The Complete Idiot's Guide to Banana Pancakes

Flickr: love2bake.nl

​Whether it's the first time they've woken up at your place, the 100^th, or the 1,000^th -- I personally believe there is no better way to impress someone the morning after than to make them breakfast.

Don't make eggs. Because eggs are like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches: specific and personal. Some people like really finely minced scrambled eggs, some like sunny-side up, some like omelets mixed with milk to fluff it up. Don't make eggs.

Unless you have appliance heaven in your kitchen, waffles (and a waffle maker) are out of the question. And it's not like you're going to attempt to impress this person by taking them out to breakfast, especially since we all know lazy days in your pajamas are nothing short of amazing.

Pancakes are pretty much breakfast perfection. If you want your Sunday morning to be as awesome as your Saturday night, you'll make banana pancakes. Tyler Florence and his "ultimate" banana pancakes have got you covered.
Editor's note: Tyler Florence's original recipe calls for the pancakes to be accompanied by maple butter. I couldn't care less (and I'm fine with Mrs. Butterworth), so I excluded it.

Oh and another thing: The original recipe also calls for pecans. I prefer pancakes sans nuts, so they are excluded too. No need to be fancy...

Ingredients

2 cups buttermilk
3 eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda<
1 pinch salt
4 tablespoons sugar
½ stick unsalted butter, melted
3 bananas, peeled, and sliced in ¼-inch circles

Directions

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk the buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla together well. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar. Combine the wet ingredients with the dry and stir with a spoon to get rid of the lumps. Pour in the melted butter and whisk until smooth. Heat a griddle or skillet over medium-low heat and swirl around a little melted butter to keep the pancakes from sticking. Use a ladle to pour the batter into the pan. See cook's note.*

Cook the pancakes on one side until they are set and then lightly press the bananas into the batter. When small bubbles appear on the uncooked surface, flip the pancakes and cook until golden on both sides (about eight minutes). Transfer pancakes to a warming plate in the oven while you make the rest until the batter is gone.

*Cook's note: The trick to perfect round pancakes is pouring the batter in the same spot and letting it roll out to a complete circle.

*Editor's note: I think the more fruit the better. Strawberries and blueberries are also encouraged.