Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes with Peanut Butter Syrup

These pancakes are light and fluffy and easy to make. They're dotted with bits of melted chocolate and chunks of sweet banana. And the best part is the syrup. When I was a kid my friend Jenni introduced me to peanut butter and maple syrup on pancakes. Ever tried it? I thought it sounded disgusting. It's amazing. Your life will forever be changed after eating it. So that's the inspiration behind the syrup.

We start by combining your average dry pancake ingredients with your average wet pancake ingredients.

 Then place a couple of ripe bananas in a bowl and roughly mash. I use bananas that aren't quite banana bread material. I don't want mushy brown banana chunks in my pancakes, just soft sweet ones. And you don't need to pulverize them either, leave some chunks like seen here:

 

And everything is better with a touch of chocolate, right?? Use mini chips, or roughly chop some regular chocolate chips. The smaller bits distribute better in the batter, and tossing them with a bit of flour helps keep them from all sinking to the bottom.

 Then just stir it all up.

 

I think the best part about these pancakes is the syrup. And it only involves 2 ingredients:

 

Heat them up together in the microwave and watch the magic happen. Okay, it's not really magic, it just tastes really really good. Trust me. It will be runny at first but as it sits it thickens quite a bit. If it gets too thick, just warm it up again in the microwave.

By now you have probably cooked up your pancakes. Oh yum.

  Oh, but wait.... it gets better.

 Pour on some of the magical syrup and it's perfection.

 Chunky Monkey Pancakes
{Banana Chocolate Chip Pancakes with Peanut Butter Syrup}

1 1/2 C flour
3 Tbs sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 C buttermilk *
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbs canola oil
1 large or extra large egg
2 small-med ripe bananas
1/4 C mini chocolate chips (or reg. chips roughly chopped) tossed with 2 tsp flour
Cooking Spray or butter for pan

1 C maple syrup
1/2 C peanut butter

*As a substitute for buttermilk, place 1 1/2 Tbs lemon juice or vinegar in a 1 1/2 C measuring cup and then fill the remainder with milk.

Combine flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl and whisk together. In a separate bowl combine buttermilk, eggs, oil, and vanilla and whisk well. Add the wet ingredients into the dry and mix just until moistened and combined. Place bananas in a bowl and roughly mash with a fork. Fold into batter. Add the chocolate chips that have been tossed with flour and stir.

For syrup, heat peanut butter in the microwave for 30 seconds. Add maple syrup and gently whisk to combine. Heat in the microwave for another 30 seconds, whisk, and then set aside.

Heat a nonstick griddle or skillet to medium heat. Coat pan with little butter and then pour on pancake batter. Use1/4 C batter for large pancakes (4-6") and 2 T for kid-sized ones (2-3"). Wait until bubbles form and edges are set and then flip.

Reheat syrup if necessary and pour over warm pancakes.

Yield:
28-30 2-3" pancakes (using 1/8 C batter measure)
14-15 4-6" pancakes (using 1/4 C batter measure)

Freezer Instructions: Let cooked pancakes cool to room temperature. Place in a single layer in the freezer until frozen and then place pancakes in a ziplock bag or airtight container. Reheat in a microwave or toaster until heated through.