Make your breakfast special with these healthy but very delicious, beautifully soft, very fluffy, oil-free vegan pancakes.
I couldn't be one of those people who eats the same thing for breakfast everyday. It would drive me insane. It is my favourite meal of the day and I always make sure I have time to sit down and enjoy it properly before my day gets properly underway.
Pancakes aren't something I eat often but every now and again a craving hits.
In the past, if I have been home alone, I have avoided making them as I usually end up with far too many just for me due to the fact that most recipes are designed to feed multiple people.
I also only have one small pan that is good enough for pancakes so when there are a whole bunch to make it takes a little while. As much as I like to make time to sit and enjoy my breakfast, I don't usually have the time to take ages preparing it.
Pancake cravings happened here a couple of weeks ago and I just had to have them. I got to thinking that if I sometimes wish I could make pancakes just for me, then plenty of you probably do too. That was when I decided to come up with a recipe that serves just one person.
I started playing around with a recipe and was getting great results, then I started getting emails from some of you guys asking for more oil-free recipes. The pancake recipe I had been practicing was pretty healthy as far as pancakes go, but it did include a little coconut oil. I decided to modify the recipe slightly to make the pancakes oil-free.
The recipe didn't take long to perfect and I am so pleased with it. These Healthy Oil-Free Vegan Pancakes For One are so soft, fluffy and delicious. You do not miss the oil in this recipe at all. They are every bit as good as pancakes made with oil and they are healthier with less calories!
When I was working on creating this Oil-Free Vegan Pancakes recipe, I asked on Instagram and Twitter:
"How many pancakes you would expect to get if you were making a recipe for one?"
It turns out that most of you are as greedy as me when it comes to pancakes and said three would be good. Some people said two was enough though. Because of the mixed response I have given measurements for making two or three pancakes. That way you can decide at the time you are making them whether you are just hungry enough for two, or greedy enough for three! ;O)
To be perfectly honest, two is enough to feel satisfied, but if you don't eat pancakes often, it's not going to hurt to push the boat out and eat three once in a while, especially when they are oil-free and healthy!
These are pancakes that you do not need to feel guilty about eating. As long as you don't go mad with butter and syrup they are actually pretty good for you.
I use spelt flour in these pancakes because I love the taste and because it is a much healthier option than white flour. If you have never tried spelt flour then I highly recommend you buy yourself a bag next time you are at the store. It is just fabulous for baking, and pancakes or waffles, with none of the heaviness that you might get with wholewheat flour. Readers have told me they work well with an all purpose gluten free flour too although I haven't tried that myself. You are welcome to try, or just hop on over to my Vegan Gluten Free Pancakes and give them a try instead.
If you don't have spelt flour to hand and want to try this recipe, then all purpose white flour works very well. Wholewheat flour did not give the same results in my trials. Don't get me wrong, they were ok and perfectly edible, but they were a little heavy and they didn't have quite the same soft and fluffy texture as they do when spelt or all purpose flour is used.
I have not included sugar of any kind in this recipe because I figure that whatever you add as a topping is usually sweet anyway. If however you do want your pancakes sweet feel free to add some to the batter. About one tablespoon should be enough.
These pancakes can be served with whatever you enjoy most but are particularly good with vegan yogurt, fresh strawberries, Vanilla Roasted Strawberries, vegan butter and maple syrup or my Blueberry Lavender Sauce.
For more vegan pancakes recipes, check out these great options:
- Vegan Banana Pancakes
- Vegan Sweet Potato Pancakes
- Gingerbread Pancakes
- Vegan English Pancakes
- Vegan Gluten Free Pancakes
- Vegan Spelt Pancakes
And if you love this recipe, please do check out my cookbook, and subscribe to my email list for a fabulous FREE eCookbook featuring my top 10 recipes. Being on the list means you will be first to see my new recipes and you’ll be kept in the loop on all things new and exciting too!
Healthy Oil-Free Vegan Pancakes For One
Author:
Ingredients
For 2 pancakes
- 42g / 1/3 cup spelt flour (all purpose flour (plain flour in the UK) can also be used)
- 1 level teaspoon baking powder
- a tiny pinch of salt
- 80mls / 1/3 cup non-dairy milk
- ¾ teaspoon chia seeds (White Chia seeds look best but black or white work equally well)
- ½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
For 3 pancakes
- 63g / ½ cup spelt flour (all purpose flour can also be used - use ½ cup / 62.5 g)
- 1 slightly heaped teaspoon baking powder
- pinch of salt
- 125mls / ½ cup + 1 teaspoon non-dairy milk
- 1 teaspoon chia seeds
- ½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
INSTRUCTIONS
- Start by putting the milk and chia seeds in a jug or bowl. Stir well.
