Saturday was the day of running around like a crazy person.
I slept in by accident, tripped over my gym bag, stubbing my toe in the process, lost my toothbrush (how does that even happen?) and spilled a carton of almond milk on the carpet.
By the time I got to the gym at 11am I’d realized that all I’d had to eat that morning was a fruit + almond milk smoothie at 8am. #fail
I rocked the elliptical for 45 minutes, ran for 20 minutes, then headed to the weight room for my 45 minute strength set. 25 minutes in I totally fell apart.
My body seized up. I had no energy left in me.
Done, empty, kaput. Amazing what breakfast can do to our performance!
I headed for home with one thing on my mind…
pancakes.
If you know me, then you know I suck at making pancakes. They either come out burnt, undercooked, or dry, and always come out in dinosaur-like shapes.
I wish I was kidding.
But I was a lady on a mission. A sugar-reduced, protein packed, carb-full mission.
20 minutes later I was basking in the glory of perfectly cooked protein pancakes. The clouds parted, angels sang, it was glorious.
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Banana Chocolate Chip Protein Pancakes
Vegan (option), Gluten free, Dairy free, Sugar reduced, Yeast free, Corn free
These pancakes are light, fluffy and ridiculously filling.
Yield: 3 pancakes
Servings: 1
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup non-dairy milk – I used unsweetened almond milk
- 1/4 cup egg whites or 1 flax egg (1 tbsp freshly ground flax + 3 tbsp water)
- 2 tbsp mashed banana
- 1 tbsp chia seed
- 1/2 cup chickpea flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- pinch white stevia concentrate powder
- 1 tbsp chocolate or carob chips – I used unsweetened carob chips
- 1 tsp coconut oil (optional)
- 1 tbsp light maple syrup (optional)
Directions
- Combine almond milk, egg whites, banana, and chia seeds in small bowl. Allow to sit for 10 minutes – this will get the chia all gelatinous and good for your digestion. Alternatively, allow the chia to soak overnight in the milk, then add to the recipe.
- Preheat a small non-stick pan on medium-low heat for 2 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then add to the wet ingredients.
- Stir until just mixed. Fold in chocolate chips.
- Pour 1/3 of the mixture into the preheated pan. Allow the first side to cook for 2-3 minutes, or until bubbles form and the edges begin to turn golden.
- Flip and allow to cook for another 1-2 minutes.
- Place completed pancake on cooling rack and repeat with remaining batter.
- Serve with coconut oil, maple syrup, nut butter, or sliced banana.
calories: 345 | fat: 10.5g | saturated fat: 1.5g | carbohydrate: 43g | fiber: 12g | sugars: 11g | protein: 20g
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Mission accomplished.
Mmmm
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{ 57 comments… read them below or add one }
They look awesome. Yum. And the last pic…the sliced out triangle part is so PERFECTLY cut. Your knife skills are impressive.
And saw your meatballs from yesterday on FG, congrats.
Those look amazing! I have never thought to use chickpea flour for pancakes before!
Um…..YUM! This is my exact pancake recipe right here-for me! I have all the ingredients, too! Don’t ya just love when that happens?
Ok, Leanne. so I think I earned the Healthful Pursuit gold star today for making these the second I saw the post. They were amazing!!! Loved them-thank you!
Here’s the subs I made: used 1 egg instead of egg whites, used chia-gel mixed with water (I already had it on hand), used unsweetened chocolate chunks. Next time I think I’ll omit the stevia because it was a bit too sweet for me (because my sweet tooth is non-existent.)
YUUUUUUMMMMMMYYYYYYY!!!!!
Oh, and I also made mini pancakes instead of big pancakes. it made me a stack about the size of my face.
Gold star AWARDED! That is awesome. I’m happy to hear that water worked. I’ll try that next time.
Hi Leanne!
I’m a new reader but had to comment because these are absolutely beautiful! I appreciate a good stack of post-workout protein pancakes and yours are impressive! Oh, and I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who has seen dinosaurs in my pancakes!
These look fantastic!!
I have carob powder but have yet to try carob chips!!
Sorry about your bummer morning, but I’m glad pancakes could lift you back up!
They look great!
Delicious!!! What a crazy morning! I like to make a few extra pancakes to have as snacks!
I can definitely feel it if I don’t have enough for breakfast — if I’m at work I really start feeling exhausted and tired and if I try working out? Forget it!
Saturdays are definitely pancake days whether it’s a gym day or not! These sound awesome.
