Vegan Gingersnap Pancakes With Ginger Syrup ‘N’ Cream! So delicious, full of wonderful spices and they are dairy-free and made with whole grain flour. These are ADDICTING!
I have been making cinnamon pancakes for years, but recently decided to transform them into gingersnap pancakes. I am IN LOVE!
Vegan pancakes, if you’ve ever tried them, have most likely disappointed you. Frankly, any I’ve ever tried have sucked. They are notorious for being mushy, flat and have an undercooked taste to them. The reason is the lack of eggs. Vegan baking works because cakes slowly cook in an oven, but pancakes only get a few minutes, so that’s why it’s hard when not using eggs. However, after too many trials that I care to recount, I have finally come up with some delicious pancakes that don’t taste any less fabulous than my non-vegan days of pancakes. My secret for the non-mushy fluffy pancake? Well, obviously the entire list of ingredients below…but the main ingredients that changed it all for me was adding cornstarch and using coconut milk. I used to use almond milk, but since coconut milk is slightly thicker and contains fat, the pancakes just seem slightly richer. They even taste fabulous the next day. The cornstarch almost continues to fluff the insides as the hours pass.
HOW DO YOU MAKE FLUFFY VEGAN PANCAKES?
One thing I hear so often from people is how their pancakes always turn out flat and still raw in the middle, and their first pancake is always the worst one. This is especially with vegan ones. There are a few possible reasons why this happens…
1. You didn’t let the batter sit long enough to allow the leavening agent to react. Remember, it’s not cooking in an oven.
2. Your pan wasn’t hot enough. You need to let your pan or griddle heat up for several minutes, while the batter is sitting. That way the heat reacts with the leavening agents and vinegar, causing a reaction and fluff. Also, your heat needs to be between low and medium. A pan that is too hot will overcook the outside before the inside cooks.
3. Your flour to liquid ratio was way off. If the batter is too thick, the inside won’t cook. If it’s too thin and runny, they end up flat and lifeless.
4. You flipped them too soon. You need to wait around 3 minutes for the first side to cook and watch for the edges of the pancake to have firmed up and dried out before flipping them over.
5. You overmixed the batter. You need only to stir it until it just combines. If you keep mixing, it can give you a tough, flat pancake.
Please follow all of these steps so your pancakes turn out fluffy and delicious, as this recipe has been tested and tested, so any substitutions can alter the thickness of the batter, therefore I can’t vouch for the results. I love using whole wheat pastry flour because it gives them a nice tender bite.
I hope you love these Gingersnap Pancakes as much as I do! This is one of my older recipes from my old blog, so it’s more than 8 ingredients and not GF, but they are absolutely delicious!
Gingersnap Pancakes With Ginger Syrup 'N' Cream
Ingredients
- Dry Ingredients
- 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons organic sugar use less if you prefer your pancakes less sweet, but it will taste less like a gingersnap
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 heaping teaspoon dried ground ginger spice add more if you want them extra spicy
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- Wet Ingredients
- 3/4 cup "lite" canned coconut milk I recommend Thai Kitchen
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons grapeseed oil For oil-free, sub with a very creamy almond butter and increase the milk by a few tablespoons to reach a smooth, but thick pourable batter
- 2 tablespoons unsulphered molasses
- 1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Ginger Syrup
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 1/8 teaspoon ground roasted ginger
Instructions
- First, combine only 1/4 cup of the milk with the flaxseed into a coffee mug or small bowl and whisk very well with a fork. Set aside for at least 5 minutes. This will be your "egg" and it needs to sit to become thick and slightly gel-like. In a separate medium-sized bowl, sift together or pass the remaining dry ingredients through a fine mesh strainer so there are no lumps. Now, after the flaxseed mixture has sat for several minutes, add the remaining wet ingredients (including the remaining 1/2 cup of milk) and whisk very well until combined. Now pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir gently with a spoon until just combined. Set the batter aside for 10 minutes. Set your timer if you have to, but be patient, this will give you fluffy pancakes. At the same time you set the batter aside, place a small pan over heat set between medium and low. After 10 minutes, both your batter and hot pan will be ready.
- Lightly spray the heated pan with nonstick spray. Use a 1/3 measuring cup and spoon to pour the batter onto the heated pan. This will give you a nice size, thick pancake. If you prefer them smaller, use a 1/4 cup. I like mine fairly large though. Do NOT overly spread out the batter or flatten it, it will be thick. That's what you want. Cook around 3 minutes or until the edges have firmed up well, flip over, and cook another 1-2 minutes. Make sure to lightly spray the pan for each pancake. If you notice your pancakes are browning too fast, turn the heat down a bit.
- For the Ginger Syrup, Whisk the spices into the syrup and heat and pour over your pancakes. Oh my. Pure ginger heaven. If you really want to go all out...throw some coconut whipped cream on top sprinkled with ground ginger! For this, just place a can of full fat coconut milk (I like Thai brand) in the fridge the night before. It will harden and thicken the "cream" at the top of the can. Scoop it out and spoon over your pancakes or whip it if you like.
