Best 3-Ingredient Vegan Pancakes

3-ingredient vegan pancakes are gluten-free, dairy-free, easy to throw together and – most importantly –healthy, fluffy and delicious! The touch of magic is in the toppings – see my selections below.

I always thought of pancakes as something only for lazy weekends, but after discovering this simple recipe I’ve now had them a number of times on weekdays.

The beauty is that they are quick and easy to make with ingredients you usually have on hand in the kitchen, so you can whip these up in less than 15 minutes and be out the door.

Basic Principles for 3-ingredient Vegan Pancakes

3-ingredient pancake recipes are based on the principle of bananas as a binding agent with all its potassium goodness, your non-dairy milk of choice and then oats for the body. A food processor does all the work to bring it together.

I know for a fact some people out there may not like bananas, so I have included a link to an alternative recipe without bananas below with the substitute of baking soda and baking powder.

Quick Tips on the 3 Ingredients

Your milk of choice is straightforward, but if you really want the lowdown here’s a great guide to choosing non-dairy milk. When it comes to the bananas and oats, however, there are a couple of things to keep in mind:

Bananas should be spotty and therefore very ripe. This not only makes it easier to blend and get the right consistency, but ripe bananas are at the peak of their sweetness. Sweet and smooth, that’s what you’re after.

With oats you can choose whatever you like, just make sure to only use buckwheat oats if you have a power blender. Buckwheat oats are great soaked for porridge, but they need to be properly blended to make pancake mixture. If you have a Vitamix or power blender you’re fine.

Ingredients

• 2 cups of gluten-free rolled oats (or oat flour)
• 1 cup choice of non-dairy mile (almond, soy, coconut)
• 1 spotty, ripe banana

 

Directions

1. If using oats and not oat flour, grind oats in a blender
2. Add other ingredients and blend well until smooth
3. Place ¼ cup into a non-stick pan on medium heat (3 tbsp works for mini-pancakes)
4. When you see bubbling in the middle of the pancake, then you can flip away – just do it carefully!

Although I haven’t done it myself, I have read that these pancakes are great to freeze and eat at another time, such as dunked in honey or sprinkled with cocoa. I can easily imagine that.

 

The Toppings!

You can let your imagination run wild here or simply just throw whatever is to hand on your pancakes – seeds or nuts for crunch, fruit for extra sweetness or tang, vegan chocolate sauce for indulgence.

Some of my favorite combinations to throw on these pancakes are:

Majool dates cut fine with cinnamon

Sunflower, pumpkin or hemp seeds (which are fast becoming my favorite nutrient powerhouse of a seed)

Roasted pine nuts – I love the earthy and sweet combination

Strawberries and cracked black pepper (don’t knock it ‘til you try it)

Flaked almonds or walnuts

If you have some time to prepare, then the following toppings are perfect to make and then keep in the fridge and spoon over your pancakes whenever you need them. The chocolate sauce is divine.

Blueberry Sauce

Place 1 cup of ripe, fresh blueberries in a pan on medium heat with a tablespoon of brown sugar, ½ teaspoon of cinnamon and ¼ teaspoon nutmeg.

Cover and mix every couple of minutes (you are trying to get the condensation to soften everything but mixing it occasionally so nothing sticks). Press gently as the blueberries start to soften and liquids are released, then lower heat and cover. Add 1 tsp of flour to thicken if desired and continue to mix and cover until the sauce is the desired thickness.

Vegan Chocolate Sauce

In a small sauce pan, bring ¼ cup maple syrup and ¼ cup water to a simmer. Stir in cacao powder with a whisk over 2 -3 minutes, taking care to keep the liquid at a low simmer. Once the powder is fully mixed in and allow the mixture to cool. Transfer to a glass jar to cool – or, of course, straight on to your pancakes!

And finally, as some people may not like bananas (and I’m not judging!) find our favourite recipe without bananas here at Natalie’s feastingfruit page.