Something about the weather getting colder has me craving pancakes. These ricotta pancakes are so light and fluffy, and not overly sweet; exactly what the doctor ordered. We also happened to have some bananas in the fridge, and honestly when you have an opportunity for caramelized bananas, you should always take it. Topped with bananas, drizzled with honey, and dollop of ricotta, these pancakes will make your weekend mornings better.
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Pancakes aren’t hard to make, and the homemade ones are always tastier than the boxed ones. But that wasn’t something I knew until much too recently. Being trained as a french cook, I learned to make crepes, but not American style fluffy pancakes. So I just never thought about it. Also, anytime I would make pancakes from the box the recipe always makes like 15 and yeah, I could eat that many… But then I’d be in a pancake coma for the rest of the day, and I never really had enough people to eat them with.
Homemade vs. Box Mix
A couple year, a friend and I hosted a brunch. She said she would make pancakes and I was interested in her recipe. I told her I hadn’t really thought about how to make them without the box mix. She said, “oh. Well you just whip the egg whites separately too get them fluffy. And after that it’s just a batter.” Duh. Box mixes have powdered egg whites or meringue powder in them. That’s how they get them fluffy. Now, probably a lot of you are reading this like, yeah Liza, everyone knows that. But come on! Gimme a break on this one!
Since then, pancakes have been a much more fun, special occasion breakfast for me. I don’t make mine super sweet, since in Canada we have quite a surplus of real maple syrup. And that means you can add things like chocolate chips and not have your breakfast very suddenly become dessert.
Mike had told me he wasn’t a pancakes person, and that he was more of a french toast person. I tried explaining that the two aren’t mutually exclusive. You can like pancakes AND french toast. But he was insistent. So it had been a while since I’ve made pancakes. I recently made another round of my Fresh Ricotta, and decided now was the time to get Mike back on the pancake wagon (Potential brunch food truck name?).
Converted the Skeptic!
He was skeptical, but said he’d try them. Just to be safe, I made sure he had LOTS of maple syrup on hand, and the caramelized bananas helped too. He loved them! I liked mine with honey, mostly because honey and ricotta are gorgeous together, but they are also super yummy with maple syrup, obviously.
Definitely add these to your next brunch, or gathering. They are just delightful. Size wise, this batch does make about 12-15 pancakes, but I’m pleased to report that they freeze well! I’ve been toasting them like Eggos for a few mornings this week, and they haven’t lost any texture or become dry, so Win!
Hope you guys enjoy, and let me know how yours turn out!
Ricotta Pancakes with Caramelized Bananas
Ingredients
Pancakes
- 2 cups Flour
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 2 large Eggs Separated
- 2 cups Milk
- 1/2 cup Ricotta Homemade or store bought
Caramelized Bananas
- 2 Bananas Sliced into 1/2" chunks
- 2 tbsp Brown Sugar
For Serving
- Honey or Maple Syrup
- Ricotta
Instructions
- Heat your oven to 200F (to keep the pancakes warm before you serve them)
- In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a separate medium bowl, using a hand held mixer, whip the egg whites. You want them to form just barely stiff peaks. Don't mix them too stiff or they will be dry.
- Finally, in a large bowl beat together the egg yolks, milk and ricotta until smooth. Add in the flour mix and combine with a spatula.
- Stir a large spoonful of the egg whites into the batter. (This helps to get the two mixes closer to the same consistency so that they're easier to fully combine.)Then, fold the rest of the egg whites into the batter gently, until just combined.
- Heat up a large skillet over medium low heat, and melt in a heaping tbsp of butter. Using a ladle, and working in batches, ladle your batter into the pan. I usually make my pancakes about 3" in diameter. Cook for about 2 minutes per side, or until you see bubbles forming on the surface. Then flip and cook for another 2 minutes or so.
- Transfer finished pancakes to a baking sheet and keep in the oven until you're ready to serve. Add more butter to the pan in between rounds and continue until all your batter is cooked.
- For the bananas; combine the sliced bananas and the brown sugar in a small bowl and toss to coat.
- Add a bit more butter and some olive oil to your pan and increase the heat to medium. Lay in all the banana slices and allow to caramelize for a couple minutes on each side. I used a fork to gently flip each one, because tongs were too big and my spatula was too cumbersome.
- Divide the pancakes and bananas out to your plates, top with a big dollop of extra ricotta, and drizzle with honey or maple syrup. Enjoy!
LizaLeigh
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