I love having pancakes for breakfast! But what else is better than a healthy version of pancakes plus a quick and easy recipe? These pancakes contain only heathy and nutritious ingredients: eggs, bananas, milk (of your choice), olive oil (or other vegetable oil), honey as sweetener, rolled oats, baking powder and ground cinnamon for flavour (feel free to add pure vanilla extract if you do not like cinnamon). If you are wondering what rolled oats are, they are also known as old fashioned oats and they are flattened grains. They are better choice than oat flakes when making granola bars, cookies, muffins and cakes. Oat flakes are preferred when oats are to be cooked, like when making oatmeal.

These pancakes are super easy to make! Add all the ingredients in the blender starting with the wet ingredients: milk, olive oil, eggs, banana, honey and ending with the dry ones: oats, baking powder and ground cinnamon (if you use vanilla extract instead, add it with the wet ingredients). I prefer adding the ingredients in this order for smoother blending and to prevent the dry ingredients from stacking at the bottom of the blender. Blend for 1' - 2' or until everything is thoroughly combined and smooth. Scrape down the sides of the blender with a rubber spatula if needed and blend a little bit more. The pancake batter should be thick but still runny. However, if your batter is very watery, add some more oats (about 1-2 tablespoons) and blend once more. Yet again if it is very thick, add more milk (about 1/2 tablespoon) and blend again.

Meanwhile place a non-stick pan on low-medium heat. Once the pan is hot add a small amount of butter or olive oil. Remove any excesses of the melted butter or the oil with a paper towel. I like to add about 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil and spread it all over the pan using a paper towel. Pour about 1 full ladle or 1/3 cup or 1 ice-cream scoop of pancake batter directly from the blender in the pan. The pancakes flatten depending on the consistency of your batter. If your batter is very runny the pancakes will become flatter, if it is very thick your pancakes will become thicker. You have to do a test with your very first attempt, in order to decide the amount of the batter you pour for each pancake. Still, if at this point you find that your batter is very runny, just add some more oats (about 1-2 tablespoons) and blend again the remaining batter. Likewise, if you find it is very thick and difficult to pour it, just add some more milk (about 1/2 tablespoon).

The pancake is ready to flip when it starts having bubbles on the top that start to burst (1-2 minutes). Flip the pancake and let the other side cook for 1-2 minutes or until golden brown. These pancakes turn more brown compared to the original ones, do not worry about the colour, they are not burned.

The pancakes are to be served immediately after cooking them. If it is not to be served directly after cooking, which is in most cases, place each cooked pancake on a wire rack in the oven at 50°C (130°F) in the grill (not fan-forced, else the pancakes will dry out) and serve them when they are all ready. It is common to serve the pancakes stacked. However, avoid stacking them directly after cooking and wait until all are cooked and ready to serve, otherwise you will end up with soggy pancakes.

When you are ready to serve, stack the pancakes and serve them plain or with fresh fruits and honey or whatever topping you like. If you have a toddler just offer them the pancake plain, cut in pieces. It is a very healthy toddler's snack not only for breakfast but also during the day. Give them a try and let me know! Enjoy!