Notes
Here are my helpful printable pancake tips
Hi Judy! That onion ring recipe actually isn’t mine, it’s a recipe I shared on my Facebook page I shared from another blogger Veggies Don’t Bite. I’ve never tried them, but I will relay this comment to her and see if she has a response. Or you can also ask her directly on her recipe here: http://www.veggiesdontbite.com/2015/01/26/baked-cornmeal-and-pepita-crusted-onion-rings/
Hope that helps 🙂
I made them and they were delicious!!!
I made them gluten free using 1/2 cup brown rice flour and 1/2 buckwheat flour and they rose perfectly thanks to baking powder and bicarbonate combined with apple cider vinegar! The ginger and cinnamon maple syrup is HEAVEN!
Thank you my dear for the great recipe! I always learn a lot from you! xox
That is so wonderful to hear Ema!! Thank you so much for making them and I am super happy to hear your changes worked out so well!! That means so much to me 🙂
Brandi! I’m watering!!! It’s morning down here and I didn’t have my breakfast yet -_- ahaah!!!
They look amazing! And I imagine they taste better :)!
And the syrup is something divine!!!
As you know I also use corn starch and coconut milk, but I used them since the first time I made them because I just had coconut milk at home and I usually add a bit of corn starch to make the batter lighter :)!
I have two questions for you:
– what is the roasted ginger spice? Can I just roast for a while the ground ginger?
– I’m not sure I can find the grapeseeds oil 🙁 what can I use instead? Macadamia oil could be ok? -it doesn’t have any taste honestly-
Thank you so much!!! Can’t wait to make them next week end!!!
:*
Oh my gosh, that is right, we are alike then because we both use cornstarch and coconut milk, how funny!! 🙂 Cornstarch works amazing in vegan pancakes, it really is a game changer once I discovered what it did. Before I made so many failures of vegan pancakes.
Roasted ginger spice is just a spice in the spice isle, but you could totally use regular dried ginger spice! In fact, I should probably change the recipe to that, since most people probably won’t find it. Don’t bother roasting it 🙂
Oh, and yes, macadamia oil would totally be fine! 🙂 🙂
Oh, and I’ve been meaning to turn this gluten-free for the longest time since they are my all-time favorite pancake and I only cook gluten-free now! I just haven’t had the chance yet. I will try this week if I get a chance.
Thank you so much Brandi :)! I’ll make them with normal dried ginger spice and macadamia oil :)! Can’t wait! And don’t worry if you don’t have time to make them GF, I’ll let you know what I used and how they turn and I’ll take few pics so you can judge if the inside has the good texture :)!
Thank you so much for what you have done for me :)! I really appreciate it! You are a lovely girl! I hope I’ll meet you one day :*
I love every part of this dish! Your tips are great, I like having big, fluffy pancakes – so indulgent! And the ginger syrup is a nice compliment; along with the coconut whipped cream!! This will be a real breakfast treat!
Ok, so i made these pancakes last night for dinner! I used almond milk instead of coconut milk, and organic agave instead of molasses because that was all that i had at home at the time….Let me just say that those pancakes were BEYOND AWESOME…. I put some roasted pecan butter and just regular maple syrup on top, and felt like i died and went to heaven….SO DELICIOUS! Thank you Brandi for sharing…..
I made them 2 allready & my hubby & I loved them so much, my sweet friend! 🙂 xxx fantastic too!
Awesome Sophie, so glad to hear that!! yay!
Omg. I think I’m over my “spiced out”-ness. Those look totally fantastic! Would you recommend using regular ginger spice if I don’t have roasted? Omg. Can’t get over them. They look sooooo so so good. I’ve never tried putting cornstarch in mine, but that’s interesting, I’ll have to try it! Hope you are having a great christmas!
Thank you so much Erika!! They really are delicious…I just love ginger…and with the ginger syrup, it’s omg good. The extra spice from the syrup completes it. Yes, I don’t see why regular ginger wouldn’t work just fine!! Yes, cornstarch is the magic ingredient that totally changed vegan pancakes for me. I have made SO MANY vegan pancakes and so many trials and hated them all…just too mushy, I decided to try adding cornstarch since it works well to thicken, fluff and tenderize things so I hoped it would work and it DID. So much, that I no longer noticed the blaring vegan pancake staring back at me. It’s totally not necessary for pancakes with eggs of course though. 🙂 Just ask my hubby how happy I am after fixing the vegan pancake issue, lol! I thought I was doomed forever.
I wish you a merry christmas and a wonderful new year.Thank you for sharing healthy recipes,that e can use in our meals each day.kisses
Thank you so much! Merry Christmas!
Oh, my, these do sound just fantastic! My daughter’s friend is Vegan, so I’ll have to give these a try the next time she sleeps over:D I love your syrup idea as well! Merry Christmas!!! xx
Thank you so much Barbara!! I appreciate that. I hope she enjoys them if you do make them! The syrup is a MUST, yum! Merry Christmas to you too. I’m such a huge fan of your gorgeous blog 🙂
And I, yours! xxx
Brandi, these are sensational and probably the best pancakes I have ever seen. The taste sounds out of this world. You are remarkable! You put so much time and passion in all your recipes. It shows!! I love the ginger syrup!! Delicious!
