Healthy Banana Oatmeal Pancake Recipe {Grain & Dairy Free}

Love is in the air this week – my love for pancakes, breakfast, and my boyfriend have come together in the form of this heart shaped, healthy banana oatmeal pancake recipe. This week’s pancakes are heart shaped in honor of Valentine’s Day, but the recipe is good for any time of year. It’s easy, practically fool-proof, and easily customized to whatever your tastes may be. They also happen to be grain and dairy free, yet still happen to taste like pancakes. You won’t even miss the flour, butter, and all of the other delicious (but not so good for you) ingredients.

Pancake Recipe

If you’re familiar with healthy pancake recipes, you may remember the extremely popular two ingredient protein pancake recipe that made its way around the internet a few years ago. These were one of my go-to healthy breakfasts for a while. I love a good simple recipe! This one is as easy as they come– you only need two ingredients (banana and eggs) – and they’re filled with protein and so good for you! They also taste surprisingly good, despite my initial thoughts that they would taste like a weird sweetened egg mixture. I wouldn’t say they taste like pancakes (missing that gluten factor, in my opinion), but they are a great healthy substitute and taste amazing with fresh berries and a little maple syrup.

If you’re looking for a healthy pancake recipe that more closely resembles a traditional pancake, try out this banana oatmeal recipe I adapted from Modern Honey (love this food blog!). The reason why I ended up testing this recipe? I went grocery shopping over the weekend and initially bought bananas and eggs for the 2-ingredient protein pancakes I typically make. However, I had difficulties using the heart-shaped mold I had in mind because the batter ended up being too runny for my liking.

Pancake batter typically includes some type of mixture of dry and wet ingredients, and this variation was missing milk and flour. I had to think quickly on my feet – I had oats and flour in my pantry, but I didn’t have any milk in my fridge! Almond milk is a staple at home, but we very rarely buy cow’s milk. I try to avoid too much dairy, so we typically only buy it if we’re baking or making cauliflower gratin for special occasions. I was also feeling lazy and didn’t feel like running out to the store again. SO, I had to find a dairy free pancake recipe ASAP. This one worked in a pinch, and I will definitely be using it again in the future!

Healthy Banana Oatmeal Pancake Recipe

Adapted from Modern Honey. Serves 2-4 (makes 12 pancakes).

Ingredients:

• 1 banana
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 1 cup oats (I used steel cut oats and had no issues)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder

Optional Add-Ins:

• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 tablespoon nut butter
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips
• Cinnamon

How To Make This Healthy Banana Oatmeal Pancake Recipe:

Blend ingredients together until smooth. Add more oats or almond milk to adjust consistency if needed. Heat a non-stick skillet on low to medium low (if the skillet is too hot the pancakes will burn) and add butter, oil, or cooking spray. I like Trader Joe’s coconut cooking spray, but whatever you have on hand should be fine. To make the heart-shaped pancakes, I used this mold. I used about 2 tablespoons of batter for each pancake. Cook on one side for one to two minutes before flipping over and cooking for another minute. Serve immediately with your favorite toppings (suggestions: maple syrup, agave nectar, berries, coconut flakes, slivered nuts, whipped cream).

I loved these pancakes for weekdays or when I’m craving pancakes but want something a little healthier. They’re fluffy and have the texture of regular pancakes, but are so much lighter and better for you. If you prefer a sweeter batter, just add in a couple tablespoons of maple syrup or agave into the batter before mixing. I promise these will be your new go-to healthy pancake recipe!

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