Fluffy vegan pancakes
We used to make pancakes from scratch before our food allergy daughter was born. It was all about the buttermilk and the way it reacted with the baking soda and baking powder that would make the batter filled with tiny bubbles that made the pancakes so incredibly fluffy.
Fast forward, and buttermilk is no longer an option. Take away the egg, and you have a pancake that barely stays together. Crumble, crumble. Dairy-free, egg-free pancakes are tough and there are so many recipes out there. So many different egg replacers. I love JUST Egg in some of my cooking, and for about two years I used it with my pancakes. But then I decided to use a flax egg instead and wow. Such better binding.
I’ve tinkered with a few different recipes and kind of combined them all to come up with this one, and it’s been my standby for months now.
Please feel free to check out my Instagram for more recipes and tips for our food allergic kids!
Fluffy vegan pancakes
Serves 4
Ingredients:
Wet ingredients:
2 cups refrigerated plain oat milk or other nondairy milk (see note below)
2 TBS apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
2 TBS canola oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
Flax egg:
2 TBS ground flax seeds
5 TBS water
Dry ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
2 TBS granulated sugar
1 TBS baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp table salt
Directions:
Put nondairy milk into medium microwave-safe bowl. Heat in microwave until warm. Add vinegar, canola oil, vanilla. Let sit while putting the rest of ingredients together. This wait time is important - it gives the liquid time to curdle which makes the bubbles later.
Make flax egg. In ramekin or small bowl, combine ground flax seeds with water. Let sit to become gelatinous.
Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt. Whisk to combine.
After wet ingredients have curdled and the flax egg has become gelatinous, pour wet ingredients and flax egg into dry ingredients. Whisk gently until barely combined. There should still be lumps (smooth batter yields flatter pancakes).
Let batter sit for a few minutes. This is important because this is when the bubbles form. If you start cooking them too early, they will be very flat and crumbly.
On a pan heated to medium, drop about 1/4 or 1/3 cup portions of batter to form pancakes. Add toppings at this point (see below for topping ideas).
Flip pancakes after about 2 minutes when the bottoms have browned and the tops are bubbly. Cook for another 2 minutes on the other side.
Plate pancakes and repeat with more batches until all batter is used up. Serve warm.
Allergens: wheat
*Refrigerated oat milk tends to be a little thicker than shelf-stable oat milk. It makes a difference in the texture of the pancakes.
*Topping ideas:
rinsed frozen blueberries (rinse beforehand so blueberries don’t turn all blue)
diced apples with cinnamon
Enjoy Life chocolate chips (vegan and nut-free!)
crushed up Trix or Fruity Pebbles
Do you have any other toppings your family loves? Please share in the comments!
