Simple Fluffy Vegan Pancake Recipe

These fluffy vegan pancakes are super simple to make in just one bowl! Your pantry most likely already has all of the ingredients stocked.

Ingredients

• All purpose flour
• Baking powder to make them nice and fluffy
• Sugar so they have some sweetness to themselves even before you add maple syrup
• Salt to really bring out the sweetness
• Unsweetened oat milk (or use other plant based milk)
• Vanilla extract gives it a little something special to the taste
• Cup water for more liquid on top of the milk
• Baking oil (I use olive oil*)
• optional topping, such as blueberries or chocolate chips

Why you’ll love them

Do you ever wake up and realize you have nothing ready to feed your family for breakfast? No worries, this recipe has your back! It is super likely that you already have these ingredients in your pantry, since they are staples. You’ll have these simple

  fluffy vegan pancakes mixed and ready to go in just 5 minutes, and the clean up is minimal thanks to the one bowl method of combining the ingredients.

How to prepare

Follow this fool-proof way to create simple fluffy vegan pancakes:

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour (3 cups), baking powder (2 tbs), sugar (5 tbs) and salt (1 tsp).
2. Add the wet ingredients – the milk (2 cups), vanilla extract (1 tsp), water (1 cup), and oil (4 tbs) – into the already mixed dry ingredients and mix. A few lumps will remain in order to achieve fluffy pancakes. If you are adding blueberries or chocolate chips, then carefully add them to the batter now. 
3. Grease a pan with oil or vegan butter and heat over medium heat. Once hot, add a soup ladle full of batter. Cook until you can see bubbles coming through, then carefully turn and cook another 1-2 minutes. Test with a spatula to see if the pancake can come off the pan or if it needs to be cooked further.
4. Serve with pure maple syrup and toppings of choice.

Personally, I speed the cooking process up by having three cast iron pans going at the same time. This takes a bit of practice and you definitely need to be completely concentrated on the pancakes – no cleaning dishes on the sides, or the pancakes will burn before you know it. Trust me, I learned the hard way! This recipe will make you about 9 medium-sized pancakes. Most teens and adults will likely eat two per serving, and smaller kids will just need one or even less.

Variations

Our favorite version of this pancake is actually with blueberries. But occasionally, we also use chocolate chips (check to make sure you’re buying vegan ones). Just fold them gently into the mix once it is ready, but before you cook it. Blueberries can be frozen, but I find fresh ones are just a little tastier!

How to serve

My family eats these pancakes with a bit of organic pure maple syrup and a mix of berries or banana. Honestly, when served fresh from the cast iron skillet with just the right slight amount of crispness, they are delicious without any other item added!

How to store

It’s always a good idea to double a recipe, so you can eat leftovers the next few days. Store these pancakes in the refrigerator in a covered container for up to 5 days – but be sure to let them cool completely before closing the lid or placing them into the fridge!

These vegan pancakes also store nicely in the freezer. They will still be fluffy once you reheat them. For best freezing results, let them cool completely, then individually wrap each pancake in a baking sheet before placing them into freezer friendly ziploc bags. I’d suggest eating within 3 months, but I’ve gone as long as 4 months with mine, and they were still delicious. Simply warm up in the microwave, just be sure not to overdo it!

Q & A

What is the secret to fluffy pancakes?

The trick behind why these pancakes are so fluffy is actually a lazy one, you could say. Don’t over-mix! If  you try to get all the lumps out of your mix, then you’ll go too far. Some clumps are fine, and I promise you, you won’t notice them once you have your cooked pancake on your plate. They will be smooth, fluffy deliciousness!

Another reason why some pancakes might end up dense instead of fluffy is if a bad recipe is followed or if too much or too little baking powder is used. And just FYI, in case you didn’t know: Baking powder and soda aren’t simply interchangeable! So if you thought you’d switch these two because you only had the wrong one on hand, that is probably the culprit.

Will my pancakes become gummy?

Nope, these pancakes won’t become gummy! This recipe is pretty foolproof. The only scenario that might cause gummy pancakes is if you over-mix the batter. But I doubt you’ll do it, because you looked for simple pancakes because you don’t have time to stand over the mixing bowl for ages, right?! Simple fluffy pancakes for all!

Can my kid help me make this?

Yes, this is a GREAT recipe to include your kids in helping prepare it (if you have the extra time to be slowed down a bit)! My first born daughter started helping me with this when she was only a little over one year old. A learning tower comes in super handy for this kind of activity. I find it important to teach kids early on how to prepare meals, and my daughter seems to especially like eating the foods she helped make. As of right now (at 2 years of age) she only mixes the ingredients for me. But the older your child is, the more they can help with the preparation and cooking of the pancakes!