On a recent trip to East Bali, I had Banana Honeycomb Pancakes served with palm sugar syrup. They were amazing and I had to recreate them as soon as I returned home.
Amanda, Kevin and Amanda, invited me to join her on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Bali. Amanda picked me up at the airport and we hired a driver to take us to our hotel.
Thank goodness we had a driver, because driving in Bali isn’t for the faint of heart. I was amazed and close-your-eyes scared by the crazy traffic. The cars are constantly passing each other on the small two lane roads. Scooters are zipping in and out around the cars and often the scooters are loaded up with an entire family or business. Picture a NYC hot dog cart on the back of a scooter.
So it was a such pleasure when we arrived safely at our hotel, the tranquil Jamahal Private Resort & Spa. It’s a peaceful, tropical oasis in the middle of a busy city. The staff were so welcoming and kind, and catered to our every need.
I loved having our own pool outside our elegantly decorated villa set in a private courtyard filled with tropical plants. Plumeria blossoms fell from the tree in the courtyard and you’d find them floating in the pool.
After I got settled in our room, Amanda and I walked down to Jimbaran Bay to catch the spectacular sunset. Jimbaran Bay is one of the best beaches in Bali. It’s only about 15 minutes from the airport, so it was a great place to spend my first night.
After a little bit of early morning beach time, we set off for East Bali. When we arrived at the five star Alila Manngis hotel we were warmly greeted in the open air reception area with tropical drinks.
The quiet, luxurious property is located on the East side of Bali near the small town of Candidasa. The spacious grounds are well groomed and gorgeous, with dozens of palm trees scattered around the property, lining the pool and sandy beach.
We spent the afternoon enjoying the hotel and relaxing by the beautiful pool. We also spent a little time catching up on work on our laptops on the comfy couch on the balcony, which overlooked the pool and the ocean. The wifi was great even on the balcony. It was a home away from home office that I could get use to.
The city of Candidasa is filled with dive shops and is a popular destination for scuba divers. The Alila Manngis offers snorkeling trips across the bay to the blue lagoon or will also arrange dive trips for you.
We didn’t have time to take advantage of all the fun activities available at the hotel. but the hotel concierge arranged a personalized trekking excursion for us. We spent the day trekking through rice paddies, visiting little hillside villages, and then toured two of the water palaces in East Bali.
The people of Bali were so friendly and nice, as we trekked through the little villages in the mountains and rice paddies, the people, especially the little kids greeted us with a friendly hello in English.
Our trek guide Toto was knowledgeable and patiently explained about local customs and all about the area. He carried our water in his backpack and took great care of us.
One of the highlights of the day was visiting Tirta Gangga. Tirta Gangga is a water palace built in 1946 by the King. There’s a maze of pools and fountains surrounded by lush gardens and intricately carved stone statues.
The water from the natural springs at Tirta Gangga is regarded as holy and is used in religious ceremonies in the temples. There’s also two swimming pools where locals can swim in the water.
Our final stop for the day was the Ujung Water Palace, which was the king’s summer retreat near the beach. It has three large ponds and beautifully manicured grounds. In the middle of the main pond is a beautiful white building which is accessed by two bridges on either side. The palace was used for relaxation and for entertaining important guests.
We ended the day with a fabulous dinner at the Seasalt Restaurant at the hotel. The Seasalt Restaurant is set in a traditional Balinese open air pavilion surrounded by lotus ponds. It was the perfect way to relax after a busy day touring East Bali.
We ate breakfast at the Seasalt Restaurant each morning. Breakfast is a 3 course chef prepared meal, and always included lots of luscious tropical fruit. My favorite breakfast entree was buttermilk pancakes served with fresh banana, honeycomb butter and palm sugar syrup.
It was the honeycomb butter on these pancakes that I really fell in love with. I’d never had honeycomb butter before, so when I got home I did a search for a recipe and it turns out honeycomb butter has nothing to do with real honeycomb. It’s made with honeycomb candy and it’s super easy to make with only 3 ingredients.
