recipe / banana pancakes with vanilla custard sauce

we had these pancakes for audrey's birthday and the custard sauce almost killed me. i literally ate it by the spoonful after i finished my pancakes. i don't even like pancakes usually, but anything covered in this sauce is bound to be heavenly. this pancake recipe is especially fluffy and delicious.

custard sauce:

2 cups whipping cream

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise (or 1 tbsp vanilla bean paste or 1 tsp vanilla)

4 large egg yolks

6 tbsp sugar

place whipping cream in heavy medium saucepan. scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; add pod. bring cream to simmer. whisk egg yolks and sugar in medium metal bowl to blend. gradually whisk in hot cream mixture. return mixture to saucepan and stir over medium-low hear until custard thickens and finger leaves path when drawn across back of spoon, about 4 mins (do not boil.) strain. (can be served cold or hot).

banana pancakes:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 tbsp sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups well-shaken buttermilk

3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 ripe large banana

whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. whisk together buttermilk, 2 tbsp melted butter, eggs and vanilla in a large bowl until smooth. add flour mixture and whisk until just combined. cut banana into bits and fold into batter (or you can add slices into the pancakes once you have put the batter in the pan).

brush a 12-inch nonstick skillet with some of the remaining butter and heat over moderate heat until hot but not smoking. working in batches of 3, pour 1/4 batter into hot skillet and cook until bubbles appear on surface and undersides are golden brown, 1-2 mins. flip pancakes with a spatula and cook until golden brown and cooked through, 1-2 mins more. serve with custard sauce on top.