The Best Vegan Gluten-free Oil-free pancakes I’ve ever created. These are soft, fluffy, incredibly flavorful and made with good wholesome ingredients like sweet potatoes. They really are Life Changing Pancakes!
The perfect pancake, must, I mean must be fluffy. There are pancakes and there are crepes…and too many pancake recipes I see look more like crepes. I mean, it’s called a pan-cake.
Seriously, how ridiculous is it that all vegan or gluten-free pancake we have all probably had, has been dense, heavy as a brick or raw on the inside. I have made so many vegan/gluten-free pancakes and have been so disappointed at each one because the texture is always too heavy. This is because of the lack of eggs. All of my trials never lived up to a fluffy all purpose flour pancake.
Until now.
These vegan pancakes are a beautiful, golden-peachy color. You don’t believe me that they are just as beautiful and fluffy on the inside?? Check ’em out yourself….
No mush, no goop, no oil, no wheat, no eggs, no grains. Like a fluffy cloud. They are life changing pancakes……no, really, they are.
They are incredibly light, moist, fluffy, perfectly sweet and didn’t need one ounce of syrup, not one. It’s amazing that they are gluten-free, it really is. That is saying a lot from a syrup addict like myself. Of course, if you still want some, knock yourself out. I did do one for photographic purposes…
Don’t tell anybody the ingredients and make these for your family and friends for breakfast and serve them and then tell them that the pancakes are vegan, gluten-free, oil-free and grain-free! They will call you a liar! Follow my tips below for making the perfect, gorgeous pancake!
Well, these beauties are mind-blowing delicious. I’m telling you, if I didn’t know better, I would think they were made with all purpose flour! BUT, they’re not.
The technical name of these pancakes are “Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip Pancakes“, but they are life changing for me. My favorite pancakes I’ve ever had are my Gingersnap Pancakes, but they are an older recipe of mine and contain wheat and oil. They also have a ton of ingredients, whereas these are only 8!
This amazing combo pancake idea came from my Sweet Potato Cinnamon Muffins. That recipe resulted in such a soft, light muffin that I had been wanting to try it as pancakes. So, I changed up my recipe a bit to turn it into a pancake recipe and voila, heaven on a plate.
It is recommended to use a food processor to get the batter completely smooth, so there are no potato lumps. Doing this ensures a smooth and fluffy pancake. Add your mashed sweet potato, coconut milk, syrup and vanilla to the processor and blend until completely smooth. Scrape the sides a couple of times during.
Next, you will add your dry ingredients to a bowl and whisk them well and then add to the wet ingredients into the food processor. Process just until mixed and smooth, about 8 seconds. I scraped the sides and did it once more for a couple of seconds. You don’t want it processing too long or the batter will get too thick.
Pour all the batter into a bowl and add the chocolate chips and stir just until mixed.
This is how thick your batter should look. It should be thick, but still pourable…similar to a muffin batter. Next step, very important, leave your batter to sit for 15-20 minutes (set your timer!). This is where the potato starch and baking powder will start to react and absorb the liquid, so that your 1st and last pancakes should all turn out uniform. Cooking the batter immediately is what results in the first pancake being so flat and uncooked.
Now, my secret to the perfect, round, fluffy pancake is a large cookie cutter. Mine is about 4.5 inches wide. This does 2 things: one, it makes them all cook evenly and tall and two, it helps the interior cook well because the heat is somewhat enclosed. Each pancake turns out perfectly this way.
And, you won’t need 15 ingredients to make these vegan sweet potato pancakes! Seriously, who has time for that anyways when you want breakfast?! You will only need 8 ingredients:
- blanched almond flour
- potato starch
- baking powder
- lite canned coconut milk
- vanilla extract
- maple syrup
- cooked/mashed sweet potato
- dairy-free/vegan chocolate chips
MORE VEGAN PANCAKE RECIPES TO TRY
- Fluffy Vegan Spelt Blueberry Pancakes
- Best Vegan Fluffy Pancakes
- Low-fat Vegan Gluten-free Pancakes
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Pancakes
- Pumpkin Spice Latte Pancakes
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If you make this recipe, be sure to leave feedback below and share your pic on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thevegan8 #thevegan8!