You could make your own honeycomb , but most recipes used a Crunchie bar, which is a popular candy bar in Australia. Since Bali is a popular destination for Australians, it makes sense that honeycomb butter would be on the menu. I found the Crunchie bar at a local gourmet market, Pirate O’s.
The palm syrup was super easy to make as well. I just picked up the coconut palm sugar at my regular grocery store. You could substitute maple syrup if you’d rather, but I think the palm syrup complements the honeycomb butter better.
My boys were crazy about these pancakes too. The butter is so good I couldn’t stop adding just a little bit more. Having them at home wasn’t quite as fun as eating them in Bali, but it’s pretty good substitute.
Banana Honeycomb Pancakes
Ingredients
- Banana Pancakes
- Bananas
- 8 ounces unsalted butter softened
- Crunchie bar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 ½ cups palm sugar
- ½ cup water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Honeycomb Butter
- Put the Crunchie bar in a Ziploc bag and pound with a meat tenderizer or rolling pin until finely crushed.
- In a small bowl, mix butter and honey until smooth. Add the crushed candy bar and mix until blended.
- Shape into a log on plastic wrap, roll, seal and chill in the fridge for 2 hours.
Palm Syrup
- Combine the sugar and the water in a small saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil.
- Reduce heat to low and simmer two minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
I stayed at the Jamahal and Alila Manngis as a guest but all opinions expressed are always my own.
Amanda @ Kevin & Amanda
Oh my gosh, I must try these ASAP!! Still dreaming about those honeycomb pancakes!! 🙂
Jessica @ Sweetest Menu
Wow! Looks like you had an amazing trip Barbara! I love creating recipes that have been inspired by my travels. These pancakes look and sound incredible!
2 Sisters Recipes ... by Anna and Liz
Fresh banana pancakes are our favorite pancakes on weekend. Beautiful trip and gorgeous photos! Thanks for a delicious breakfast recipe and for sharing all the exciting details about Bali!
Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella
The banana pancakes are so heavenly! I think every place has their own version and they’re all fabulous! I love the palm sugar syrup too-so addictive! Thanks for taking us along on your trip mum! 🙂 xxx
Carol
What an adventure you had! Such gorgeous photos-that sunset is breathtaking. A trip of a lifetime for sure.
And what a beautiful stack of pancakes too….they look delicious 🙂
Barbara Schieving
Thanks Carol! I hope you’ll give the pancakes a try.
Roberta Breuer
I lived in Bali for 2 years and drove everywhere! But you are right, not for the faint of heart!! Where were you in East Bali?
Roberta Breuer
Barbara Schieving
Hi Roberta – I’ve always dreamed of living on a tropical island. We stayed at the Alila Manngis hotel.
Letty / Letty's Kitchen
This brings out the sweet tooth in me. And I learned about Crunchie bars! Yum.
My girlfriend is going to Bali to visit her brother. She is coming over to get a scooter lesson from Robbie.
Last year I posted on FB a photo of Robbie, me and #carlosdog on our scooter. My old friend in Bali replied with a written spanking because we were wearing flip-flops and no helmets. He says that is how most tourists have to cut their vacations short–injuries due to scooters. I am sending her your post! 😉
Barbara Schieving
Thanks Letty! She’ll be glad she got a scooter lesson. The drivers were very courtesy though, they would give a friendly beep beep before passing each other. There wasn’t any middle finger salutes like you might see in a big US city. lol How great that she gets to go hand out with her brother in Bali.
Melissa @ Bless this Mess
Trip of a LIFETIME!!! I’m so glad to live it through your pictures. Sign me up for those pancakes too!
Barbara Schieving
Thanks Melissa! You’ll have to give them a try.
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar
Honeycomb butter???? OMG!! This looks awesome!
Barbara Schieving
It really is dangerously awesome.
Medeja
Oh I would love both..visiting Bali and having such pancakes 🙂
Barbara Schieving
Thanks Medeja. If you can’t make it to Bali, definitely give the pancakes a try.
Stephanie Hartley
I’m currently deciding on where to go for my next holiday and wow this resort in Bali looks incredible!!
Steph