I hope you don’t mind if I reblog your link on my reblog page?
Wow, you just made my day Judy! That is such a wonderful compliment. Means so much to me! I truly love what I do and love that you have picked up on my passion through my food and photos. Thank you! Of course I don’t mind, thank you, I’m honored!! 🙂
I love gingerbread ANYTHING….these look so yummy!!
Thank you….they are! 🙂
I love ginger! I can’t believe I’ve never thought to make ginger pancakes before. Your syrup sounds amazing!!
Thanks so much Leah!! The syrup is to die for!
Your pancakes are gorgeous! I love ginger and I am one of those who can’t get a pancake right. Thanks for the tips. You made me wanna try it again.
Thank you so much! 🙂 Oh, good, I hope the tips help!! I used to make really flat, crummy pancakes until I started learning what was going wrong. Now, I really enjoy it!
Nice tips! The recipe is even better!!! I veganized my mom’s pancake recipe and can’t even tell the difference. I did notice they weren’t as nice the next day as non-vegan pancakes. Weird.
Thank you Somer! I don’t know why it is, but I had some leftover pancakes that sat all day and almost seemed fluffier inside hours later…it’s almost like the cornstarch continues to thicken and fluff the interiors since it soaks up the wet..therefore it doesnt allow them to get mushy. They are just so soft and tender…not chewy or boring like so many I’ve had in restaurants. They can just be slightly reheated in the oven or toaster oven and they were delicious still! 🙂
I love hearing that. I may try the cornstarch trick and see if that improves my recipe as well. My kids like their pancakes plain. Boring 😉
I know what I want to make on Sunday this weekend 😉
Ha! I hope you like them! Let me know! I truly can’t get enough of them and neither can my hubby 🙂 My brother used to flip over my cinnamon pancakes, I need to give him these now, they are even better!
I need to make some of that CREME!! YUM!! These look amazing. My mom made pancakes this morning, but they weren’t vegan so I went with a PB&J..SO boring. I should have come to your place!
Haha! Yes, you should have 🙂 The coconut cream just made them “roll your eyes back” good! All of it combined, yum! I only usually eat them with just the syrup though. The cream was a special treat 🙂
Do your pancakes ever look good! And with so much ginger in them and in the syrup, they must taste good, too. This would make one great-tasting breakfast. Thanks for sharing your recipe and for the tips for making fluffy pancakes. I don’t make pancakes often and your tips are a refresher course. 🙂
Thank you so much John! They really are delicious and remind me so much of the gingersnap cookie. I love, love the spice of ginger and pouring the ginger syrup over it, is a must! It is heaven!!
Those pancakes look great, I love pancakes and waffles. Do you think this recipe can be used in a waffle maker? The warm spicing make these a great hearty winter breakfast (lunch or dinner). I would love these with an apple or pear compote too!
Thank you! Absolutely, I don’t see why not! They probably would be fabulous as waffles! I need to try that 🙂
I’ve always been partial to waffles myself, i love the spices. It just sounds like something I want to eat christmas morning!
Yum. If only you could figure out a gluten-free version for me! I will have to try coconut milk instead of almond though. I wonder if that will help lighten mine up or if I’m beyond help without the gluten.
Oh you’re gluten sensitive?! Oh okay, I have a lot of gluten fee recipes on here but haven’t attempted them yet with pancakes…it was challenging enough without eggs, lol! I have thought about it though. I will experiment over the next few days and see what I can come up with and let you know. Gluten free can be soo dense in pancakes but I’m a big believer there is a way and trick to any recipe 🙂
Hi there! I’m new to your blog and very excited to try out many of your recipes. I was thrilled to read this post and bummed to realize that the main ingredient is whole wheat flour because my twins and I are gluten intolerant. Boooo. I like to read the comments because oftentimes replacement ingredients are discussed…and I saw your response to another reader who asked about the same thing. I guess my question is: did you ever get around to testing a gluten-free version of these?
My sons are simply obsessed with ginger snaps and this would be heaven for them.
Thanks so much!
Hi Ana! Thank you for stopping by my blog! So sorry for the delay in responding. I have not personally tested this recipe as gluten-free. However, I have a new recipe in my cookbook coming out that has a similar flour (spelt + cornstarch) and I tested it gluten-free using the King Arthur Flour Gluten-free All-Purpose flour and it worked excellent. Almost identical results. So, I’m fairly confident it would work with these. That is the only blend I have tested it with and it is a rice and starch flour blend, also gum-free. I do not like the blends with gums, as they tend to make things way too chewy. So, to make this you would sub both the wheat flour and cornstarch with equal amounts of flour, which would be 1 cup + 2 tablespoons and 180 grams. I would weigh it for best results. Again, I have not tested it but think it should work. Let me know if you try them!