Yup. Bringing it back, after a an extremely long hiatus. You’re not interested in why, so let’s move on to what I hope will be a fresh start. Lots of ideas in my head and maybe some will even inspire Kevin to complete one of the half-dozen draft posts he’s started 
So, a little while back The Cinnamon Snail - ever so creative gurus of vegan food truck cuisine – had a special breakfast item: Bourbon hazelnut pancakes with cranberry orange relish, pine nut butter, & dark beer syrup. I KNOW, RIGHT?! WOW! Missing out on the special inspired me to get into the kitchen on one otherwise lazy football-filled Sunday. Here are the results.
I started with the syrup, since it takes some time to boil down. I made syrup infused with Maui Brewing Company’s Coconut Porter, following the same method I used for this glaze. Basically, a 3:1 ratio of maple syrup to beer, boiled down to a consistency that’s right for you.
For the pancakes I once again turned to the Veggie Works cookbook. I used the oatmeal pancake recipe, making a few modifications.
Oatmeal Guava Pancakes
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup white flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup guava juice
1/2 cup almond milk
1 tablespoon of Earth Balance spread
Cook the oats in the water for 3-5 minutes, covered. Mix the remaining dry ingredients together in a bowl. Add the juice, almond milk and Earth Balance to the oats and mix well. Pour the oatmeal goop into the flour mixture and beat into a batter. Heat a skillet, oil and cook ‘m up.
I paired the pancakes with some Buffalo Trace-braised coconut bacon (by the way, very lame that Maker’s Mark is watering down their bourbon), made with applewood liquid smoke. I also added a little bourbon barrel-aged Worcestershire Sauce that Kevin hooked us up with. Meanwhile, I chopped up fingerlings I picked up at the Farmers’ Market and roasted them with coconut oil, pepper, smoked salt and some Pain is Good jerk seasoning.
The results were awesome. The syrup had the sweet barley flavors of bourbon and a slight burnt flavor that was distinctly like the toasted coconut notes that come from aging in a charred oak barrel. Combining this with the bacon and the tropical fruit of the pancakes brought the flavors out even more. If I were to make this again I would probably add some actual fruit (pineapple?) and top with some crushed, toasted macadamia nuts. Pair it with Coconut Porter or your favorite breakfast beer and start the day off right. Enjoy.
