My heart is heavy this morning. Our little Sketchie cat is going through a surgery right now. It broke my heart saying good-bye this morning. He has no idea what he’s in for, what he will wake up to, and have to recover from. I haven’t written much about Sketchie’s bowel problems (most likely because it doesn’t tie into the topic of food very well!), but our vet suspects that he has Irritable Bowel Disease. Many days he is running to get to his litter box in time. I won’t get into details, but it’s so sad to watch. His problems were there as a kitten and have gotten worse over the years. We’ve tried relentlessly to find a cure for his problems – grain-free food, the raw food diet, single protein food sources, pumpkin, probiotics – you name it, and nothing seemed to help for long and he’s also extremely picky with food so that complicates things too. He has had blood work and stool testing galore! I feel so bad for him because he obviously doesn’t understand what is going on with his body.
Our vet recommended that Sketchie have exploratory surgery where they will take a biopsy of his intestines, examine his organs, and look for anything unusual like cancer. If we just put him on medication it might cover up a serious problem that’s going on, so we decided it was best to know what’s really going on inside him. His recent blood work came back that he has low B12 which could be a result of IBD or it could be due to something more serious like lymphoma. The hardest part about this decision is that we don’t know for sure if it will end up finding a solution to his problem, but we figure it’s worth a shot for his long-term health and happiness. We really don’t know what else to do at this point. One thing is for sure; this wacky, quirky little cat has left such a mark on my heart, I can’t imagine my life without him and I would do anything to help him.
The house feels so empty and quiet this morning (there’s no one rubbing his head on my computer screen right now or meowing at me!), but I know he’s in great hands. And he will be spoiled and taken care of 24/7 when he’s home, so hopefully his recovery goes well. I’ll keep you posted on how he’s doing. Hopefully he doesn’t hate us too much, especially with that cone around his head and mystery incision.
There’s no good way to transition into a pancake recipe today, but let’s just go with it. I need a little comfort food right about now! I made these pancakes for Eric and I after the hockey game on Sunday to celebrate the Olympics. It was an event we looked forward to for weeks and I couldn’t think of a better way to treat ourselves. It’s been a LONG time since I wrote about pancakes on this blog…too long, in fact! Hopefully this makes up for lost time.
Easy Vegan and Gluten-Free Pancakes (Strawberry Shortcake + Whipped Cream)
Yield
9 pancakes
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
These vegan pancakes are made with raw buckwheat flour, rice flour, and arrowroot flour - making them naturally gluten-free - and chopped bananas are folded into the batter to provide a fluffy, pillow-like texture. You can enjoy them plain (they are seriously really good without anything added!), or you can get fancy and serve them with some coconut whipped cream, fresh berries, vegan butter, and/or maple syrup. The sky is the limit, pancake lovers. They are also fantastic with some finely chopped chocolate thrown into the batter or blueberries! You can tell I’ve made this recipe a lot! One word of caution: The combination of gluten-free flour is sensitive to changes. I don’t recommend subbing any of the flours with oat flour, for example - it tends to create a pancake that cracks, sticks to the pan, and falls apart. I don’t have any issues with this recipe when I follow it as written and use a non-stick skillet though. This recipe is adapted from my Vanilla Blueberry Buckwheat pancakes.
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw buckwheat groats, ground into a fine flour
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1.5 cups + 3 tablespoons almond milk
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup (or agave nectar)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 heaping cup diced ripe bananas (about 2 small/medium)
- Coconut Whipped Cream, for garnish
- Chopped Fresh Strawberries, for garnish
Directions
- Preheat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. A drop of water should sizzle on the skillet when it’s ready.
- In a blender, blend the buckwheat groats on high speed until a fine flour forms. Place into a large bowl. Now whisk in the rest of the dry ingredients (rice flour, arrowroot, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon).
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond milk, syrup, and vanilla extract. Pour this onto the dry ingredients and whisk the batter until no clumps remain.
- Dice the banana until it's the size of peas or a bit larger. Fold the diced banana into the batter.
