Name: Banana Spirulina Pancakes
Yield: 2
Ingredients: 280 g (1 ¼ cup or 10 oz ) all-purpose flour; 2 tbsp white granulated sugar; 2 tsp baking powder; ½ tsp salt; About 1 teaspoon powdered spirulina; 2 tbsp vegetable oil; 280 g (1 ¼ cup or 10 oz) rice milk ( soy might also work); 1 thinly- sliced banana; Maple syrup

Why it works: Rice and banana work together. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 228 recipes. Both carry 2-hexenal, which smells green, leafy. The science ↓

Banana Spirulina Pancakes

Serves 2

Ingredients

280 g (1 ¼ cup or 10 oz ) all-purpose flour
2 tbsp white granulated sugar
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
About 1 teaspoon powdered spirulina
2 tbsp vegetable oil
280 g (1 ¼ cup or 10 oz) rice milk ( soy might also work)
1 thinly- sliced banana
Maple syrup

Directions

Prepare the batter

Sift and combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spirulina in a big bowl.
In a separate bowl, mix oil and milk.
Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.
Dump in the liquid ingredients and lightly mix the two together.
Gently toss in the bananas and stir them just enough to coat in the batter.

Cook the pancakes

Heat non-stick pan over medium-high heat, and spray evenly with oil.
Using a ⅓ cup measure as a scoop, dip into the batter and pour evenly into the skillet.
When bubbles begin to form in the middle of the pancake, and the edges look somewhat set, give it another spray of oil.
Immediately flip over, and cook for another minute or so on the other side.
Remove the pancake, and put it in the toaster oven on warm while you cook the remaining batter (or find some way of keeping it warm).
Spray the pan again, and repeat until the batter is all gone.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

1144Calories

28 gProtein

24 gFat

206 gCarbs

Counts 9 of 10 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 9 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Rice	1 cup cooked (158g) white	206
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Banana	1 medium (118g)	105
Maple Syrup	1 tbsp (20ml)	52
Sugar	1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated	49
Soy Sauce	1 tbsp (15ml)	9
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Spirulina	not in our table	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Wikibooks Cookbook.

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Rice + bananatop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together228 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-hexenal (green, leafy).
Flour + sugartop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together92,116 recipes

Shared aroma: phenylacetaldehyde (hawthorne, honey).
Sugar + maple syruptop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,252 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Flour + ricetop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together6,611 recipes

Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Banana + maple syruptop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together145 recipes

Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

All-purpose flour: Provides the structure that holds the pancakes together as they set.
Baking powder: Releases gas in the batter, making the pancakes rise and turn light.
Vegetable oil: Adds fat that keeps the pancakes tender and moist.
Rice milk: Supplies the liquid that hydrates the flour and forms the batter.
Banana: Adds sweetness, moisture, and flavor to the batter.

The step that matters

Mix the batter lightly. Overmixing develops gluten in the flour, which makes pancakes tough and chewy. Stir only until the dry ingredients are moistened, leaving small lumps.

Swap the banana

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (flour, sugar, spirulina, rice, maple syrup):

Vanillafits better
Raisinfits better
Coconutfits better
Bananathe original

Fit is the average pairing score against flour, sugar, spirulina, rice, maple syrup. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

Rice Gruel28 recipes

Peptoned Milk Gruel9 recipes

Like knowing why a recipe works?

The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.

Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.

Banana Spirulina Pancakes