The BEST Fluffy Vegan Whole Wheat Pancakes are just 7 ingredients and 1 bowl. They are oil-free, soft, fluffy and made with no eggs and are dairy-free!
FLUFFY VEGAN WHOLE WHEAT PANCAKES
Nothing says comfort food quite like a tall stack of vegan fluffy pancakes with syrup drizzled all over them! In other words, I’m talking about these vegan whole wheat pancakes that are both whole grain and healthy. I’m no rookie when it comes to amazing vegan fluffy pancake recipes. I consider it one of my specialties, as I require pancakes to be fluffy and soft. No dense or mushy pancakes, please!
If you prefer simple vegan pancakes, with regular all-purpose flour, try my Best Ever Vegan Pancakes!
INGREDIENTS NEEDED
(Full recipe details on recipe card below.)
- Whole wheat pastry flour: This is the exact flour that makes these healthy vegan whole wheat pancakes soft and so tender and fluffy. It also makes them a bit healthier than using regular white all-purpose flour. Wheat pastry flour also has a bit less gluten in it than regular flour, resulting in a more tender bite.
- Potato starch: This is the secret to these fluffy vegan pancakes. It replaces eggs and makes these so fluffy and cooked through on the inside! Nobody wants a mushy, raw pancake on the inside, which is what most vegan pancake recipes are. This is a secret I’ve been using years for my pancake recipes. It cannot be replaced or omitted. Another starch will not perform the same.
- Baking powder
- Canned “lite” coconut milk: This is another secret to these pancakes. Since these are oil-free pancakes, the coconut milk replaces it, while keeping them moist and making them fluffy. It leaves no coconut taste at all. Another milk will not perform the same here, especially since these are oil-free, it is rather important. Other milks will yield flatter, more dense pancakes.
- Vanilla extract
- Pure maple syrup
- Apple cider vinegar: This vinegar reacts with the baking powder, resulting in fluffy pancakes.
HOW TO MAKE FLUFFY VEGAN WHOLE WHEAT PANCAKES
Step 1: To a large bowl, add the dry ingredients and whisk very well.
Step 4: Cook each pancake 3-4 minutes on the first side. You will know when it’s time to flip when the top starts to look dry and the edges are firm. Flip over and cook another minute. Repeat.
TIPS FOR VARIATIONS
- We love to serve these pancakes as is with just maple syrup drizzled on top. They are truly perfect that way! But sometimes my daughter likes chocolate chip pancakes. Add them for a fun treat and variation.
- If you would like a spiced pancake, add 1 teaspoon of cinnamon or pumpkin spice for variety!
MORE VEGAN PANCAKE RECIPES
- Best Vegan Pancakes Ever
- Vegan Sweet Potato Pancakes
- Vegan Gluten-free Buttermilk Pancakes
- Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pancakes
- Fluffy Vegan Blueberry Pancakes
- Vegan Cookies ‘N’ Cream Pancakes
- Vegan Gluten-free Corn Flour Pancakes
If you make this recipe, be sure to leave feedback below and share your pic on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thevegan8 #thevegan8!
Fluffy Vegan Whole Wheat Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (200g) whole wheat pastry flour (can also use regular all-purpose they just won't be as tender)
- 3 tablespoons (30g) potato starch, patted down well
- 1 tablespoon (15g) baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cups (300g) "lite" canned coconut milk, room temp and shaken well first (don't recommend other milks, see post above)
- 2 1/2 tablespoons (50g) pure maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon (15g) vanilla extract
- 1/2 tablespoon (7g) apple cider vinegar
- Optional add-ins: We eat these plain and love them but I also add chocolate chips sometimes for my daughter. For cinnamon, add 1 teaspoon.
NOTE
- Always use a scale for accuracy when baking or measuring flours, following MY gram weights listed. You never need cups, just the scale and bowl.
- I use this scale.
- I use this pancake griddle, it's amazing and never sticks, no spray needed!
Instructions
- Make sure your liquids are at room temperature, as cold will make your pancakes less fluffy.
- To a large bowl, add the flour, potato starch, baking powder and salt and whisk very well.
- Pour in the milk, syrup, vanilla and vinegar. With a spoon, gently stir the ingredients in a folding motion from the bottom. You just want to mix just until all the flour is incorporated. Don't overmix or the pancakes will be more tough because of them being wheat.
- Very important for fluffy and cooked through pancakes, leave the batter to sit for 15 minutes. At the same time, turn on your pan to medium-low, closer to low. Your pan must heat up at the same time your batter sits. This will ensure your pancakes are all fluffy and cooked through well. You will notice how much your batter poofs up after the 15 minutes.