- Add the vinegar and vanilla and stir again.
- Add the flour, baking powder and salt to a separate bowl and mix to combine.
- Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients and stir to combine (just enough to combine everything and so that you can't see any dry flour). DO NOT over mix or beat it. A few little lumps won't hurt. Leave to rest for 10 minutes.
- Get a pan ready on a medium heat while you wait. I cooked my pancakes with no oil and you can too if your fry pan is a good nonstick one. If you are at all concerned that it might not be then use a teaspoon or two of oil to ensure the pancakes don't stick.
- Check your pan is hot and then spoon the pancake batter into it. Make the pancakes about 4 inches in diameter.
- Once the batter is in the pan turn the heat down to half way between medium and very low. The trick to good pancakes is not rushing them so be patient.
- Watch and wait until you see some bubbles start to form on the top of the pancakes.
- When you see bubbles flip them over gently and cook for another 2 minutes.
- Remove from the pan and serve immediately.
NOTES
NUTRITION
Nutritional information is provided for convenience & as a courtesy. The data is a computer generated estimate so should be used as a guide only.
Esther says
Could I also use this recipe for waffles? By the way those pancakes look great!
A Virtual Vegan says
I haven't actually tried it for waffles but usually pancakes work when waffled so it should be fine. This gingerbread waffle recipe is worth trying too if you like gingerbread. They are so good! https://avirtualvegan.com/gingerbread-waffles/ .
Monica Goncalves says
Hello, thank you for this recipe. I am literally making them now, but have a question. I measured 1/2 cup of self raising flour and that's actually 100g, not 57g, which measurement is correct?
Many thanks
A Virtual Vegan says
Self raising flour isn't called for in the recipe. If you are in England then plain flour would be the equivalent of our all purpose flour. Spelt flour gives the best results in this recipe though. Hopefully the recipe worked out because if you added all the baking powder called for as well as using self raising flour it would have been way too much.
Half a cup of spelt flour weighs approximately 57.5g so the measurements are correct. Half a cup of all purpose flour weighs approximately 62.5g.But all flours vary a little and the time of year and humidity makes a difference too. The correct way to measure flour is to spoon it gently into a cup then level off the top. If you scooped it in or compacted it at all that would probably account for the extra weight. Bear in mind too that measuring cups vary in size depending on what country you are in. I use US cup measurements which hold a volume of 240ml. UK cups I believe hold 250 ml. I am a strong advocate of using a scale to measure ingredients, flour especially, as cups just aren't accurate enough and won't provide consistent results. You can pick a digital scale up for under $10. They last for years and you will notice a huge difference in the results you get, especially with things like pancakes and baking.
Monica Goncalves says
Hello
I ended up using the scales to get the 57g and even with the self raising flour they turned out great, thank you for the recipe!
Actually the cups are the same in the UK and US, I think where I went wrong was compacting all the fluor in the cup as you mentioned.
Thanks
ANEESA HUSSAIN says
can you make these without chia seeds.. they make me ill.??
A Virtual Vegan says
You could use ground flax seed instead. I remember when I was testing them that it worked almost as well. I expect that aquafaba would also work. It hadn't been discovered when I created this recipe so I haven't tested it but I'm pretty sure it would be ok. For the 3 pancakes version use 1.5 tablespoons of aquafaba and a tiny bit less milk to compensate for the added liquid.
Mac says
Wow! So good! I’ve made this recipe about 4 times now and every time it’s delicious! Thank you!
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm so pleased you are enjoying it Mac!
Helen says
Had a craving for pancakes since last week, but none of my "go to" recipes work now, as I recently fully changed my diet over to HCLF vegan. Found yours this morning...and now I have a new "go to'! Plan on making a double batch next, one to eat & one for a work breakfast. Thank you so much for sharing!!
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm glad you found them and could knock your pancake craving on the head! They warm up really well in the microwave or in a toaster.
D says
These are AMAZZZING! So glad that I found this recipe, thank you!!
So easy and to my surprise the pancakes were so fluffy and delicious! I have tried healthy pancakes before and never been very satisfied by the texture, but these are just perfect. Felt like I was having a cheat meal but these are guilt free goodness.
I didn't have any apple cider vinegar so I just replaced it with lemon juice.
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm so glad you enjoyed them! A pet hate of mine are pancakes with a weird or slightly damp texture and a lot of vegan pancakes tend to be that way. You wont find any like that here though!
If you don't mind using a very tiny drop of oil, try my Gingerbread Pancakes next. They are my favourite of the two! https://avirtualvegan.com/vegan-gingerbread-pancakes/
Meg says
Hey there! I just wanted to say thank so much for sharing this recipe! Be I made these for the first time 2 days ago and they are flipping brilliant!
