Carrot Cake Pancakes – Vegan

Full of carrot cake flavour and are subtly sweet, my 5 year old likes them best plain. They make a quick breakfast made-ahead of time. They reheat beautifully in the toaster, never once breaking or getting stuck, but actually also taste great straight cold from the fridge too.  Makes 10 (3 ½” diam.)

Ingredients

2 flax eggs: 2 Tablespoons flax meal (ground flax seeds) mixed with 5 Tablespoons water
1 cup buckwheat flour (about 120g) *
½  teaspoon BP
½  teaspoon bicarb
1 tsp cinnamon
¼  tsp ginger
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp allspice
¼  tsp ground cloves
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ripe banana, mashed (or use applesauce – see other recipe here)
¾ cup plant-based milk of choice (about 175 ML)
2 teaspoons lemon juice (this is important for making the pancakes rise)
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Zest of 1 small orange (optional)
1 large (or two small) carrots, finely grated (about 100g total)
Coconut oil (or oil of choice) for greasing the griddle

Mix-in ideas:  A handful or two of sultanas, chopped walnuts or other nuts, or dried unsweetened coconut. (Can also be studded into the pancake batter after you spoon it onto the pan/griddle.)

Topping ideas:  Cream cheese (regular or plant-based), whipped cream (regular or coconut milk), chopped walnuts or other nuts of choice, grated orange zest

1. Make flax eggs – mix together flax-meal & water in small bowl – sit for 5 minutes.

2. In another small mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients.

3. In a medium mixing bowl, mash the banana and add the other wet ingredients, stirring to combine. The lemon juice is important in making the pancakes fluffy as it activates the bicarb, creating bubbles in the batter.

4. Add drys to the wet ingredients and stir, then fold in the orange zest and grated carrot.

5. Add in any optional mix-ins (or reserve them and sprinkle/stud them directly into each pancake while cooking.)

6. Heat a medium-large frying pan or griddle on medium heat, add a teaspoon of oil and tilt the pan to distribute it.

7. Spoon the batter into the pan, using about 1/3 cup per pancake to make them roughly 3 ½ inches in diameter (or to your desired size). Stud with raisins or other mix-ins, if desired.

8. Cook about 3 minutes or until the edges begin to look dry. Flip and cook about 2 minutes longer.

9. Transfer to a plate and if making the cake version, spread the top of each pancake with cream cheese (plant-based or regular) or whipped cream (coconut or regular) and stack them. Top with chopped walnuts and grated orange zest and serve!

* Buckwheat pancakes often come out stodgy, but these have a great light and spongy texture, partially due to the lemon juice that activates the bicarb, creating bubbles in the batter and helping them to rise. So don’t skip the lemon juice!

NUTRITION FACTS PER PANCAKE:
CALORIES 90 TOTAL FAT 2G PROTEIN 2G TOTAL CARBOHYDRATE 16G DIETARY FIBER 5G TOTAL SUGARS 2G ADDED SUGARS 0G