Banana Oat & Buckwheat GF Pancakes

Eid Mubarak! A day late. I had much feasting the past two days, and one particular delight were these morning pancakes with turkey bacon. I made them on my lefse griddle - why don't I use that griddle every time I make pancakes?! I don't know. From now on, at least when making pancakes to serve two, I will. The even heat and larger surface is far superior to using multiple cast iron pans and making one pancake each in the center.

I modified a bon appetit recipe for this particular pancake edition - I think there might be as many GF pancake recipes out there in the world as...well, I don't know what. Bunny rabbits in the spring? (I saw 3 around a neighbor's raised bed on my walk this afternoon, and a 4th emerged out of the bed itself. I also saw a very cute little baby bunny near my own garden beds, which are largely fenced in this time due to said baby bunnies.)

My pandemic-pod-mate, who is also my Ramadan-fasting companion, inspired the turkey bacon selection. I have never had it, and it turns out it is smoked turkey leg formed into bacon-like slices. It is tasty! There was no fat, so you are effectively just heating your slices in a pan. We made double use of the bacon for Eid dinner, which featured kimchi-bacon-cheeseburgers with spicy mayo. (Our back-up to cooking goat leg, which was postponed due to Holy Land being absolutely packed, as in shoulder to shoulder, for Eid shopping.) I also made a rhubarb-raspberry tart, post forthcoming, for dessert.

Banana Oat & Buckwheat pancakes

¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, plus more for pan

1+ cup coconut milk

1 banana

1 cup old-fashioned oats (not quick-cooking)

2 large eggs

½ cup buckwheat flour

2 tablespoons ground flaxseeds

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon kosher salt

splash of water

1. Melt ¼ cup butter in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring often, until butter foams, then browns (do not burn), 4–5 minutes. Let cool slightly.

2. Meanwhile, purée buttermilk and oats in a blender until smooth. Add eggs, buckwheat flour, flaxseeds, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Blend on high 30 seconds. Add butter and blend just to combine.

3. Heat a large nonstick skillet (or griddle!) over medium. Coat very lightly with butter. Working in batches, scoop about 3 tablespoonfuls of batter per pancake into skillet and cook until bottoms are golden brown and tops are evenly covered with bubbles, about 3 minutes. Turn and cook until cooked through and undersides are golden, about 2 minutes. Keep warm in oven and serve with maple syrup & berries (and tahini sauce, if you are like me).