there)!
These were delicious! I also added some cinnamon and honey to my mixture. At the end, I added a teaspoon of cocoa powder for a little chocolate fix! Great with coconut syrup…mmmmm……
Oh my goodness! WE just got back from Laie and I have been DYING for some of these Hukilau Cafe Banana Pancakes! I was seriously distraut thinking that I would have to come back to Hawaii to taste this piece of heaven! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK0YOU!!!
I LOVED the banana and coconut pancakes at the Hukilau Cafe. So excited to have found this recipe! Your blog is definitely bringing me back to the summer I spent in Laie. Thanks for the great recipes!
you don’t know who I am but I was reading your blog because my husband and I are throwing a luau this weekend. I was so excited to see you ate at the hukilau (sorry about the spelling). my husband served a mission in hawaii for our church and for our honey moon we went to hawaii and ate at that same resturant. It was delish. thanks again.