Good morning! I’m sitting cross-legged on my hotel bed in San Antonio, next to a big window overlooking the Tower of Americas. It’s so cloudy I can barely see the top of it. The fog in my head is slowly lifting as I sip on my cup of coffee, and I just scraped the last bits of my “all natural, super premium” (what does that mean?) instant oatmeal off the sides of its disposable cup with a plastic fork. It’s not bad.
That oatmeal and these photos of fluffy banana pancakes take me back to last Saturday, when I took my time making breakfast, with Cookie by my feet. Cookie loves bananas almost as much as she loves cheese, did you know that? I couldn’t resist making her twirl around on her back feet for bites of banana. Sometimes I think she escaped from the circus, that dog.
These banana pancakes are a little more time consuming than the average from-scratch pancakes, but my oh my, was my work rewarded on my lazy Saturday morning. After making, photographing and fending the cakes from Cookie, I sat down and slid the side of my grandmother’s old fork through three layers of the most creamy, fluffy, heavenly sweet pancakes I have ever tasted.
To my pleasant surprise, I realized that the pancakes inherited oatmeal’s creamy texture thanks to the oat flour, and that the bananas contributed such a lovely, natural sweetness that they hardly needed any syrup. I topped my banana pancakes with sliced banana, toasted coconut flakes and a drizzle of maple syrup, but peanut butter or coconut butter would be a natural fit as well.
So reward yourself after a hard week of work with these banana pancakes while you sip on some freshly brewed coffee from your own mug. You deserve it!
Gluten-Free Banana Oat Pancakes
These fluffy banana oat pancakes are a deliciously healthy, naturally sweetened breakfast for lazy mornings. The recipe is made with 100% oat flour instead of wheat flour, so it’s gluten free, as well as dairy free. Recipe yields about 8 pancakes.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the oat flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.
- In a small mixing bowl, stir together the mashed bananas, melted butter, maple syrup, and lemon juice. Add the eggs and whisk until blended. (If your butter or oil goes back to its solid state like mine did at this point, just warm the mixture for short 15-second bursts in the microwave, stirring between each, until it is melted again.)
- Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. With a big spoon, stir just until the dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened. Do not overmix!
- Let the batter rest for 10 minutes to give it time to thicken. If you’re using an electric griddle, heat it to 350 degrees Fahrenheit now. Otherwise, you can wait a few minutes before heating your skillet.
- Warm a large skillet (stainless steel or nonstick) over medium-low heat. You’re ready to start cooking pancakes once a drop of water sizzles on contact with the hot surface. If necessary, lightly oil the cooking surface with a pat of butter or oil, carefully wiping up excess with a paper towel (nonstick surfaces likely won’t require any oil).
- Scoop ¼ cup batter onto the hot skillet, leaving a couple of inches around the pancake for expansion. Cook until small bubbles form on the surface of the pancake and the underside is golden, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Flip the pancake, then cook until lightly golden on both sides, 1 to 2 minutes more. Repeat the process with the remaining batter, adding more butter and dialing down the heat if the pancakes turn dark on the outside before they’re cooked through on the inside.
- Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200 degree Fahrenheit oven. Leftover pancakes can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, or frozen for up to 3 months. To reheat, stack leftover pancakes and wrap them in a paper towel before gently reheating in the microwave.
Notes
Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking.
Gluten-free notes: These pancakes are gluten-free, so long as you used certified gluten-free oat flour or certified gluten-free old-fashioned oats.
*How to make your own oat flour: To make oat flour out of old-fashioned oats, simply pour one cup of oats into a food processor and process until it looks like fine sand. See pictures here.
Preparation tips: This whole grain batter is thicker than most, so it’s more difficult to gauge when the pancakes are ready to flip. I learned that it’s easier to go by the timer: set it for 2 minutes for the first side, then gently check underneath to see if it’s golden (if not, wait up to 1 more minute). Flip and wait another 90 seconds for the other side to finish. The time will vary depending on your temperature setting and subsequent pancakes will cook more quickly, but that’s about the time it should take.
Freeze it: These pancakes freeze well. (I’ve never met a pancake that doesn’t.) Commenter Megan had good luck making the batter the night before, refrigerating it overnight, and proceeding with the recipe the next morning (add a splash of milk to thin out the batter).
Make it dairy free: Just use coconut oil instead of butter.
Make it egg free: Replace the eggs with flax eggs (I’ve heard this works well from other commenters, but haven’t had a chance to try myself).
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
