Vegan Banana Oat Pancakes (Gluten Free)

These vegan banana oat pancakes are deliciously wholesome and made from basic ingredients. They’re mixed in a blender to keep things easy and create soft, dense pancakes for a hearty and tasty breakfast.

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Are Banana Oat Pancakes Vegan?

While it’s easy to make vegan pancakes, most pancake recipes include dairy and/or eggs meaning they’re not vegan.

This tasty banana oat pancakes recipe is free from eggs, dairy and gluten, making them an easy and delicious choice for many people!

You’ll replace eggs with chia seeds and banana, while also replacing the dairy with plant-based milk!

The Best Banana Oat Pancake Ingredients

This recipe uses basic ingredients to create tasty pancakes that are soft and fairly dense. While the pancakes will fluff slightly, heavier ingredients create a hearty and wholesome breakfast!

• Rolled oats: Using oatmeal in place of flour creates a tasty and gluten free pancake. I simply blend rolled oats before adding the other ingredients; this creates oat flour quickly and easily.
• Chia seeds: To help the pancakes hold together, in place of eggs I use chia seeds. You could also use ground flaxseed.
• Baking powder: To get a lighter and fluffier pancake, you’ll need baking powder. While this creates a nice texture, these are still fairly dense pancakes. I have another gluten free pancake recipe that creates very fluffy pancakes if you’re interested. It’s the banana weighs these pancakes down a bit more.
• Pinch of salt: Salt is an easy way to enhance flavor in pretty much any recipe!
• Plant-based milk: Select whichever plant-based milk you like as the liquid for these pancakes. I typically use unsweetened soy milk, but you can keep the recipe soy free by using another type.
• Vegetable oil: Some oil helps create a soft pancake that won’t taste dry.
• Vanilla extract: Vanilla adds a nice flavor to the pancakes but is technically optional.
• Apple cider vinegar: While baking powder doesn’t require acid to activate, I find using some vinegar helps to get slightly fluffier pancakes. I also like the slight flavor it provides.
• Bananas: It’s best to use ripe bananas as they’re softer, sweeter and easier to blend. This is a great recipe to use bananas that are starting to brown. Just slice and measure the bananas before using, otherwise you’ll end up with a mucky pancake that doesn’t set up properly.

How to Make Vegan Banana Pancakes with Oats

These are easy pancakes to make, but there are some very important tips to keep in mind. Banana pancakes do not cook like typical pancakes do. You’ll need to keep the heat lower and allow your pancakes enough time to cook through to the center.

Step 1: Blend the Pancake Batter

These pancakes are easily made in a blender. The first step is to add rolled oats and blend them into oat flour. Simply turn the blender on high until your oats become a fine powder.

Next, add your remaining ingredients to the blender. Measure the banana, after slicing it, to get a proper amount. Too much banana makes it difficult to cook and may result in an overly thick, mushy pancake.

Blend everything until it’s nice and smooth.

The pancake batter needs to sit for about 5 minutes before you start to cook it. This time helps thicken your batter as the oat flour and chia seeds absorb liquid. By the time you pour it into the pan, your batter will be quite thick.

Step 2: Cook the Pancakes

These pancakes do not cook like regular pancakes. They need less heat and extra time to cook through to the center.

Warm a non-stick pan over medium-low heat. I like to cook pancakes in some vegan butter for delicious flavor and to help keep the pancakes from sticking to my pan.

The pan is heated enough when your batter makes a slight sizzle noise as it’s poured in. A loud sizzle means the pan is too hot, while no sizzle means the pan is too cold.

Pour or scoop your pancake batter into the pan, then use the back of a spoon or other utensil to spread into an even, thin layer (less than ½ in or 1 cm thick is ideal). The batter is too thick to spread out on its own, so you’ll need to help it.

Allow the pancake to cook for 4-5 minutes on the first side. A few bubbles may come to the surface, but don’t expect too many. Check the bottom of your pancake to make sure it isn’t too dark or burning. It should be golden brown when ready to flip, after about 4 minutes. If it’s browning too much, the pan is too hot, and you should turn down the heat.

Flip the pancake and allow the second side to cook for another 3-4 minutes.

This process may feel like it takes a while, but you need the lower cooking temperature and longer time to cook these banana oat pancakes. They’re quite dense.

Step 3: Serve

Once all the pancakes are cooked, it’s time to serve!

If you need to keep cooked pancakes warm while cooking the rest, place them on a baking tray and insert into your oven on its lowest heat setting. This will keep them warm until all the pancakes are cooked and ready to serve.

Top with any of your favorite pancake toppings. Maple syrup, vegan butter, fruit, jams, peanut butter, chocolate chips or chocolate sauce – literally anything you want!

One topping I love adding to these pancakes is something I call “protein syrup”. Essentially, it’s powdered peanut butter (“protein”) mixed with maple syrup.

This combo creates an amazingly delicious, peanut-buttery-caramel tasting topping that I love! It tastes so good and is also great for dipping apple slices into.

How to Create a Balanced Vegan Meal

I consider a balanced meal to be one that includes a good source of plant-based protein, healthy fats, carbohydrates and vegetables (or fruits).

This recipe contains plenty of healthy carbohydrates from oats and banana. The banana also counts towards your fruit/ veggie intake for the meal. There’s also a small amount of healthy fats and an even smaller amount of protein.

Protein and fats help keep you feeling full and satisfied, so it’s best to add them to every meal if possible. With pancakes, this is easily done by adding peanut butter or any type of nut/ seed butter as a topping!

Toss on some extra fruit and you’ll have a deliciously balanced meal.

If you’re only a fan of syrup on pancakes, consider serving these with something that contains protein. For breakfast, a small protein smoothie could be nice.

How to Refrigerate and Freeze these Pancakes

If you don’t eat all your pancakes at once, you can refrigerate them. You should ideally use an airtight container but could also cover a plate of pancakes with plastic wrap.

You can refrigerate the pancakes for up to a week. Reheat in the microwave or in a pan over medium-low heat until heated through.

I haven’t had a chance to freeze these pancakes yet but would assume you can freeze them just fine. Freeze in a freezer bag or wrap in plastic wrap before putting into a freezer safe container. I believe they’d last for up to 2 months in the freezer. To thaw, let them sit in the fridge overnight then reheat in a pan on the stove.

If you make this recipe, please rate and comment below to help others benefit from your experience!

More Vegan Breakfast Recipes

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