Caramelised banana and rum pancakes

1. Cook 4 pancakes following the basic recipe (below); keep warm. Combine the butter, sugar, cinnamon and salt in a frying pan, then put over a low-medium heat for about 1 minute, stirring, until the butter has melted into the sugar. When the mixture is bubbling, add the bananas. Cook, shaking the pan often, for 4-5 minutes, until the bananas are caramelised and sticky. Don’t be tempted to stir at this stage.

2. Add the rum and shake the pan to combine with the caramel. If flambéing, carefully hold a long lit match near the rum caramel to ignite it. Shake vigorously to coat the bananas and extinguish the flame.

3. Arrange the pancakes on 2 plates and top with the bananas. Put the ice cream in the centre and drizzle over the remaining sauce from the pan. 

PANCAKE METHOD
1. To make the batter, put the flour, eggs and a little of the milk in a large bowl and whisk together until smooth. Gradually whisk in the remaining milk to make a runny batter. (Alternatively, put all the ingredients in a blender and whizz until smooth.) Cover and set aside until ready to use (ideally chill it overnight) – or cook straight away.

2. Put a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat, then test the pan by ladling in a very small amount of batter. It should take around 1 minute to brown on the bottom. If it browns too quickly, lower the temperature slightly; raise the temperature if it cooks too slowly and becomes rubbery. Discard (or eat!) the test pancake.

3. When the pan is at the right temperature, add a small knob of butter followed by a ladleful of batter. Swirl the pan to coat the base, then leave the pancake to cook for 1 minute. Flip and repeat on the other side, or until cooked through.