I made them with a mix of spelt flour and oat flour and I'm in love! They're so healthy and delicious, I must admit these will be a new staple in my diet.
I'll be sure to come back to you for more awesome recipes Thanks again
A Virtual Vegan says
That's awesome Meg! I'm so glad you enjoyed them and I am loving your 'flipping brilliant' pun! Thank you so much for coming back to leave feedback. I appreciate it!
Kaitlyn says
Hi, I was wondering whether you think the recipe would still work if I mushed up a date or 2 and mixed them in? :)
A Virtual Vegan says
I haven't tried it but it might be ok. If you puree a date or two though it's essentially adding more wet to the batter so there is a chance that it might make the pancakes a little damp and not so fluffy. I think I'd be inclined to reduce the milk by a tablespoon for each date added. If you are just chopping the dates and adding them to the batter it shouldn't affect the results at all so no adjustments would be necessary.
aneesa says
hi there can i make this with plain flour or ground oats? i dont have any chia seeds and they are rather expensive for me, can i make it without. not heard of putting vinegar in pancakes..bit scared .. thanks
A Virtual Vegan says
I think they would be fine with plain flour. Maybe oat flour, I haven't tried it. If you don't have chia seeds, ground flax seed will work instead. You might get away with leaving them out completely but the texture of the pancakes wont be quite as good. Apple cider vinegar is a very common ingredient in vegan pancakes and in vegan cakes because it is an acid and reacts with the other ingredients to create bubbles, making the cake/pancakes lighter and fluffier. It's not enough to taste so don't worry about that and if you would rather not use it, lemon juice works the same.
aneesa says
thank u
Jacky says
The texture was okay but the baking powder flavor was quite strong and there was no sweetness to them,
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm sorry you weren't too happy with them. It's strange because they have had excellent feedback from everyone else who has made them. The baking powder shouldn't be detectable in the taste. There is only 1 teaspoon in the recipe which isn't a huge amount. Did you by chance use baking soda by mistake, or use more than one teaspoon? That could affect the taste. Also some baking powders which have aluminum in the ingredients can have an offish taste. I always buy aluminum free baking powder for that reason (and also for health reasons). As for the lack of sweetness, I explain in the post that I don't add sweetener of any kind to the pancakes because this is a healthier recipe, and also because whatever you put on them tends to be sweet anyway. I also say that if you prefer a little sweetness you can add a tablespoon or two of sugar.
Stacie says
Just made these, and they were delicious. I even omitted the vanilla and they were still so good!
A Virtual Vegan says
So glad you enjoyed them Stacie!
Claudia says
Amazing recipe :))
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you!
Ellie says
Tried this recipe today with oat flour and i forgot the chia seeds but it still turned out super fluffy!! Didn't look as perfect as yours but tasted really really delicious with all the toppings <3 Thank you!
A Virtual Vegan says
That's awesome. I'm glad they worked out for you!
Hidayah says
I made this with half all-purpose and half toasted coconut flour. it taste awesome. The right consistency, but I made the three pieces one but the milk kinda confusing me. 125 ml | 1/3 cup? I decided to put 1/2 ml instead.
A Virtual Vegan says
I am so glad they worked out for you despite my mistake! Sorry about the discrepancy there. The 125mls was correct, but the cup equivalent was incorrect. I have corrected it now. It should have said 1/2 cup + 1 teaspoon. Thank you for making me aware of it!
Lalala says
I tried using coconut flour, but I ended up having a dough mixture... after still trying to fry it, I tasted it and it wasn't sweet and very disgusting... I considered throwing it in the trash, but ended up drowning it in natural date syrup and I put some chocolate chips on top... still got the after taste T_T :'(
Just wanted some pancakes for breakfast...
Don't use coconut flour like I did...
A Virtual Vegan says
A big oops! lol Coconut flour is very different to all other flours and as you found, doesn't work if you use it as a sub. What you ended up with for breakfast doesn't sound too appetizing ;O) Were you using coconut flour because you need gluten-free? If so let me know because there are some awesome recipes I can recommend. Perhaps I need to get one of my own on the blog too. Hope you get to eat some good pancakes soon ;O) Oh, and if you do want to use up your coconut flour in a good way, these are great https://avirtualvegan.com/mint-chocolate-truffle-larabar-bites/ and so is this https://avirtualvegan.com/coconut-crusted-tofu/ . Happy New Year!
Linoya says
Thank you very much for reading the comment and replying :)
Yeah, I realized that coconut flour needs its own recipe. I do eat spelt flour, but I preferred something less heavy on the stomach for breakfast (I usually eat fruit for breakfast).