- Lightly spray the pan (unless using a high quality nonstick pan like I linked above) and pour a 1/3 cup of batter onto the pan, it should be fairly thick, but smooth. Just slightly smooth the top, but don't overspread out the batter, or your pancakes will be more thin. Cook the first side until the top is forming a dry look, the edges are looking dry and firm and some bubbles are on top. You can peak underneath to make sure they aren't browning too quickly. If they are, slightly reduce the heat. Flip over and cook another minute. Repeat.
Notes
Nutrition
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Woahh!! First, these pancakes look awesome. Any time over “normal” ones. Also, congratz for being featured in Forks over Knives. So cool, Brandi! On another note, I didn’t realize you published a desserts eBook! I hope it’s going good 😀
Thank you so much Howie!! Yes, the ebook sales have been wonderful, thank you!
Ooh, I’m going to grab myself a bag of potato starch and pray for a snow day this week so I can make the boys some pancakes. They go crazy for pancakes (I made a double batch of some yesterday and they ate them all), but it’s hard to squeeze in before school in the morning. These look delicious!
Awesome Sarah! Thank you!
Made these and kids loved them. Definitely will be making again. Thank you for so many good recipes. Everything I have tried so far turned out amazing 😉
Wonderful news Natasha! Thank you so much for the feedback and I’m so happy you are enjoying the recipes!
Just made these pancakes this weekend and they are amazing!! Check out my instagram page for quite a few of these recipes I have made from vegan8. All the recipes are fail safe and always turn out amazing!! I urge everyone to try them.
These pancakes turned out fluffy, soft and not raw in the middle like most! Delicious!!
Yay! Loved your pic of them on IG Deborah! I’m so very happy you loved these pancakes and the bean brownies too! Thank you so much for the feedback!
I bought Forks over Knives magazine and saw your recipes in it…..how exciting!!!!! I wish you all the luck in the world 🙂 you have helped so many people. Thank you and success to you on your journey.
Aww, thank you so much Debbie, you are so sweet!!
Congrats Brandi! That sounds like a seriously awesome year. And I bet 2017 will be even better. I mean, these incredibly awesome pancakes are a mere sign of things to come, right? 🙂
Haha, yes, total sign! Thank you Alisa!
Very nice pancakes indeed, Brandi!
I have been in a set-back and found myself with a confidence-loss myself. But I see that you are back strongly!
I agree with your plea for kindness.
I wish you great success with your ebook.
Hi Tonette! Thank you so much for your kind words!
Man these look amazing. Although I can’t make these myself it gets me thinking I should totally make one of your gluten free pancakes for dinner sometime. I don’t know why the heck I haven’t thought of that before. With two jobs I never get an opportunity to make pancakes but that is about to change pancakes for dinner sound amazing. Yaasssss!!! Such amazing and vivid pics as always, seriously feels like the pancakes are right in front of me and it makes me want to shove them in my pie hole but then I have to slap myself to remember I can’t eat gluten. ahaha
Oh and yay I am so happy for you about the feature in Forks Over Knives magazine it is well deserved recognition and your recipes are such perfection the world needs to know about them so the more exposure the better. I feel sorry for people who have not discovered your blog. ahahaha I look forward to all your amazing recipes to come this year. You certainly started the year off with a bang with this recipe girl they are simply amazing I have no doubt.
Hi Christina! I’m so sorry I’m just responding…I didn’t realize I forgot to come back to respond to some of these comments (even though I read them that day)….side effect of a crazy schedule! Anyways, I love reading your comments and really appreciate them so much. Thank you very much!! Your comments always make me smile 🙂
Congratulations on all of the wonderful things that are happening!
Thank you so much Dianne!
Hi Brandi! So glad to see your first post of 2017! As a fairly new vegan, I am so grateful to have found your site not long ago with great recipes featuring 8 ingredients.
Congrats on all your well-deserved success! I too think you should publish a cookbook in 2017.
Will be making the pancakes this weekend!
Thank you so much for the support Kathy, it means so much to me! Sorry I missed this comment before!
Congrats on a great year, and cheers to being kind this year. I’m so exhausted from all of the haters in this world. That stack of pancakes go on for days, yum!
I’m totally not surprised to see another pancake recipe on here. LOL! I love that giant stack…the only thing I’d say you are missing is the shot after that sequence where I insert my mouth and devour every last bite. They look gorgeous! Ship me some? And huge congrats on all 2016 brought and here’s to many more awesome things in 2017!