Life Changing Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon (75g) cooked mashed & cooled sweet potato
- 1 cup (240g) canned lite coconut milk, shaken well (Do not sub!)
- 1 tablespoon (15g) vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons (40g) pure maple syrup
- 1 1/4 cups (140g) superfine blanched almond flour (very important it is superfine and not gritty)
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons (100g) potato starch
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 2-3 tablespoons (30-45g) mini dairy-free chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life brand)
NOTE
- Always use a scale for accuracy when baking, following MY gram weights listed. You never need cups, just the scale and bowl and make sure to zero out in between each ingredient.
- I use this scale.
Instructions
- Follow each step (referring to the photos above) to ensure your perfect, fluffy pancake. First prepare your potato the day before (see note above). I roasted 1 large whole sweet potato at 405 degrees for about an hour until completely tender. Let cool, then peel and mash really well with a fork and store in the fridge to cool. This is important to let the potato cool because blending a hot potato will make it super gluey. I often make my potato the day before I plan to make the pancakes, so it's totally cold when measuring.
- When measuring the sweet potato, make sure there are no gaps in your cup. Press down gently and then level off with your finger. Add the sweet potato, coconut milk (make sure to shake the can well first), vanilla and syrup to a food processor and process until completely smooth with no lumps remaining. Scrape the sides a couple of times during.
- To a large bowl, combine the almond flour, potato starch, baking powder and salt and whisk really well until no lumps remain. Stir in the chocolate chips. Pour the liquids from the processor over the dry and whisk gently until combined and smooth. Let the batter sit for 15-20 minutes. Do not skip this step! After 5 minutes has passed, add a nonstick pan to your stove and turn the heat to medium-low, closer to low. Your pan needs to heat up about 10 minutes.
Place the cookie cutter (I used 4.5 inch one for 1/4 cup batter) on the preheated pan and spray within the circle with nonstick spray. This is necessary so the cookie cutter works and the pancakes don't stick. Add a heaping 1/4 cup of batter filling up the circle evenly and spreading out with your spoon. Cook for about 3 minutes, or until the pancake forms some bubbles and the edges/top of the pancake are looking dry. If you flip them too soon, they will not cook through! Remove the cookie cutter with tongs (it will be hot!) and carefully, but quickly, slide a thin metal spatula underneath the pancake and flip over quickly. Do not pat down the pancake with the spatula! Cook for 1-2 minutes on the other side to ensure it cooks through. Repeat with all the batter. Let them sit about 5 minutes afterwards because they will continue to cook/fluff up as they sit.
NOTE
- You don't have to use a cookie cutter for this recipe, but just keep in mind, they will be less fluffy without one, but still delicious!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition per pancake: 275.8 calories, 31 carbs, 5.6 g protein, 15.6 g fat, 8.06 g sugars
If you make this recipe, please do not repost it in full on your site, please link to me instead giving proper credit. I work very hard to create my recipes and share them for free, so please be respectful and link properly. If you are inspired by this recipe, again, please give proper credit and do not simply post it on your site.
Hello! These look amazing! I tried to look through the comments(So many…congratulations), to find a substitute answer but got overwhelmed by all of them. I live in Mexico and it is very hard to find some specialty items. Is there anything I can sub for potato starch? We get Bob’s Red Mill, but not a huge variety. Thank you!
Hi Christina! Thank you. The best sub is cornstarch, it will not make them as fluffy though, but it is the best sub there is for potato starch. Hope that helps!
Thanks!
