Peanut Butter Banana Pancakes

After the success of my banana pancakes, I decided to twist it a little bit by incorporating my favorite banana accompaniment, peanut butter. Honestly, if scientists could make a banana with a slight peanut butter flavor, I'm thinking it would solve 95% of potassium deficiency in the world. Well, I can dream, right? Same process pretty much as before. Since I was adding peanut butter, I removed some of the butter to compensate for that. I also found out I could probably eat my weight in these.
Peanut Butter Banana Pancakes

1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
1 tablespoon butter, melted and cooled slightly
3 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1 cup buttermilk
1 banana, mashed
2 bananas, sliced thin

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Stir until combined. In a separate bowl combine the egg, buttermilk, vanilla, mashed banana, peanut butter, and butter. Slowly add the wet to the dry and fold using a spatula. Once most of the batter is combined and a few lumps remain, set bowl aside and let rest for 5-10 minutes. If the batter is too thick, add a bit more buttermilk. Batter should be slightly thin but not pourable.

Preheat your griddle or pan to medium-high. Spray with a small amount of cooking spray or butter. Using a scoop or ladle, add small amount of batter to pan. Place sliced bananas in a single layer on the top of each pancake. Cook for 3-4 minutes until bottoms are browned. Flip pancakes over and continue to cook until bottom is browned and pancake is firm, about 2 more minutes. Serve with syrup.

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Peanut Butter Balls

To me, Christmas cookies are some of the best sweet items I eat all year. Everyone has a different method, recipe, or family tradition that they enjoy sharing with everyone else. I have had German cookies, Mexican candies, Chinese pastries, and many others. I love them all. My dentist hates them.

My personal favorite has to be peanut butter balls. I wont spend a lot of time on words, just enjoy the recipe (I know I'm making some this week).

A few notes on the recipe. First, the chocolate coating can be whatever chocolate you like. I prefer semi sweet (i just use semi sweet chips), but i have also made them with dark. The wax can be found in the baking aisle (I believe) and is used to help thin out the chocolate. I usually put in about 5 oz wax to each package of chocolate. The goal is to have a decently thin liquid to dip into. Also, this recipe probably makes 24-30 and can easily be doubled or tripled to accommodate a crowd


Peanut Butter Balls
1 C butter, melted
2 C peanut butter
2 C graham crackers, crushed
16 oz powdered sugar
12 oz semi sweet chocolate
paraffin wax

In a double boiler melt chocolate, add some wax to thin it out (melts faster if you use smaller pieces). In a large bowl combine the butter, peanut butter, powdered sugar, and graham crackers, mix well. Roll into small balls (smaller than ping pong balls), making sure to keep them packed tight. If you are not going to be dipping immediately, refrigerate them to help them set up. Dip each ball into the melted chocolate (use toothpicks or tongs) and lay out on wax paper to dry.

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