Fluffy vegan whole wheat pancakes with almond milk and vanilla. This is the pancake recipe we make most often on weekends. They are guilt-free, delicious and oh so easy to make.
You might also like vegan and gluten-free multigrain pancakes, vegan carrot cake pancakes and vegan sourdough blueberry pancakes.
Healthy pancakes may sound like an oxymoron, but they are very possible, as these healthy and whole wheat vegan pancakes prove.
These vegan pancakes are fluffy, tender and they come together so quickly. You need just over five minutes to put the batter together and minutes later you and your family will be sitting down to a delicious, wholesome breakfast you will be proud to serve.
Serve with a pat of vegan butter and maple syrup or top the pancakes with fruit or this scrumptious vegan lemon curd or vegan condensed milk.
Top tips
- I have had readers tell me that they used regular whole wheat flour in this recipe with great results. You can try that, of course, but my advise, if you are using regular whole wheat flour, would be to mix it half-and-half with unbleached all purpose. That way your pancakes will be soft and tender and fluffy, while still being healthy.
- These vegan pancakes are so tender and fluffy because they are "buttermilk" pancakes -- vegan "buttermilk," that is. I make the buttermilk by adding a couple of teaspoons of apple cider vinegar in the nondairy milk and letting it stand for a minute or two before adding it to the other ingredients.
- The "eggs" here are flax eggs, made by adding two tablespoons of flax meal to six tablespoons of water. For this recipe you don't have to use separate containers to make the vegan "buttermilk" and the flax eggs. Throw in the milk and apple cider first, add in the flax meal and measure out the water into the same bowl. Then continue adding the other wet ingredients.
- When you mix a pancake batter, always mix until the wet and dry ingredients are just mixed together. The batter should be a little lumpy. Don't take a whisk and try to beat everything to smoothness, because that will just beat air into your batter and strengthen the gluten in the wheat, leaving you with dense pancakes.
- Finally, this is a basic pancake recipe. You can make this as is or tailor it to your liking:
- Stir in fruit like blueberries or strawberries into the batter.
- Add cinnamon for a holiday flavor that goes perfectly with cold weather and hot coffee.
- Add a teaspoon of ground ginger for gingerbread pancakes.
Five-star review
I make this pancake every time I get a request for breakfast pancakes. It has the nutrition my family needs and great flavor. Time and time again I come back to this recipe.
-Karen
Ingredients
- Whole wheat pastry flour (or a mix of regular whole wheat flour and all purpose flour. I really encourage you to try using all whole wheat pastry flour because it gives you tremendous flavor and nutrition).
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Nondairy milk (I used almond): I used oat milk. Almond milk, soy milk, cashew milk are all fine.
- Apple cider vinegar: This helps create a "buttermilk" effect in the pancakes, making them light and fluffy.
- Flaxmeal: Flax adds more heart-healthy fiber and nutrition and is a great replacement for eggs in this recipe.
- Maple syrup: Maple syrup is wonderful here, but any sweetener, including sugar and agave, are fine.
- Pure vanilla extract: For more delicious flavor.
How to make vegan whole wheat pancakes
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- In another bowl, add the nondairy milk and apple cider vinegar. Let it stand for a couple of minutes, then add the flax meal and water and whisk well. Add the maple syrup and vanilla extract and mix.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix with a spatula or the whisk until everything just comes together. The batter should still be lumpy but you shouldn't have any obvious patches of dry flour.
- Heat a nonstick or cast-iron griddle. Spray with cooking spray or coat lightly with oil. Using a â…“rd cup measure, scoop up the batter and pour on the hot griddle. Cook until bubbles appear at the top of the pancake and the underside is golden-brown. Flip over and cook the other side until it is lightly browned as well.
- Serve hot with fruit and maple syrup.
Whole wheat vegan pancakes FAQs
Yes, they will be even fluffier with white flour and will taste wonderful.
You can skip the flax meal and instead add ¼ cup applesauce or vegan yogurt.
To freeze the pancakes, flash freeze them first by placing them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Once they're frozen, place them in a freezer-safe bag or container. You can freeze the vegan pancakes for up to four months. Thaw and reheat on the griddle or in the microwave before serving.
You can also store leftover pancakes in the fridge for up to four days.
More vegan breakfast recipes
Recipe card
Vegan Whole Wheat Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups almond milk (or another nondairy milk)
- 2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoon flaxmeal
- 6 tablespoon water
- 2 tablespoon maple syrup (optional)
- 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- In another bowl, add the nondairy milk and apple cider vinegar. Let it stand for a couple of minutes, then add the flaxmeal and water and whisk well. Add the maple syrup and vanilla extract and mix.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix with a spatula or the whisk until everything just comes together. The batter should still be lumpy but you shouldn't have any obvious patches of dry flour.
