Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways (Gluten-Free)

These Vegan Protein Oat Pancakes 3 Ways are fluffy, delicious and wholesome made with oats, protein powder and chia seeds. They are gluten-free and a great brunch or breakfast.

These pancakes are my favourite to make for lazy weekend brunches or to make ahead of busy weeks as they are fluffy, golden and so delicious. Made with wholesome ingredients, they are easy to make in one bowl and are so versatile: top them with whatever you like. Here are three of my favourite ways to make these protein pancakes:

• Strawberries and Cream: juicy sticky berries and thick coconut (cream) yoghurt.
• Chocolate Banana: slices of fresh banana, lots of chocolate and melted chocolate.
• Blueberry Almond: nutty and fruity, these have warmed and fresh blueberries and almond butter caramel.

Why will I love these pancakes?

These pancakes are on repeat at home as they are:

• Fluffy, golden and delicious
• American style fluffiness
• Made with wholesome ingredients
• Naturally vegan, gluten-free, nut-free and high protein
• Easy and quick to make
• Made in one bowl with 8 basic ingredients
• Great to feed a crowd
• A delicious make-ahead breakfast (good for meal prep)
• Versatile and fun to serve

If you already love these pancakes, skip ahead to the recipe card below. Or, let’s discuss the recipe in more detail.

What ingredients do I need?

The base for these Vegan Protein Oat Pancakes 3 Ways is a mix of:

• Oat flour: add your oats to a blender and process to a fine flour. This is much cheaper than buying oat flour at the shops. Make sure the oats are certified gluten-free, where needed.
• Vegan protein powder: to keep the base mix simple, I use vanilla protein powder as it adds a natural sweetness and lovely vanilla flavour. You can play around with this flavour to make different flavoured pancakes like chocolate, salted caramel (from Awesome Supps) or tiramisu (FORM do a delicious blend).
• Ground chia seeds: or you can use flaxseeds. Add your whole chia/flax seeds to a blender and process to a fine meal texture. These will keep for a couple of months in a sealed jar/container. Ground chia seeds aren’t common to buy so I always grind them myself for a smoother textured batter so I make up a jars-worth at a time to use for cakes, cupcakes and banana breads, too. The chia seeds acts a thickener and a binder like an egg.
• Baking powder and bicarbonate of soda: for the rise, as these are American-style fluffy pancakes.
• Plant-based milk: use your favourite milk here like oat, almond, soya or coconut (from a carton).
• Maple syrup: for sweetness. You can use other sticky syrups like agave syrup or vegan honey.
• Apple cider vinegar: this helps to create the fluffy texture as it reacts with the milk to form a buttermilk and bind the batter.
• Salt: for flavour.
• Oil: for frying. I suggest using a non-stick pan for these pancakes so you don’t need to add much oil and they cook evenly without getting stuck.
• Thick dairy-free yogurt: I like coconut yoghurt for topping these Vegan Protein Oat Pancakes 3 Ways as it’s thick and creamy, and my go-to is Cocos Organic.

For the Strawberries and Cream flavour pancakes:

• Strawberries: we cook the strawberries in some coconut sugar for a lovely sweet, gooey and sticky topping.
• Coconut sugar: this adds a lovely caramel flavour to the strawberries as they cook. You can use other sugars, too, like golden or white caster or light brown sugar.
• Vanilla essence: for the flavour for the strawberries.
• Sunflower seeds: for crunch on top.

For the Chocolate Banana pancake stack:

• Banana: slice the banana and add on top of the pancakes.
• Melted chocolate: for drizzling over the stack. I use dark chocolate as that’s my favourite but any dairy-free chocolate is great.
• Chocolate covered bananas: these really are so delicious. They are chewy, sweet and chocolatey and add a great topping to these pancakes. I use the ones from Natures Heart Superfoods.

Finally, for the Blueberry Almond pancakes:

• Blueberries: warm some of the blueberries till gooey and saucy and save some fresh for crunch on top.
• Runny almond butter: for the almond butter caramel on top. For a nut-free option, use seed butter like tahini.
• Maple syrup: to stir into the almond butter for a quick and delicious caramel. As above, other syrups will be fine.
• Dried fruits and nuts: for texture and crunch. I used a dried blueberry, goji and almond mix which is delicious but sue whatever you have. If not, you can also add some granola instead.

How do I make these Vegan Protein Oat Pancakes 3 Ways?

These pancakes come together in one bowl and are easy to make:

• Stir together the dry ingredients: the oat flour, vanilla protein, ground chia seeds, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt till combined.
• Pour in the wet ingredients: the milk, maple syrup and apple cider vinegar and stir to a thick, smooth batter.
• Leave to rest for 5 minutes: when the batter will thicken.
• Heat a non-stick pan with a little oil: and wait till hot.
• Drop ¼ cup of batter (about 2 to 3 heaped tbsp) into the pan: per pancake and shape into a circle.
• Fry for 2 to 3 minutes: until golden underneath and flip over to cook the second side.
• Transfer to a plate to keep warm and cook the other pancakes: you’ll make 15-16 in total.
• Prepare the toppings: and serve your pancake stacks any way you like.

How long will these keep?

Once made, you can store these Vegan Protein Oat Pancakes 3 Ways in a sealed container or Ziploc bag in the fridge for 2-3 days and warm back up in a hot pan or enjoy cold. You can similarly freeze the pancakes for up to 1 month and allow to thaw at room temperature before enjoying hot or cold.

Are these pancakes gluten-free and nut-free?

Yes, these are gluten-free, please check that your oats are certified gluten-free. The base of the batter is nut-free (please use nut-free milk like coconut, oat or soya) and for the Blueberry and Almond pancakes, swap the almond butter for seed butter (like tahini or sunflower seed butter) and skip the dried nuts on top for more fruits, seeds or (nut-free) granola.

Can I make these without the protein?

Yes, you can swap the protein powder for more oat flour although you may need to use less milk as protein powder absorbs more liquid than oats. Please note, that these will no longer be Vegan Protein Oat Pancakes 3 Ways (although oats and chia seeds are sources of protein).

I love these pancakes, what else can I make?

I hope you are going to love making and eating these Vegan Protein Oat Pancakes 3 Ways and for more sweet breakfast and brunch ideas, how about my:

• Chocolate Filled Pancakes
• Chocolate Raspberry Crepe Cake
• Easy Vegan Porridge 3 Ways
• Gingerbread Caramel French Toast (great all year round)
• Vegan Caramel Apple Pancakes

I hope you are going to love these Vegan Protein Oat Pancakes 3 Ways so please let me know what you think below in the comments. If you do make these pancakes, I’d love to see so please tag me in them, I’m @nourishing.amy on Instagram and use the hashtag #nourishingamy. I’m also on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest  – please say hello!

With protein pancake love x