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.
Three plates of Vegan Protein Pancakes
Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways

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.

A plate of Vegan Protein Pancakes
Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways

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.
Strawberries and Cream Vegan Protein Pancakes
Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways

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.
Chocolate Banana Vegan Protein Pancakes
Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways

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.
Blueberry and Almond Vegan Protein Pancakes
Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways

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.
Three plates of Vegan Protein Pancakes
Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways

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).

Three types of Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways
Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways

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:

Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways (Gluten-Free)

  • Servings: 3-4 (makes 15-16 pancakes)
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

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.

Ingredients

    For the Basic Protein Pancakes:
  • 250g oat flour
  • 50g vegan vanilla protein powder
  • 2 tbsp ground chia seeds
  • 1 ½ tbsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 480ml plant-based milk
  • 60ml maple syrup
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • A pinch of salt
  • Oil, for frying
  • For the Strawberries and Cream:
  • 200g strawberries, trimmed weight, divided
  • 1 tbsp coconut sugar
  • ½ tsp vanilla essence
  • 3-4 tbsp thick dairy-free yoghurt
  • 3-4 tbsp sunflower seeds
  • For the Chocolate Banana:
  • 3-4 tbsp thick dairy-free yoghurt
  • 1 banana
  • 3-4 tbsp melted chocolate
  • 3-4 tbsp dark chocolate bananas
  • For the Blueberry Almond:
  • 200g blueberries, divided
  • 4 tbsp runny almond butter
  • 2 tbsp maple syrup
  • 3-4 tbsp thick dairy-free yoghurt
  • 3-4 tbsp dried fruits and nuts

Directions

  1. Make the pancake batter: whisk together the oat flour, vanilla protein, ground chia seeds, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Pour in the milk, maple syrup and apple cider vinegar and stir to a thick, smooth batter. Leave to rest for 5 minutes, where it will continue to thicken.
  2. Heat a non-stick pan with a little oil and once hot, add ¼ cup of the batter to the pan and form a circle. Allow to cook for 2-3 minutes until golden underneath and some bubbles form on top then flip over the cook the second side. Transfer to a plate, cover to keep warm and repeat to make 15-16 pancakes.
  3. For the Strawberries and Cream topping: quarter 160g of strawberries and add to a saucepan with the sugar and vanilla. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring often, till sticky and softening. Keep the remaining 40g strawberries un-cooked. Stack the pancakes, top with the yoghurt, then the warmed strawberries and their juices before adding some fresh strawberries and sunflower seeds.
  4. For the Chocolate Banana topping: slice the banana and melt the chocolate. Stack the pancakes and top with the yoghurt, banana, melted chocolate and dark chocolate bananas.
  5. For the Blueberry Almond topping: warm 150g of blueberries till soft and juicy (either in the microwave or on the hob). Stir together almond butter and syrup till smooth, warming the mix if needed to make the almond caramel sauce pourable. Stack the pancakes, top with the yoghurt, warmed blueberries, fresh blueberries, blueberry almond and goji mix and then the almond caramel sauce.
  6. Once stacked and topped, enjoy the pancakes straight away, or keep basic pancakes for 1-2 days in the fridge in a sealed container or for up to 1 month in the freezer. Allow to de-frost and warm back up in a frying pan.
Landscape photo of Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways
Vegan Protein Pancakes 3 Ways

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 TwitterFacebook and Pinterest  – please say hello!

With protein pancake love x

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