- Lightly grease skillet (I spray olive oil on it). Scoop a heaping 1/4 cup of batter onto the preheated skillet and quickly spread the batter out into a circle. Cook until some bubbles appear and the edge looks deeper in colour and more firm. Flip and cook for another couple minutes until golden. Adjust heat as needed. Repeat for the other pancakes. I spray the skillet with oil before each pancake is cooked and this seems to work well.
- Stack and serve with Coconut Whipped Cream and fresh chopped strawberries, if desired. Or simply serve with pure maple syrup!
Tip:
- If using frozen blueberries, pour batter onto skillet first and then top with blueberries to prevent bleeding.
- I tried subbing the rice flour for oat flour and the pancakes stuck to the pan, so I would advise against that substitution.
- If at any time your batter is too thick or if you want thinner pancakes, simply thin it out with a splash or two of almond milk.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
Lastly, I want to thank all of you who have let me know you received the cookbook a bit early (Indigo is shipping early and stocking the book in some stores, FYI). I’ve received so many tweets from you sharing pictures of the book in your home, recipes you’ve already made, and the like. It’s really brightened up my week and I’m so grateful for your excitement and support. One week from today, the book will be officially released and out in the world. I feel nervous, excited, anxious, scared, and grateful all at once.
Don’t forget, if you haven’t taken advantage of the Bonus Recipe Bundle with 10 bonus recipes you can still do so until next week. Details here.
Now go on and treat yourself to some pancakes!
Lovely. I used chia seeds dissolved in water to form a gel of the consistency of a beaten egg to bind the mixture instead of banana.
I am currently studying abroad in Spain, and one thing I have been craving like crazy is a good ole’ pancake and this recipe looks divine! I guess returning back to the states in a few months won’t be too horrible since I’ll be able to make these beauties!
Can the almond milk be substituted for coconut milk?
These were great! My Eric and I made them for lunch today and are going to bookmark this recipe to be used again!
Just made the Vegan/Gluten-free pancakes and they were wonderful! Didn’t do the Whipped Cream and they still great. Thank you
I make a similar recipe twice a week:
For six medium pancakes for my own breakfast, I start with half a large ripe banana, mashed. I use about a cup of grain, which usually includes a blend of buckwheat flour, chickpea flour, polenta, and rolled oats.
I add one teaspoon of baking soda (NOT baking powder), because soda makes things rise while powder makes them spread. And a tablespoon of oil. And I flavor these days with allspice, cardamom, and fresh minced ginger. I also usually add some chocolate chips and pecan pieces.
Finally, I pour in some water. I never measure it and my pancakes often come out a little different depending on how much I use. It might be about ½–¾ cup. I stir it up well.
All the while, I’ve been preheating my Scanpan griddle, which takes about 5–7 minutes to warm up over medium heat. I pour on four pancakes at a time, and the batter is thick enough to require a little nudging from a spoon but nearly pourable. They cook maybe two minutes on each side, but I think a little less on the second. I warm maple syrup in a small pot and slice the remaining half banana on the pancakes after depanning.
The most amazing and satisfying pancakes! I’m in love!
I have been DYING to make these. I am obsessed with pancakes and have been missing them like crazy since going wheat-free while nursing my wheat sensitive baby. I finally made them this morning and used cornstarch as a sub for the arrowroot powder as my grocery store has been out of it for the past few weeks. They turned out great! My only disappointment was that after being on a recent banana kick, I am banana-ed out and so these were more banana-y than I was looking for (like all my new banana themed adjectives?) So, I was wondering, if I am looking to make a more traditionally flavored pancake could I substitute an egg and some honey for the banana (as I am guessing it is a binder and sweetener here). What do you think?
BTW- bought your cookbook, love it!
I recently developed a sensitivity to wheat so when my hubby wanted to make pancakes for breakfast I quickly went online to see what gluten-free/vegan options were available. Not all gluten-free pancakes seemed appetizing, which is how I stumbled onto your website. THANK GOODNESS! I couldn’t tear myself away from your recipe blog. I never thought vegan could be so appealing. My daughter tried the gluten-free pancake recipe and won’t eat ‘regular’ pancakes again. I picked up a copy of your cookbook at Chapters on the weekend — last one on the shelf! Thank you for being true to yourself and inspiring others.
Hi Angela,
I’m really enjoying my cookbook and have given/recommended it to several of my family and friends – it’s great, well done!