Lol!! Thanks friend!
Apirtcpaeion for this information is over 9000-thank you!
Congratulations on such a fantastic year! Oh and I’ll help you celebrate by eating that whole stack of pancakes please…. ;O)
Thank you Mel! That sounds like a deal to me!
Wow Brandi, they look so amazing! I am totally in love with their fluffiness. Congrats on the Forks Over Knives feature, such an honor! You rock :-*
So sweet of you Ela, thank you so much!!
Just made these and they are amazingly fluffy, slightly sweet and perfect!!! Curious if they freeze well?? Would like to make a big batch and freeze for quick breakfasts or school lunches. Thanks!
OH wow! Yay! So darn happy you already made and LOVED them! Thank you so much for the feedback! Honestly, we eat them all each weekend when I make them, lol. So, I don’t know if they’d freeze well. I would think so if they are wrapped really tight in saran wrap and then foil and then just pop them in the microwave. I think that would work!
Yes! They freeze beautifully. I kept them over a week in the freezer and took them out and microwaved them for a minute or so each. Not sure how you feel about microwaves, but it really kept the moisture in and they stayed nice and fluffy!
I’ve made a total of 4 batches now and they freeze perfectly! I’ve only been able to freeze a handful since most are eaten as they come off the stove! Awesome recipe!
That is awesome, thank you Laura!
Oooh, congrats on the Forks over Knives magazine feature. Can’t wait to see it!! And this pancakes look outstanding!!!
Thank you so much Jenn! I just added the feature above in the post…hahaha, I ran out to Target to buy it today, I couldn’t wait to see it! FOK is mailing me a copy but I couldn’t wait any longer, lol. It’s a beautiful magazine!
These look so amazing, Brandie! I love that they are so easy. Perfect for a lazy brunch.
You truly do create such delicious recipes. We all thank you for that. Since I am gluten-free, can I just substitute an all purpose gluten free flour for the wheat pastry flour? Thanks so much.
Thank you so much Naomi! I linked above within the post to my other pancake recipes which are all mostly gluten-free. I would start with my other ones since they are already tested as gluten-free. I have not tested these above with a gluten-free blend, so I have no idea if it would work well or not.
So, here is the link again to my pancake recipes. The most popular ones are the Life Changing Pancakes and the Buttermilk Ones! https://thevegan8.com/pancakes/
You are the Pancake Goddess!!! I’m a huge, huge fan of yours, and think your pancake recipes (all of them!) are the best ever created. I can’t believe you just added another one- I’m thrilled and will indulge ASAP! I don’t know what I would have done as a blooming vegan without your recipes. Seriously. It’s been 3 years since I went full vegan and I make at least one of your recipes about every other day. Thank you for all your hard work and generosity sharing it so freely! I hope you find all the success and happiness you deserve in 2017! (ps: I don’t know why my profile photo shows a photo of me from 6 years ago when I had short hair and it was dyed a crazy color!)
Oh Liz, you are way too kind to me!! Pancake Goddess….I like the sound of that since I’m totally obsessed with pancakes, LOL! You know what is really funny? I totally thought of you when I was getting ready to post these since I know you make the Life Changing Pancakes and Blueberry Spelt ones so often…I was thinking..oh boy, she is now going to have another one to add to the mix, hahaha! These are the easiest and fluffiest ones so far though!
Thank you so very much to YOU for your sweet words and always making my recipes and tagging me on IG, it truly means the world to me! That pic I think stays on any reader’s profile when they first originally post a comment. Don’t worry though, I love your hair in it!
Thanks for a great pancake recipe! I’ve made it several times. I was just wondering. Have you experimented at all with using Aquafaba for egg replacement in baking? This is the liquid drained off a can of garbanzo (chickpea) beans. One tablespoon for every egg required. I’ve been using this and am very impressed, just because I always have the liquid left whenever I use chickpeas and now I don’t have to throw it out! It is very mild flavored, not like flaxseed, so I prefer it for that reason. I can’t really taste it at all in my baking. I wonder how it would be to add that to your recipe? Might even make them lighter? I think I’ll try it!
Hi Louann! Yes, I have a few recipes on my site that use aquafaba and I love it! Oh, and these pancakes don’t need aquafaba, that is the reason for the potato starch. Potato starch makes pancakes super fluffy in the exact way that eggs do. It makes them soft and light, so I wouldn’t add more liquid to the batter, it will just make them flat. They need the coconut milk additionally for the lightness/fluffy factor. Let me know when you try them!
Oh, and here are a few of my recipes using aquafaba.
