Bananas Foster Pancakes

Anyone that knows me knows I don’t really love bananas. It takes a certain type of banana to catch my eye, and when it does, it’s a rare event. I usually only like bananas right when they've turned yellow, and this often leads to waste. On one incredibly hungry evening I was searching my cupboards high and low for something sweet to eat! The only thing I had was a very ripe banana! YUCK! There’s nothing I dislike more than an old brown piece of fruit. It’s decaying  and dead in my eyes! Anyways, this was the recipe I came up with on that night. I previously have blogged about it, but I wanted to revamp the photo and revisit the ingredient list and make sure it was on point. In light of Shrove Tuesday around the corner it seems to be a perfect dish for me then and now. I use orange liqueur instead of rum because, well because I like it better. This is a great way to use up old eggs, milk, or EVEN BANANAS!  These are what I would assume are British pancakes, very unlike the American fat fluffy kind, but thin and crepe-like. This serves 2, but you can easily double it for more! 

Delicious with hot custard, cream or ice cream!

Ingredients:

55g plain flour

130ml milk

1 egg

1 tbsp. butter

Tiny pinch of salt

2 large ripe bananas, sliced

4 tbsp. caster sugar

1-2 tbsp. butter

2 tbsp. Gran Marnier (could use Brandy or Cointreau)

Cream, ice cream or custard to serve

To Get Started on the Pancakes:

Sift flour and salt into a bowl.

Add the egg and half of the milk, and whisk lightly with a fork, slowly adding the remaining milk until thoroughly mixed and smooth.

Melt the butter in a large non-stick pan.

Swirl around until the bottom is covered, pour half of the melted butter into the batter and set the rest aside for greasing.

With a small ladle, pour batter fast and as close to the pan you can, swirl it out to create a perfect circle.

Each side will take about 2-3 minutes or until they lift from the pan easily.

To Make the Bananas and Assemble:

In a hot pan add the rest of the melted butter, and the sugar. 

Let it sit until the sugar starts to melt and caramelize, about 3-5 minutes.

When the sugar turns sticky and brown, add the sliced bananas and cinnamon; coat with the caramel.

Stand well back and turn off the heat, douse the pan with the alcohol and stir rapidly to evaporate the alcohol.

Handle with care and scoop spoonfuls into pancakes and wrap them up.

Top with ice cream and cinnamon for garnish.

Enjoy!

Southern Corn Casserole

First of all, let me start by giving many apologies for not blogging recently! Life has gotten quite busy and is always throwing me new twists and turns. Sometimes things get neglected but hopefully I will be back with enough inspiration to keep everyone’s interests up!

This is a recipe for corn casserole, ever heard of it? It’s a southern thing similar to cornbread but much more moist. I took inspiration from several recipes for this one. I was craving cornbread but one with much more of a light almost soufflé type feel. I dove right in and tried my hand at it without a recipe and I think it came out brilliantly. The great thing about this recipe is that it was made completely with your waist in mind. It’s a very low calorie dish with about 150 calories a portion. Give it a try! It makes an absolutely lovely accompaniment to roasted meats, buffalo wings, and I also split it in half and put it under the grill and served it with a poached egg on top for breakfast. Really delicious! This makes 8 servings. Enjoy!

You can use any type of cheese you want.

Ingredients:
100g yellow cornmeal (or polenta if you have it)
100g plain flour
20g silver spoon half spoon (if using regular sugar use 40g)
160g tinned sweetcorn drained (frozen will work if thawed)
1 400g tin of Green Giant cream style corn
½ c chopped onion
2 chillies – green or red for colour
3 egg whites whipped slightly
150g fat free natural yogurt
100g grated light cheddar
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ tsp. garlic powder
Spray oil.

To start:
Preheat oven to 180C or about 375F
First things first, in a non-stick pan, spray with a few sprays of oil and warm it up.
Dice the onion and chillies and get them in the pan to soften. You don’t have to do this step but it takes the crunch off of the veg.

Moist light little bites.

For the batter:
In a bowl sift together the cornmeal, flour, baking soda, baking powder, garlic powder, and salt.
In another bowl, whisk three egg whites gently to get some air in them about 1-2 mins.
Add the creamed corn, tinned sweetcorn, and yogurt.
Gently whip up and add the dry ingredients a little at a time.
Add a little more than half the cheese and mix up, saving some for the top.
When all combined add the onions and peppers.

To bake:
Spray a square or rectangle pan with spray oil.
Pour the batter in and spread evenly throughout.
Sprinkle on the remaining cheese.
Place in a hot oven for about 45mins to 1hr. Check with a toothpick for doneness.