I’ve made these pancakes many times, and when I want a change from rice flour, teff flour is a perfect substitute – the pancakes don’t stick and the consistency is the same as with rice flour, plus you get the added benefit of dietary fiber, protein and iron – perfect!
As well, I mix the entire recipe in the blender – just toss all the ingredients in, including the 2 bananas, and mix it well. There aren’t chunks of banana, but the flavour and texture is wonderful! I then stir in some frozen blueberries and raspberries for a little extra nutrition and texture.
Thank you for yet another delicious, wholesome recipe, and congratulations on all of your successes … all the best with your pregnancy – so happy for you both – and with your dear, little Sketchie.
Dear Angela,
Tammy Root refered me to your blog. My two year old son seems to be allergic to milk, eggs and tree nuts, so I am scrambling to figure out what to feed him. Your recepies sound delicious so I am definatley going to try a few over the weekend. Do you think it is OK to sabstitute almond milk in your pancake recepies with Rice or hemp milk?
Thank you
Hi Tamara,
Pleasure to meet you! Yes I think you could sub any milk in there, as long as you enjoy the flavour. :)
It was a sad day recently when I learned I couldn’t tolerate gluten, dairy or eggs. I can’t even say the word “vegan” let alone adopt eating that way. Yick.
Then I found you. I made these pancakes today and asked, “Why would anyone make ‘regular’ pancakes when these are so good?”
I have buckwheat groats. I have hope. I will survive as long as you give me recipes for food I actually Want to eat.
Bless you. And Sketchie, too. :-)
How’s Sketchie doing now? I know how that is too. I have a bengal and he had an ear infection recently. He needed extra antibiotics than first prescribed and I worried that he would have to have surgery, but he didn’t. He is okay now.
Hi! My kids and I love making pancakes. :) I’m new to healthy cooking and wanted to give this a try. Unfortunately, mine turned out all grey due to the cot of the buckwheat flour. :-/ Are there different kinds/cord of buckwheat?? Grey pancakes are definitely NOT a cheery way to start the day. :( Help!
Hi Autumn, Yes there are two different kinds that I know of – raw buckwheat flour (which is what I created for this recipe by grinding down raw buckwheat groats – see recipe) and then there is buckwheat flour in grocery stores which is most often the toasted variety – it has a much less pleasant flavour and my guess is not the same colour either. I hope this helps and better luck next time!
Sorry about your kitty. Lyme disease (usually from a tick) kills the digestive track. I know because I have “leaky gut syndrome” from it. This illness killed my husband – he was a veterinarian. You can be bitten (tick or other vector), born with it (from infected mother) or get it from an intimate partner. There are tests for lyme, the best is the Western Blot (not sure of spelling) but it has to include the strain for lyme, and not all the tests do. It can be treated, but each case is different, so that makes it very difficult. Other infections can be transmitted as well from the tick such as babesia, bartinella, and others. Your vet should know of these, although info is just now coming to the surface. Blessings to all of you. Joan
One of my favorite pancake recipes!! Totally light and fluffy and amazing!
Just made these this morning and they were amazing!! I subbed out the bananas for my homemade unsweetened applesauce. The results were perfect. Recipes like this make being a newly made gluten free, dairy free person so much easier!!
My ten month old loves these. Great breakfast that we can both enjoy.
I was looking around and picked this recipe to try because I had all ingredients on hand. Subbed normal rice flour for brown rice flour and used coconut oil for frying. Wow they’re great! The apartment smells sweet and coconutty and my husband can’t stop eating them.
I am on an elimination diet so what I can eat is very limited. I made these pancakes but used buckwheat flour I had on hand. The recipe turned out so thick I had to add water and when I try to make them they stick to the pan and won’t cook inside. I make GF pancakes for my son using the Pamela’s mix w/o any issues. Did anyone else make this recipe with any luck? The buckwheat I have is dark in color, almost purple but your pancakes are light in color. Help!
Hi there,
It sounds like you used roasted buckwheat flour rather than raw – this accounts for the change in colour. I also recommend using a non-stick pan when making vegan + GF pancakes as other pans tend to stick to the batter. Hope this helps!