Go Dairy Free | Easy Whole Wheat Vegan Pancakes or Waffles for Mom

Alisa Fleming ~ So you didn't order that dairy-free box of chocolates in time, and aren't willing to pay an arm and a leg for over-inflated flower prices. But, what about a more thoughtful and affordable gesture like breakfast in bed? Any mom or loved one will be delighted by a stack of these fluffy yet wholesome and guilt-free pancakes ... and you will be thrilled with how easy AND cheap they are to make!

When I make this recipe into waffles, I typically adorn them with homemade nut butter, a sprinkle of cinnamon, and a light drizzle of honey. But for pancakes, some maple syrup is always in order. To keep it on the healthy side, I usually add sauteed apples, cinnamon, and finish off the stack with a generous sprinkle of freshly ground flaxseeds. I've included instructions for Alisa's Pancake Topping (pretty nutritious) and Tony's Pancake Topping (just a wee more indulgent) in the notes of my whole wheat vegan pancake recipe below ...

Recipe: Wholesome Whole Wheat Vegan Pancakes or Waffles

Summary: After scanning various pancake recipes, I combined the different ratios, ingredients, and ideas to develop this very simple, but delicious, recipe. I guess you could say that these pancakes were inspired by many, but created in my kitchen.

Ingredients

1 Cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour (can sub all-purpose flour for all or part of the flour if desired, but they won't be whole wheat then!)
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder (Note: I made these pancakes at high altitude (6500ft), where everything gets a little extra “lift.” If you are at 3000 ft to sea level, I recommend increasing the baking powder to 1-1/2 Tablespoons. Yes, it may seem like a bit, but it helps to replace the lift that usually comes from eggs!)
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/8 Teaspoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Sweetener (I used Palm Sugar, but you can use Sucanat, Brown Sugar, Maple Syrup, etc.)
1 to 1-1/4 Cups Milk Alternative, room temperature if using coconut oil (I used Unsweetened Coconut Milk Beverage)
1-1/2 Tablespoons Oil (I used melted coconut oil, but extra-light olive oil, grapeseed oil, or your favorite baking oil will do)

Instructions

In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt, and set aside.
In a measuring cup, combine the sweetener, 1 cup of the milk alternative, and the oil. Whisk in the reserved flour mixture.
If the batter is too thick or becomes too thick as it sits, add up to 1/4 cup of additional milk alternative (I live at high altitude, where things rise more, so I used the full 1 and 1/4 cups for the pancakes, but you may not need that much). Keep in mind that egg-free pancake batter works better when it is a little thicker than egg-containing pancake batter.
Prepare your skillet with some cooking spray, and preheat it over medium heat.
Pour the batter into the skillet to create your desired size of pancakes (I make dollar-sized ones because I am so bad at flipping the bigger ones!). Cook over medium heat, reduce heat to medium-low if the skillet gets too hot (I have this problem with our electric stove).
The pancakes will bubble as soon as the batter hits the pan, ignore those bubbles. The batter will smooth out after 30 seconds. Wait until you see bubbles break at the surface again, then flip. Cook for about about 1 minute on the other side. Remove from the pan, and pour in the next batch of batter.
Repeat until all the batter is used up, and you have a few plates of scrumptious pancakes!
Top as desired (see my notes below for suggestions).

Quick notes

Alisa’s Pancake Topping: I sauté 1 small, chopped apple in 1 teaspoon of earth balanace dairy-free / soy-free margarine or coconut oil, and add 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (could use just 1/8 teasapoon if desired). I kept half of this apple mixture for myself, and added just 1 teaspoon of maple syrup for a sweet and moist touch. I placed the apples on my pancake stack, and sprinkled it all with some ground flaxseed.

Tony’s Pancake Topping: To the other half of the cooked apples, I add 1-1/2 Tablespoons maple syrup and 1 Tablespoon ground flaxseed. It was still a nice pourable maple syrupy topping with big, soft apple chunks. The flax goes pretty well un-noticed by my husband.

Variations

For Waffles: Everything is the same, but I use only 1 cup of milk alternative, even at high altitude. The thicker batter works better on waffle irons. Simply prepare the batter and follow the directions for your waffle iron. They freeze and re-toast beautifully!

Fluffy Whole Wheat Vegan Pancakes

Preparation time: 10 minute(s)

Cooking time: 15 minute(s)

Diet type: Vegan, Vegetarian, Dairy free, Egg free, Nut free, Peanut free, Soy free, Low sugar, Low fat

Number of servings (yield): 3 (16 dollar-size pancakes)