Are you a sweet breakfast person or a savory breakfast person? I am definitely savory. I love eggs and potatoes for breakfast. Or even something with a little spicy kick.
However, seeing as my husband is 29 going on 6, he loves sweet breakfast. The sweeter and more carbohydrate packed, the better. So when I saw this recipe in a recent bon appetit, I knew I had to make it for him.
After I was able to nail flipping pancakes with large circular pieces of pineapple in the middle of them, these weren't too difficult to make. A tad bit fussy for breakfast, but worth it - they were delicious. The rich flavor came from pre-cooking the pineapple in butter, brown sugar, and rum....healthy, huh? To go along with this "health" food, I made Oatmeal, Raisin and Bacon cookies later in the day...more on that later this week. For now, I'll just say that they were ridiculous. Clearly I need to hit the gym this week.
Anyway, these pancakes would be great for a special occasion breakfast, like guests in town or Easter morning, since they look special and are not your average toast and eggs breakfast.
PINEAPPLE UPSIDE DOWN PANCAKE RECIPE
(bon appetit)
Pineapple
1 tbl. unsalted butter
1 cinnamon stick, broken in half
1 large pineapple, peeled, cut into eight 1/2" rounds, cored
3/4 c. dark rum (I prefer The Kraken)
1/4 c.(packed) dark brown sugar
Pancakes
1 c. all-purpose flour
3 tbl. sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 c. buttermilk
1 large egg
2 tbl. unsalted butter, melted
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
Melt butter with cinnamon stick in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Cook until butter begins to brown, about 2 minutes. Add pineapple slices; cook until light golden brown, 4–5 minutes per side (Note: My pineapple fell apart a bit while cooking so be gentle). Remove skillet from heat; add rum and brown sugar. Cook over medium-high heat until juices are thick and syrupy. Transfer pineapple to a plate; let cool. Reserve syrup.
Preheat oven to 325°. Set a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet. Whisk first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Add buttermilk and next 3 ingredients; whisk until smooth.
Heat a griddle or large heavy skillet over medium heat. Lightly coat with nonstick spray. Pour batter by 1/4-cupfuls onto griddle. Cook each pan- cake until golden brown and bubbles form on top, about 2 minutes. Top each pancake with a pineapple ring. Flip; cook until pancake is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Place pancakes on prepared rack and bake in oven until cooked through, about 5 minutes.
Rewarm reserved pineapple syrup. Divide pancakes among plates; drizzle with pineapple syrup.