Good day I am so thrilled I found your blog page, I really found you by error, while I was searching on Yahoo for something else,
Anyhow I am here now and would just like to say thank you for a tremendous post and a all round exciting blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t
have time to read it all at the minute but I have book-marked it and also added in your RSS feeds, so when I have time I
will be back to read a lot more, Please do keep up the great b.
Thank you so much Susanne! I hope you love the recipes!
Very interested in trying this recipe. Can the batter be poured into a sheet pan and baked?
Made these this morning for my daughter who can’t have wheat, oats or dairy & limited eggs. These check all the boxes but are so good! I have not had good luck with grain free pancakes in the past, & can’t use my go to oat flour pancakes anymore. I actually liked these better than the oat ones! And my daughter loves them, she said they taste like french toast. I left out the syrup in the batter, and subbed applesauce for the sweet potato bc that’s what I had handy. I also added blueberries instead of choc. chips. They really are delicious thanks for the recipe!
I’m so very happy to hear that, thank you so much for the feedback!
HI!! I was curious how much this recipe made? I am cooking just for one. thanks!!
This makes 6 large pancakes using about 1/4 cup batter for each one 🙂
thank you so much!! Ps. Is ener-g egg replacer simliar to potato starch?
While they both are starch, the ener-g egg replacer has leavening and also tapioca starch and gum in it, which will make it act much more like glue and binding, so it’s not going to give the same fluffy, light results as potato starch. It would make the pancakes very tough and like glue.
Wow! I feel like you are changing my life with vegan cooking:) Thank you so much! I plan to make these wonderful pancakes this weekend and will post on my social media and tag you. I loved your cashew alfredo sauce. Cant wait to make this!! 🙂
Aww that is the best compliment Francesca, thank you! I can’t wait to hear what you think of these, as well!
These are INCREDIBLE! My favorite of your pancakes that I’ve made. Love these! You named these perfectly.
Yay!! So happy to hear that Jessica, these are my favorite too! Thank you so much for letting me know you made them!
These came out perfect! We have made them with great success from 3-day leftover batter, with and without chocolate chips. A couple things I learned are: 1. Keep the heat fairly low. We don’t want the outside to burn before the fat inside cooks through. Although they taste good even when they aren’t cooked through, and no raw egg to worry about! The three minute cooking time is essential. 2. I ran out of lite coconut milk in the middle of cooking one morning so I used in addition 3/4 cup So Delicious unsweetened coconut milk, the kind from the carton. Mine happened to be vanilla flavored so I went light on the vanilla. Made no difference! 3. I went to four stores and could not find a large round cookie cutter, so I ended up buying a 4 inch egg frying thing at Bed Bath and Beyond. It works perfectly! And I don’t have to use tongs to remove it because it has its own built in wooden handle. 4. Spreading on coconut oil with a brush or silicone brush works just as well as spraying oil. I didn’t want to go out and buy a spray oil just for this recipe, so I’m pleased that worked out as well.
Thanks so much for the stellar vegan, grain-free recipe Brandi! This is like the ONLY one on the internet. I am so grateful.
So awesome to read this Stacy, thank you so much for the amazing feedback! Really appreciate it!
All I can say is “SO FLUFFY, I’M GONNA DIE!!”
well, I have more to say 🙂 These pancakes were so delicious! I made a small one to taste test before I made more for the kids and OH EM GEE, I was making little ones as I made theirs and eating them while theirs were cooking! I did not use a cookie cutter and they turned out just as fluffy. These are satisfying with out feeling Blah, they are high in nutrition and ideal for sports snack which I love. Thank you for another flippin fantastic recipe!
Awww, yay Tami! Thank YOU so much for this amazing feedback, it truly made my day and I really LOVED your photos of it on Instagram! They look magical and perfect! Thank you for this glowing review!
All I can say is that you make the absolute best pancakes! These look amazing, my gosh. I’m really enjoying the recipes on your site. I’m printing this one out to make. 🙂
That is such a sweet compliment! Thank you so very much!
