Mmm mmm macadamia nut birthday pancakes

Due to inspiration from our jolly jaunt here, I whipped up a stack of macadamia nut pancakes generously drizzled with irresistible coconut syrup for a dear friend's birthday.
A vintage novel heart topper adds to the sweet commemoration. I ended up slathering layers of Nutella and sugared strawberries between the pancakes to complement the birthday pancake festivity and failed to snap a snapshot of the final concoction because it was too busy journeying into our stomachs. Birthday pancakes earn a thumbs up, indeed. They'd earn yours too, I bet. Especially the coconut syrup. I promise.

Mmm Mmm Macadamia Nut Pancakes with Coconut Syrup
Ingredients for pancakes:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups buttermilk, room temperature
2 eggs
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tbsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup macadamia nuts, chopped

Ingredients for coconut syrup:
1 13.5 oz can coconut milk
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups light corn syrup
2 tbsp cornstarch

Directions:
1. In a saucepan, whisk together coconut milk and cornstarch until cornstarch is dissolved. Pour in corn syrup and sugar. Stir continually until mixture boils. Once coconut syrup mixture comes to a consistent boil, remove from heat. Cool completely before serving.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking power, and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, mix together the buttermilk, eggs, butter, and vanilla extract.
4. Combine the wet and dry ingredients. Mix well until you get a lumpy batter. Fold in macadamia nuts.
5. Heat a griddle to 375 degrees. Pour a 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake onto the griddle. When bubbles appear on the top of your pancakes,  flip them over and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Serve immediately with coconut syrup (and sugared strawberries and Nutella - see notes below).

Notes:
Add sugared strawberries and Nutella between and atop pancakes for a berry chocolatey twist. To make sugared strawberries, slice strawberries into a Tupperware container. Add enough sugar to cover the strawberries. Close the container and shake well so that the sugar distributes evenly. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours so that the strawberries sugar in their own syrup. Then add onto pancakes and enjoy the splendid strawberry sweetness!