- Heat a nonstick or cast-iron griddle. Spray with cooking spray or coat lightly with oil. Using a â…“rd cup measure, scoop up the batter and pour on the hot griddle. Cook until bubbles appear at the top of the pancake and the underside is golden-brown. Flip over and cook the other side until it is lightly browned as well.
- Serve hot with fruit and maple syrup.
Nutrition Information
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Vaishali says
I would think they're the same-- I usually just buy the whole flax seeds and grind them up to a fairly fine powder in my spice grinder. The meal should definitely work-- go with that.
Vaishali says
Gel, Happy Pancake Day! I have not tried these with banana, but bananas do make a good egg substitute. I would advise mashing up one medium banana in place of the flax seed and water mixture.
Gel says
Thanks for the prompt response. I'll probably have to go to the store anyway, so I'll just buy the flax seed powder. Can you tell me if flax seed meal and flax seed powder the same. I searched for it online and there is a big difference in price. Flax seed powder is much more expensive.
Gel says
Today is National Pancake Day! I want to try this recipe, but I don't feel like going to the store. I have all the ingredients except the flax powder. However, I do have bananas. Are bananas a good substitute for eggs?
atsiong1 says
Hi Vaishali! I just made pancakes using your recipe and they were delicious! Unfortunately, I didn't have vanilla, but I did have a banana and so I mashed 1/2 and added it to the recipe. I liked the final result, the banana flavor was mild and not overpowering. Thanks for providing the recipe for my first vegan pancakes!
Vaishali says
TheCooker, Jecca, Thanks for the feeddback and so glad you liked them.
Pooja, so thrilled to read your son love them-- passing the kid test is never easy, and I'm honored 🙂 Thanks for letting me know!
Pooja says
Hi Vaishali,
I'm so glad to have found your blog. My toddler is allergic to dairy and eggs and I've struggled to find recipes that win his approval. But for a while now your blog has become my go-to source for all new recipes. I tried your whole wheat pancake recipe this morning and he ate two full pancakes!! You have one very grateful mother as your fan.
Jecca says
I love these! Absolutely the best vegan pancakes I've ever had. Thank you so much! 🙂 I've made it the recipe-of-the-week on my blog:
TheCooker says
We had these pancakes yesterday. They were wonderful!
Thanks for the recipe.
The pastry flour does make a huge difference.
Matthew says
Some vegan pancakes are gummy and chewy, but these are light and fluffy and wonderful. This has become my go-to Saturday morning breakfast, and I just wanted to thank you for posting it. 🙂
Vaishali says
Heather, A topping of strawberries and bananas sounds delicious. I am so glad you enjoyed the pancakes.
heather says
I just made these for Father's Day breakfast as I wanted something delicious but healthy. I topped them with fresh strawberries and bananas and a teensy bit of maple syrup. Delicious!
Vaishali says
Anonymous, I am so happy you liked the pancakes. And if you do eat too many, don't worry because you can always tell yourself they are good for you 🙂 Thanks for the feedback- I always appreciate it.
Anonymous says
Well, I know it is quite past the date this recipe was posted but I have been trying my hand at several vegan pancake recipes since I turned vegan a year ago and can I just say...WOW!!! Thank you for a fabulous and tasty recipe and my only complaint is that I will eat far too many pancakes now. 🙂 I substituted unsweetened almond milk for soy and olive oil for canola and they came out absolutely delicious! Thanks again!!
Vaishali says
Hi Latha, Tofu makes a decent egg substitute, although I'll confess I've never used it in pancakes. You could use 1/4 cup of silken tofu in place of 1 egg. In this recipe, that would equal about 1/2 cup of tofu, first blended smooth, then added to the ingredients. If you decide to try it, I'd love to hear how it worked out!
Latha says
Hi Vaishali,
I have a doubt again:) I don't seem to find flax seed powder where we live. Is there any other substitute (other than bananas)?
Anonymous says
All you need is to buy whole flax seeds and grind them. You can accomplish this pretty easily with a Vita-Mix if you have a dry hopper (don't use the wet one). Alternatively, you can run flax seeds through just about any peppermill and get ground up flax seeds. That's all "flax seed meal" is. And it works *better* than eggs as a binding/caking agent. Huzzah!
Dennis says
A coffee grinder works well and is much cheaper too.