Wondering if you ever put them in the freezer. Started to look through comments to see if any one did but way to many comments to go through.
I have health issues so when I cook or bake I do extra and freeze it for the bad days.
I am definitely going to try these.
Thanks
Hi!
Synchroncity! I have been looking for a fabulous vegan gluten free pancake recipe that’s good. I’m trying this one out and will let you know. I’ve tried many different ones and I don’t make pancakes or waffles anymore because I haven’t found a good recipe. My family will be so excited! Any fantastic waffles recipes?
What brand/model food processor do you recommend?
What brand cooking pans do you recommend?
What brand/model waffle maker do you recommend?
Thank you!
Patty Smith
Hi Patty! These are amazing, light, fluffy and moist. Just make sure to follow the steps and weigh the ingredients and don’t sub and they will be amazing. A food processor is best, as a blender can overpriced things and make the sweet potato overblend and make the texture chewy.
This is the one I use, it’s the 11 cup food processor by Cuisinart for $169 and I’ve had it for years and love it. I use it for making all my nut butters, dips, cheeses, etc. 🙂
https://amzn.to/2OHCFjP
Hi!
Can a Vitamix blender be used instead of the food processor or is it not really recommended?
Thanks!
Hi Brandi! Let me start by saying You are Amazing! I discovered your blog recently, couple of months ago. And everything I’ve cooked so far is sooo good!!! These pancakes are one of those. On the way I had to change some things, I pan fried them, I sub potato starch(still couldn’t find it in store) with gluten free flour (it has rice flour, potato starch, xantham gum), I also added 30g of unblanched almond flour since I run out of it’s blanched version. Still it turned out so so good! You are such a great cook! Wish you all the best 😊
I’m so glad you loved these Iryna! Thank you so much for your kind words!!
Making these pancakes a second day in a row! The first double batch was gone in a flash! (4 adults). Huge hit with the whole family! I’ve made a lot of g-free gooey gross pancakes in the past and if you follow this recipe you won’t be disappointed! Thank you Brandi for your amazing talent to work on recipes until they are perfection! So happy to have a pancake that’s light and fluffy again! Many thanks! Can’t wait to try more. Gonna make your sun-dried tomatoes pesto for tonight! ❤️ Your recipes!
So so happy you loved these Maureen and thank you very much for your kind words!!
I found these in my endless search for a yummy GF breakfast.
OMG!!!
Please please give me instructions for this recipe for one person! I made these for the first time this morning and all I want to do is eat the stack! They are seriously heavenly- just the right sweetness.
They seriously are just perfect – thanks 🙂
Haha, I’m so glad you loved these Kathy, thank you!!
We love these pancakes! The ingredients healthy, scrumptious flavor, but I must be doing something wrong to cause the texture to be too moist in the middle. I’ve made them three times and I believe I followed your directions and used the ingredients listed precisely. I used a kitchen scale to measure.
The first time I did not use the cookie cutters….I wanted to see if we liked them enough to invest in cookie cutters just for pancakes. We loved the flavor (a lot) so I thought I will try them with a collar around them to see if that makes them fluffy to the center.
The second time I made aluminum foil rings to act as cookie cutters. The pancakes definitely cooked differently- rose higher and the sides were fluffier but the middle was still moist. I varied the amount of time they cooked and the temperature of the pan to see if the would help… but alas the middle was still dense.
The third time I reduced the size of two of the four aluminum foil collars to 3.5″, the other two were left at 4.5″, I reduced the amount of batter I put in each one and increased the cooking time to 5 minutes on the first side and 3 minutes after flipping.
Alas, they were still dense in the center though outer edges were fluffier than before on both sizes.
