Island Pancakes with Grilled Peaches, Mascarpone & Molasses DON Bacon

By Nornie Bero (Mabu Mabu)

A professional chef for over 20 years, Nornie Bero is a proud member of the Komet Tribe from Mer Island in the Torres Strait. Owner at ‘Mabu Mabu’, Nornie is on a mission to make Indigenous ingredients part of everyone's pantry. Her philosophy is not just about cooking good food, but about bringing people together and sharing meals as families and communities.

Overview

Prep
Cooking time
Serves
2-3

Featuring native wattle seeds, grilled peaches, mascarpone and DON® Crafted Cuts Double Smoked Bacon which has been candied with molasses, these decadent ‘Island Pancakes’ are perfect for bringing people together. Created by proud Torres Strait woman and chef Nornie Bero, this moreish dish is designed for everybody to ‘mabu mabu’ (or ‘help themselves’) to a little bit of everything.

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Ingredients

  • Molasses Bacon:
  • 3 tbsp molasses
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 tsp mustard
  • ½ tsp pepperberry
  • ¼ tsp saltbush
  • 200g DON® Crafted Cuts Double Smoked Pansize Bacon
  • 200g mascarpone

  • Pancakes:
  • 1 cup plain flour
  • 3 tbsp cocoa powder
  • 1 tbsp wattleseeds
  • 1 tsp caster sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1-½ cups milk
  • 1tbs vegetable oil

  • Fruit:
  • 2 peaches, halved, stone removed
  • ¼ cup muntries
  • Seasonal berries, to serve

Method

Molasses Bacon

  1. Pre-heat oven to 180°C (160°C fan-forced).
  2. Mix together molasses, brown sugar, mustard, pepperberry, and saltbush in a bowl.
  3. Place a baking rack on a lined baking tray and place bacon on the rack. Generously coat the bacon with half the molasses mix.
  4. Cook in oven for 10 minutes, turn bacon and baste the other side with remaining molasses mixture. Continue cooking for a further 8-10 minutes. Check the consistency of the thickness of your bacon to candy it, it may take longer. Allow bacon to harden and cool slightly.
  5. Set aside half the bacon and chop the remainder into crumbly bits and mix through the mascarpone.

Pancakes & Fruit

  1. In a large bowl, sift in the flour, cocoa and wattleseed, mix in the sugar. Make a well in the centre.
  2. Whisk together the eggs and milk, add to dry ingredients and whisk until batter is smooth.
  3. Preheat your frying pan to a medium heat, making sure your pan is nice and hot.
  4. Add a little oil to the pan, then add a small ladle of batter. Swirl your pan to evenly spread your batter mix to give you a thin layer.
  5. Cook for 30- 40 seconds each side until cooked. Keep aside, warm until all are cooked.
  6. Pre-heat a frying pan with a little oil, place peaches into the pan cut side down. Cook several minutes until nicely coloured and caramelised. Turn over and finish in the oven a further 5 minutes. Set aside.
  7. For serving, roll up pancakes and place onto plate, accompanied with peach halves, dollop of mascarpone, pieces of molasses bacon, muntries and fresh berries.
  8. Notes: Mutries are seasonal, so if you can’t find any, just use fresh berries in their place.