Pancakes, although not a local delicacy, have become a stable breakfast dish for many in the islands. With a ton of recipes online to play around with, the sweet treat can be paired with just about anything.

While many have grown accustomed to pairing fruits such as strawberries, kiwis, and bananas and dousing them in syrup, honey or agave, one local chef has decided to turn tradition on its head and his creations have already made their way into local supermarkets.

Just when you thought breakfast couldn’t get any sweeter, culinary teacher and owner of Youuchef, Kwesi Selvon has decided to take things up a notch by infusing the colours and flavours of local fruits and vegetables into his pancake creations.

[caption id="attachment_928763" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Culinary teacher and creator of Youuchef Kwesi Selvon started his pancake business on his mother's advice. The former head lecturer at Tobago Hospitality and Tourism Institute is infusing the flavours of local fruits and vegetables in his pancake mixes.[/caption]

Selvon has a line of just-add-water pancake mixes to rival that of top international brands on the local market such as Pearl Milling Company — formerly Aunt Jemima — and Betty Crocker. The mixes come in nine flavours: banana, barbadine, beetroot, carrot, cinnamon, Julie mango, pumpkin, sapodilla, and soursop.

"These pancake mixes give parents with their children and individuals a healthier option in consuming very beneficial ingredients," Selvon said.

Even with the promise of success of his new business, Selvon said he is a teacher first and foremost.

“I have been a culinary lecturer for about 16 years. The teaching has always been in me. The aim as a teacher is to pass on information that people can use whether they want to start a business or do something at home.”

Selvon offers tutorials on how to make everyday Caribbean meals on YouTube, which can be accessed on his Instagram page @youuchef. He begins each video with the phrase, “Welcome to Youuchef, where you are the chef.”

He said, “The second ‘u’ in Youuchef represents the person (learning).”

Selvon began his career in the culinary arts after being prompted by his mother, who enrolled him in classes after he finished secondary school.

“When you are young, you’re not sure what you want to do. My mother signed me up for classes and came home and said, ‘You have school on Monday,’” he joked.

“I wasn’t sure what to do with my life, but she saw the cooking in me and that was it.” He said it was also his mother’s advice that encouraged him to start his own line of pancake mixes.

[caption id="attachment_928765" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Kwesi Selvon's Youuchef pancake mixes featuring beetroot, Julie mango, pumpkin and carrot on the shelf at Massy Stores.[/caption]

Selvon has a bachelor's degree in culinary management and a masters degree in business administration which he completed earlier this year.

He said while he was in school other teachers noticed that he had a gift for teaching and would often p