I’m open to suggestions because I would really like to add this recipe to our regular routine as it is the best vegan, gluten free, oil free pancake recipe I’ve tried so far. Most pancake recipes are not worth a second effort but this one is definitely worth the extra effort… BTW… my cookie cutters are ordered and will be arriving soon…
Hi Kathryn! Hmmm, mine always turn out really fluffy and cooked through, but what brand of almond flour are you using? That is likely the culprit. SO many brands of almond flour produce such a great varied result, as in some make things more wet and some more fluffy. That is almost always the reason if something turns out too wet-the almond flour. Also, what brand of lite coconut milk are you using and are you shaking it really well before measuring so you aren’t getting mostly the watery part?
I appreciate your reply…
I’m using Kirkland signature almond flour (superfine) from Costco and reduced fat coconut milk from Trader Joe’s.
The coconut milk may be the issue. I was unable to create a smooth coconut milk consistency by shaking the can or blending it in my vitamix. What brands of almond flour and coconut milk do you use?
I’m not sure about that brand of almond flour if it is fine enough, I know I’ve used the nuts.com brand and King arthur almond flour for the pancakes and they are really fluffy but definitely coconut brands make a HUGe difference. I honestly never have any luck with lite coconut milk brands other than Thai Kitchen, which you can find at most grocery stores. I buy mine at Kroger but it’s also sold on Amazon. It is consistently creamy and smooth and never chunky. Just shake it really well first and then measure.
Yummy! My family loves The Vegan 8 Peanut Butter Pancakes, they are so fluffy and delicious! I wanted to try something different…something without peanut butter, so these were next! After my boys took their first bite, they said “mom, these are best pancakes you make (well…second best, the peanut butter ones take the gold!)” and when I told them they had sweet potato in them, they almost didn’t believe me! 🙂
Great flavor, not too sweet, just delicious! Thank you Brandi for another great recipe!
Finally got to try these out and it came out DELICIOUS!! But still mushy in the middle.. nice color brown on the outside.. even cooked it for a little longer.. but still mushy right in the middle.. do you think I may need to use more almond flour? Maybe I put too much sweet potato?
Hi Joy! It can be several factors, what kind of almond flour did you use? Brand of coconut milk and did you weigh the ingredients?
Hi Brandi! I’m drooling over all of your recipes 😋 can’t wait to try it out! Have a question, is there any way to substitute the potato starch? I’m on special detox program right now and I can’t use potato because of the starch it contains.. Any recommendations from your side?
Hi Anastasia! Thank you for the kind words! I’m so sorry, but no, the potato starch is absolutely crucial to these pancakes. Other starches will make them extremely dense and gummy. I am testing a more basic gluten-free pancake recipe and hope to have that up in the near future. I’ll try to test it without potato starch, but just fyi, all my pancake recipes do use SOME starch because since there are no eggs (which gives traditional pancakes their fluffy and cooked through interior), without starch, they will be gummy and not cooked through. Can you do cornstarch or other starches? You can also try these, they are a bit different, kind of like a cornmeal cake flavor, but smoother and so delicious. No potato starch either: https://thevegan8.com/vegan-gluten-free-corn-flour-pancakes/
Vegan version. The batter came out too thick like cookie dough. Double checked measurements, accuracy checked. You mentioned adding the dry mix into the food processor, and I did the opposite, the processed liquid into the dry mixture. Could this be the problem?
The batter is very fluid, not thick like cookie dough at all, so something definitely isn’t right there. I’ve made this recipe hundreds of times and it’s always a smooth, fluid batter, so I’m not sure what to tell you there. Did you use potato flour instead of potato starch by accident? Change any of the flours or ingredients?
I made these today and they’re so good! Reminded me of cake. Which is why I wanted to ask: have you tried baking these as muffins or a cake? 🥰😋
I made these again today. I even left out the chocolate chips and they were amazing. I cooked them in my copper skillet. It is really important to heat it up for at least 5 minutes at a medium low heat before adding the batter to prevent sticking. Anyway, thanks for a great recipe. It’s our favorite pancake recipe!
So awesome to hear Sharon!