GARLIC CHIVE DINNER MUFFINS: https://thevegan8.com/2016/02/22/garlic-chive-dinner-muffins-vegan-gluten-free-oil-free/
CHOCOLATE PEPPERMINT CAKE: https://thevegan8.com/vegan-gluten-free-chocolate-peppermint-cake-oil-free/
CARAMEL CRUSTED PUMPKIN LOAF: https://thevegan8.com/2014/11/22/caramel-crusted-pumpkin-loaf/
are potato flour and potato starch the same thing?
No, very different. Definitely use potato starch, it will say starch on the bag 🙂
Where can I buy potato flour? Thanks!
Hi there! It is potato STARCH, not four, they are very different and potato flour would ruin them. Potato starch is similar to cornstarch and can be found in the specialty flour section in most grocery stores or can be ordered online through Amazon. I buy mine at either Krogers, HEB or Whole Foods.
That pour sequence. Yep I just scrolled through it three time because hello mega droolworthy pancake perfection😍😍 Do you think I could get a flip book version please? Or I guess that’s kinda what GIFs are for these days, isn’t it haha! With or without a pancake ring, you make the most amazingly fluffy pancake stacks…or shall I say towers! You had me at “vanilla infused”, you know I am a huge vanilla fan. And it goes so well with maple too. I rarely ever have a desire to venture into non-GF flours, oat and tapioca usually work just fine, but the light fluffiness that whole wheat pastry flour gives is amazing! And how convenient that you have so many super fluffy pancake versions at this point that you can just point people in the direction that fits their dietary preference to ward off all those inevitable flour swapping questions 😀 And big congrats on all the wonderful opportunities coming your way, you are so very talented and I cannot wait to see where 2017 takes you <3
Thank you so much my friend! SO glad you love those photos, haha! I couldn’t help myself! I really have fun with pancake photos. Flipbook version….I literally laughed out loud!! Thanks so much girl…I was going to use my round cookie cutter, but decided I was too lazy for that and while these are not perfectly round (see overhead shot above), I still found them all to cook relatively similar just by making sure I used exactly 1/3 cup each time and slightly smoothing the tops once adding the batter to the pan. I also photographed the prettiest sides, lol! Seriously, whole wheat pastry flour definitely makes the fluffiest pancakes, way more than spelt. I love spelt too, but it is a stronger flavor and these have no off taste or flavor, just vanilla yumminess!
As beautiful as these pancakes are (and they really are), it’s even more lovely that you make mention of us all trying to find some unity and grace amidst a whole lot of hatred and division in 2016. A little kindness, compassion and empathy would do us all a lot of good.
Thank you so much for reading Annie. I usually don’t talk about much other than food, but it’s been weighing so heavily on my mind because of how much I’ve witnessed. I think people, too often, forget that we are all just human beings. None of us are perfect and I truly believe everybody deserves grace and compassion before immediately just attacking people online. That golden rule of treating others as we want ourselves to be treated is too often forgotten. My heart breaks everytime I read about teenagers being bullied on social media, and then they take their own lives. It’s inexcusable and we really need to teach our children compassion to others and it starts with us, the adults.
Brandi, Congratulations on your recent successes. The recipes you develop are truly scrumptious, keep up the good work. Looking forward to lots of new recipes in 2017.
So kind of you, thank you so much for saying that!
Happy new year Brandi! I make your famous pancake recipe all the time and love it. It’ll be hard to tear myself away but since we aren’t gluten-free I’m also looking forward to giving this new one a try 🙂 Definitely not-so-secretly hoping you’ll be announcing a cookbook in 2017 😀
NO way?! Thank you so much Shannon, that makes me so happy to hear you love the pancakes! Oh, and by the way, we still make and devour your spinach artichoke dip! My mom made it again for both Thanksgiving and Christmas and every single person loves it and none of them are vegan! She finally wised up and double the recipe at Christmas since at Thanksgiving, it was gone in 5 minutes, lol!
I’m interested in this dip recipe!
Happy New Year my friend! So Congratulations to your new opportunities so happy and excited for you! So gorgeous and amazing photos, love the closeups with the dizzle on maple syrup on top, I’m drooling!
I would happily eat 10 of these, because I know you’re the pancake queen! 🙂
Happy New Year Florian! Thank you so much my friend! So glad you love those. I can’t resist pour shots, haha!
What is potato starch?
It’s a starch like cornstarch but made from potatoes instead of corn. It is sold at pretty much any grocery store these days in the flour isle and works to make things fluffy in place of eggs.
I wonder if I could swap my egg replacer for the potatoe starch?