Growing up I had my fair share of pancakes but like most people, I probably ate pancakes that were made with flour as the main grain ingredient.
As an adult, I wanted a version of pancakes that had a little more oomph. I was on the lookout for what I considered were healthy oatmeal pancakes. After all, oatmeal pancakes should have a decent amount of rolled oats in my opinion.
Healthy Oatmeal Pancakes
A lot of recipes call for a token amount of oats, maybe 1/2 cup (125 ml) or so. But that’s not my idea of an awesome oatmeal pancake recipe. I want more!
I want my pancakes to be as hearty as a bowl of oatmeal if I’m gonna eat some. This recipe uses a hefty one and a half cups of rolled oats! Another bonus is that it uses one and a half cups of milk as well. Milk provides a decent amount of easily digestible protein (use lactose-free milk if lactose is a problem), calcium, potassium, vitamins Ba, B12, B2 and more.
The combination of the rolled oats and milk makes these pancakes a great source of protein and prebiotics.
Banana oatmeal pancakes
One of the more popular variations of pancakes, besides chocolate chip. is banana. There are a couple of ways to sneak bananas into this recipe. After pouring the batter onto the grill, before flipping them, add a few thin banana slices on top while they cook. How many slices will depend on the size of the pancake!
Alternatively, you could replace some of the milk with a little mashed banana for added flavor. Slicing them is easier as you have to play with proportions in the wet mixture.
Vegan oatmeal pancakes
Pancakes are super easy to adapt to a vegan version. Instead of using egg as a binding agent, you can use a vegan egg substitute or flax and water. To make, use 3 Tablespoons of water and 2 1/2 teaspoons of ground flaxseed; whish together and add to the batter.
Milk alternatives such as soy, almond, rice, pea, oat, or hemp beverage, etc are easy to swap out the milk for.
I’d recommend 100% organic soy beverage. That way you know you’ll be getting a beverage that uses the whole soybean and not just a beverage that uses water and isolated soy protein. As well, like milk, soy beverage delivers on protein making the vegan version both high fiber and high protein. Some milk alternatives like pea and others are higher can be higher in protein too if they’ve been fortified with a vegan protein powder – be sure to check the label
Oatmeal Pancakes
Ingredients
- ½ cup flour
- 1 – ½ cups instant rolled oats
- 1- tablespoon baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 egg beaten
- 1- tablespoon oil
- 1- tablespoon honey
- 1 - ½ cups milk or use milk alternatives
Instructions
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Stir all dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until well mixed.
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Fry on a hot non-stick griddle (or use non-stick spray), turning when the edges begin to get firm, or when bubbles form and pop.
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Top with a little jam or syrup.
Doug Cook RDN is a Toronto based integrative and functional nutritionist and dietitian with a focus on digestive, gut, mental health. Follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.