Fluffy Whole Wheat Pancakes
I always feel like the pancake switch goes off as soon as the weekend draws a little closer. This coming weekend is no different! And when I’m thinking of pancakes, I’m very picky. That’s why these fluffy whole wheat pancakes check all the boxes for me in the pancake department. Not only are they fluffy, but they remind me of weekend breakfasts growing up. And yes, you can have those fond breakfast memories, delicious tasting pancakes and the health benefits all attached in the same experience.
I’ve made a number of attempts at whole grain pancakes. A lot of my earlier attempts either felt as hard as hockey pucks or just never got to the fluffiness I look for in pancakes. After a bit of tweaking, these pancakes have become a staple go to. I personally like my pancakes loaded with blueberries, but these are pretty easy to customize to your liking. You can fold chocolate chips in, other berries, shredded coconut, or even use different spices to help change the flavors more to your liking.
I gave myself extra points for making this all in one bowl too. Two main things important for these fluffy whole wheat pancakes: a chemical reaction from some baking soda and apple cider vinegar as well as a thicker batter. The reaction of the baking soda and apple cider vinegar are super important here because they generate nice air pockets in the batter that help keep these pancakes super light even though there is competition with the dense whole grain flour. And the thick batter is equally important because it prevents the pancakes from spreading too much, which allows them to stay nice and plump as they cook. Just take this rich batter over to a griddle and you are ready for the most amazing feel-good pancakes!
Some fluffy whole wheat pancake topping ideas
- Nothing wrong with some classic maple syrup (agave or date syrup are great too)
- A few dollops of yogurt
- Fresh fruit
- Store bought or homemade fruit jam
- Peanut butter
- Homemade sauces (I personally love to mix 1 tbsp peanut butter with 2 tsp maple syrups and 2 tbsp of water)
More breakfast inspiration
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Fluffy Whole Wheat Pancakes
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Breakfast
- Cuisine: American
Description
Super fluffy whole wheat pancakes for a delicious and nutritious breakfast. Enjoy on the weekend or meal prep in advance for the week!
Ingredients
- 1 ripe banana
- 1 tbsp ground flax seeds
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tbsp sugar or maple syrup
- 1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
- 1 1/4 cups non-dairy milk
- 1/3 cups frozen blueberries
- Zest of one lemon (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat a griddle or pan.
- In a mixing bowl, add banana and with a whisk or fork mash banana until mostly smooth.
- Add in flax seed and water and give mixture a good stir and let sit for 2-3 minutes.
- Next, add in apple cider vinegar, vanilla, salt, and sugar and mix this in well.
- Add in baking soda and baking powder.
- Stir well again and you will notice the mixture react and start to fluff up.
- Add in flour, zest and milk and mix to form a thick batter (avoid over mixing).
- Fold in blueberries into the batter.
- When griddle is ready, scoop 1/4 cup of pancake batter onto griddle surface and cook for 2-3 minutes or until bottom of pancake is golden.
- Flip and cook other side for 2-3 minutes as well. Remove from heat and eat.
Notes
- You can swap out the white whole wheat flour with whole wheat pastry flour, regular white flour, and spelt flour. Avoid using regular whole wheat flour as it is much denser than white whole wheat flour.Â
- One tested gluten free option I have used for this recipe is buckwheat flour. Let me know if you’ve tried it with any other flour mixtures!
- This recipe makes 8-10 pancakes depending on size.Â
Did You Try This Recipe?
Then let me know what you thought! Share your creations by tagging me on Instagram with the hashtag #plantbasedrdeats
★ Catherine
Would coconut flour work for this recipe?
I haven’t tested it with coconut flour only because I haven’t been able to find it since the start of the pandemic. For a gluten free alternative I do a half and half mix of oat flour and rice flour and they still come out fluffy. Hope that helps!
This is the first vegan pancake that turn as fluffy as I always wanted them to be! I follow step by step and loved them! I have a question tho, how much time does the batter last on the fridge? Or do you recommend to do all the pancakes and store them? ( is just that the recipe is for many pancake and I am just one jaja) thank you!
So glad! And great question. Often times I will cook all the pancakes and then freeze them. You can use them for breakfast during the week and pop one into the toaster to heat up when you want them. Hope that helps!