Banana, pecan, chia and strawberry pancakes

These pancakes are a favourite in my house. I make them all the time for my daughter, Birdie, and it’s great to be able to watch her eating them with the peace of mind of knowing that she’s getting a good serving of fruit to start the day. Like most of my recipes, this can be used as a starting point to play around with: try swapping out strawberries for other berries, and adding a dash of vanilla or a pinch of other spices such as ground nutmeg and cardamom.

Banana, pecan, chia and strawberry pancakes

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup (90 g) rolled oats
• 1 cup (250 ml) soy milk
• pinch of sea salt
• pinch of cinnamon
• 1/3 cup (50 g) plain or wholemeal flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 1 super ripe banana, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup (200 g) strawberries, halved
• 1 tablespoon pecans, lightly crushed
• 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

METHOD

Pop the oats, soy milk, salt, cinnamon, flour, baking powder, chia seeds and banana into a food processor and process until smooth.

Drizzle olive oil into a large non-stick frying pan and heat over medium–low heat. Use a scrunched-up piece of paper towel to evenly rub the oil over the base of the pan.

Using 1/4 cup (60 ml) mixture per pancake, cook 2–3 pancakes (allowing room for pancakes to spread) for 2 minutes or until bubbles appear on surface. Flip and cook for a further 2 minutes or until cooked through. Repeat to make 8 pancakes.

Serve pancakes topped with the strawberries, sprinkled with pecans and drizzled with maple syrup.