Anyone looking for a healthier alternative to traditional pancakes will love these quinoa banana pancakes. Whole uncooked quinoa is combined with ripe banana, almond milk, vanilla extract, and cinnamon for the most delicious and nutritious vegan quinoa pancakes! The fiber-rich pancakes are satiating and great for gut health.
This recipe combines the wholesome goodness of quinoa, the natural sweetness of ripe bananas, and a hint of warm cinnamon to create delicious pancakes packed full of nutrients and essential fatty acids. Whether you’re looking for a gluten-free, dairy-free, or healthier alternative to traditional pancakes, this quinoa banana pancake recipe has you covered.
Recently, I tried making quinoa pancakes using uncooked quinoa and was surprised at how well they turned out. The first recipe I followed tasted too bitter, with way too much baking powder, so I added a little maple syrup and a ripe banana.
Adding banana makes these quinoa pancakes perfectly moist, soft, and easy to cut with a fork. I found that when I only used quinoa, they were harder to cut through with a fork and not as sweet.
My toddler loves these spinach banana oat pancakes and has them a few times a week, but to add more variation of whole foods, I decided to try making quinoa banana pancakes instead, and she loves them just as much!
Quinoa Banana Pancakes Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup uncooked white quinoa (soaked for at least one hour or overnight)
- 2 tbsp ground flax seeds
- 1/4 cup almond milk
- 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 ripe banana
- Olive oil spray for cooking
How to make Banana Quinoa Pancakes:
- Prepare Quinoa: Rinse the quinoa thoroughly under cold water after soaking the quinoa in water for at least one hour or overnight. Drain the soaked quinoa before use.
- Blend Ingredients: In a high-speed blender, combine the soaked quinoa, ground flax seeds, almond milk, maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla extract, baking powder, and the ripe banana. Blend until smooth.
- Preheat Pan: Heat a medium-sized frying pan and lightly spray the surface with olive oil spray to prevent sticking.
- Cook Pancakes: Once the pan is hot, pour a small amount of the batter onto the skillet to form pancakes of desired size. Cook for about 2-3 minutes or until bubbles start forming on the pancake’s surface and they appear to be drying out.
- Flip and Cook: Carefully flip the pancakes using a spatula and cook for 2-3 minutes on the other side until golden brown and cooked through.
- Serve: Once cooked, transfer the pancakes to a plate. Serve warm with your favorite toppings, such as sliced bananas, berries, maple syrup, or a dollop of yogurt.
Tips and Substitutions
If you have overripe bananas, go ahead and use them in the quinoa pancakes. The sweetness of ripe bananas makes the pancakes taste even better.
These pancakes are low-fodmap and great for people with IBS. However, if you want to make low-fodmap pancakes, do not use ripe bananas; instead, choose a firm banana. One medium-ripe banana is high in the fodmap fructan, although according to the Monash app, you can still eat 1/3 of a medium-sized ripe banana per meal. If you choose a firm banana that is not overripe, you can enjoy one medium banana per meal.
I used almond milk in this recipe, but you can swap it for any non-dairy milk, such as soy or oat milk, to use in this vegan quinoa pancake recipe.
I chose to use maple syrup, a low-fodmap sweetener, but you can switch to any other sweetener of your choice, such as dates, honey, or coconut sugar.
My toddler’s favorite way to enjoy these pancakes is topped with plain yogurt and a drizzle of maple syrup! Fresh berries or homemade jam, such as this strawberry jam, is a great way to get antioxidant-rich fruits into your diet and tastes so good alongside the quinoa banana pancakes.
I buy maple syrup and quinoa from Costco as it is much more affordable for these ingredients that can be pricy in regular grocery stores.
Nutritional Benefits of the Banana Quinoa pancakes
This recipe yields two servings, and according to Cronometer, one serving contains:
- 311 calories
- 8 grams of protein
- 6 grams of fat
- 51 grams of carbohydrates
They are an excellent source of essential omega 6 and 3 fatty acids thanks to the addition of flax seeds, which act as a flax egg to bind these vegan quinoa banana pancakes. Quinoa is an excellent source of plant protein and a fantastic gluten-free seed that I love to incorporate into my diet.
The nutritious pancakes contain many vitamins and minerals, including B1, B2, B6, folate, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, zinc, phosphorus, potassium, and selenium.
These low-fodmap quinoa pancakes are great for IBS and SIBO. They are also high in B2 and folate, which support the MTHFR gene. Most people are unaware of the connection between MTHFR and SIBO.
Cinnamon is a fantastic spice for insulin resistance and is used to spice these pancakes.
Indulge in these nutritious quinoa banana pancakes for a wholesome breakfast packed with protein, fiber, and healthy fats. They are a delicious way to enjoy quinoa in your diet! For more quinoa recipes be sure to check out these flourless carrot quinoa muffins.
For more healthy pancake recipes check out the following homemade pancakes:
Quinoa Banana Pancakes – Low Fodmap, Vegan & GF
Equipment
- 1 High speed blender
- 1 Medium frying pan
- 1 Mixing bowl
Ingredients
- ½ cup uncooked quinoa (soaked 1 hour)
- ¼ cup almond milk
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 banana
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp ground flax seeds
- olive oil spray for cooking
Instructions
- Soak the quinoa in a bowl for at least one hour. Rinse and strain with water before blending with the almond milk. Add the remainder of the ingredients to the blender and blend again until smooth.
- Spray a pan with olive oil spray and heat on medium. Once the pan has warmed up spoon out the batter to make round pancakes. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the batter begins to dry out then flip to cook the other side for an additional 2-3 minutes.
- Serve the quinoa banana pancakes with your choice of toppings such as yogurt, fresh fruit, maple syrup or a homemade berry sauce or jam!
Hi Amber,
Any suggestions for runny pancakes. My pancakes wouldn’t set. I added flour but had a hard time getting a good texture.
Thanks
Hi karen,
The better does have a runnier texture, but mine still cooked well and set… Did you soak the quinoa first and for how long? I find that it is best to soak the quinoa first for at least one hour. If you leave it for longer you may want to try using less water as the quinoa will have already soaked up more water. You could also try only adding a 1/4 cup of either water or almond milk to start or enough to be able to blend the quinoa into a super smooth texture in the blender. Then only add more liquid if needed. Quinoa cooks fast but I’m wondering if maybe you are cooking them to fast or on too high of heat and thus they are not cooking all the way through? I cook mine on med heat, so maybe try that or a low heat to cook them slower without burning the outside. Hope this helps as I do love these pancakes!