Sweet Potato Banana Pancakes with Pecan Cinnamon Butter and Spiced Rum Whipped Cream

First off, it's early and I was up late last night watching the Golden Girls and flipping through cookbooks. Really, I ask you, is there a better way to spend a Friday night? I think not.

Anyway, with my evening of craziness and the little guy waking me up at 6 am, I needed some serious coffee. Hence, the coffee picture. That cup saved me from tripping over the trucks that currently litter my kitchen floor. So really, the picture of the coffee is more of a safety measure than just a picture of a cup of coffee.

Now, about these pancakes. I have been playing around with this recipe for quite a while on paper. Finally, with an over-ripe banana calling for me on my counter and a sweet potato that would be going to the dark side soon, I decided to do a test run. The pancakes alone are good but put them with the pecan butter, syrup and rum whipped cream and you will be in a very happy place.

This dish reminds me of the Bongo Room in Chicago where they have items on the menu like Blueberry Cheesecake Pancakes and Chocolate Tower French Toast. I used to frequent that place every Sunday morning before my shorty came along and I highly recommend it to anyone who is in the South Loop or Wicker Park neighborhoods. Have a Mimosa and a crazy pancake dish for me! If you are not in Chicago, just make this dish with all the toppings, put on some funky music, imagine being surrounded by a bunch of hipsters and poof, you are at the Bongo Room! Enjoy! AJ – xo.

Recipe :

Pancakes:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
3 tablespoons brown sugar
Pinch of nutmeg
Pinch of ground cloves
Pinch of pumpkin pie spice
2 cups whole milk
1 medium banana mashed
1/4 cup ricotta cheese
5 teaspoons melted butter
2 eggs
1 sweet potato, skinned, roasted and pureed

Mix together the dry ingredients with a fork. Whisk the wet ingredients with the pureed sweet potato and banana until smooth. Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.

On a griddle, melt a tablespoon of butter and spread it all around. Place 1/4 cup of the batter on the griddle and cook until the pancakes puff up. Flip and do a couple minutes on the other side.

Serve hot with a chunk of the pecan cinnamon butter, maple syrup and a dollop of rum whipped cream.

Pecan Cinnamon Butter:

1/4 cup pecans toasted, cooled and chopped fine
1/2 pound butter softened (I used Kerry Gold salted)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch of kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon honey

Mix all of the above ingredients together in a stand mixer. Dump mixture onto parchment or wax paper and mold into a log. Wrap and put in the freezer for at least 2 hours.

Whipped Cream:

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon rum
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Whip the cream until soft peaks form. Add in the rum, vanilla, sugar and cinnamon and whip until stiff peaks form. Serve!