Leanne,
I’m curious if you know anything about the “dangers” of cooking with flax. I came across it a while ago on a blog, something about when the omega 6′s are heated they create free radicals?? Have you heard this? I am vegan and have been cooking with flax for a few years but was spooked when I stumbled upon this information. IT would be great if you could let me know if you have any input
Hi Nicole, here is some information on cooking flax seeds. Hope this helps! http://www.flaxcouncil.ca/english/pdf/stor.pdf
YUM! I love banana choco chip!! Bought chickpea flour a while ago and had no clue what to use it for… now i do!
Also do you have pinterest?? I just pinned this delicious recipe to my wall.
I do have pinterest, I just joined and have no idea how it works… need to watch a tutorial or something
Its like one giant corkboard. you have your profile where you create headers/folders/titles for all the stuff your gonna put in that one category and then you follow people, friends, etc. and there one giant feeder main page.
you can also download the pin it – pinterest button for your browser so when your browsing … for example yummy food blogs you can pin the recipes to your “eat + drink” page on pinterest.
took my a while to get the hang of it but now i am addicted!
Sounds pretty easy! Just have to figure out pinning vs. liking. Took me awhile to catch on to Twitter, Foodgawker, and Stumbleupon, but I got it. Thanks for the explanation, that really helps!
Wow those pancakes look incredible!! Love the banana with chocolate chip infusion
Yummoo!
These look perfect! I’m so proud of you for giving it another go knowing you could have come out with lumpy, runny, burned creatures! Seriously, they look and sound amazing!
hmm chickpea flour? I’ve experiemtned with it before unsuccessfully, which makes me apprehensive to use it again haha. But these look delish!
What did you make that didn’t turn out?
Lovely! I had a late lunch yesturday so had Coconut Pancakes for dinner with a bit of mango coconut yoghurt. I lower carb options for anyone watching their intake.
I think I have finally perfected them!
I love pancakes but I also struggle with making cakes that aren’t undercooked, burnt or just plain ugly. I want to try this recipe regardless of my pancake handicap, though! Especially because they have protein. And chocolate.
Take it from another pancake challenged person… these wont be undercooked!
Awwww, girl, I have had the same thing happen to me. I get VERY hungry at the gym! Well, who am I kidding? I get hungry every second of the day…..
Some people bring larabars with them to the gym to give them a “pick me up!” lol
These cakes look AMAZING!!!!
xxoo
You don’t suck at pancakes wait till you see mine. Yours looks so delicious. Really love the photos.
These look delicious!
Great recipe! Let’s enjoy your pancake in a very delicious and healthy way. Highly recommended!
LOve the idea of putting chocolate chips in the pancakes… Will absolutely have to try that on my rainy day banana pancakes next time
Congrats on your pancake epiphany!! These look so incredible and super easy to make. I am definitely going to play around with making a pumpkin version of these tomorrow morning. Thanks for sharing!
Mmmm those look great! I think I might have to make them tomorrow for breakfast
These look simply amazing! That was one hardcore working you were doing there, too!
innovative use of chickpeas flour looks delicious
These are amazing looking pancakes. My kids usually ask my hubs to make pancakes, Apparently his are better. He makes pancakes, mac n cheese and grilled cheese. That’s his niche. Lol! I may have to give these a whirl. They look incredible.
Wow! Banana and chocolate chips…. AND they are good for you!!?? Love this recipe!
These look fantastic! If you’re not concerned about gluten, could you sub in whole wheat or would they be too dense?
Hi Shalene – I haven’t cooked with gluten containing flour in a very, very long time, so I can’t be certain. I would recommend finding a whole wheat flour pancake recipe and subbing out one egg with 2-3 tbsp of mashed banana and going that route. Best of luck!
Once I realized the importance of medium LOW heat, these turned out great. I started off with the heat too high and they were a complete mess to make. But my family scarfed them down anyway. Will definitely make again. We subbed walnuts for chocolate chips (because I can’t have c-chips in the house w/o eating them all, then feeling miserable), and they were fab. I mean, come on, banana walnut pancakes – no brainer.
Ya, I learned that the hard way too, many times. Glad the recipe worked out for you, and that walnuts were just as delicious!
I really love chickpeas, but I really detest chickpea flour. So far I’ve been able to identify goods made with chickpea flour from the first bite, and then I’m not a happy camper. So, do you think I could use something else instead, and maintain the same high protein content? Maybe almond flour?
Oh no, that’s horrible! I know I’m that way with chickpea flour as well, if it’s not prepared correctly. I haven’t tried these pancakes with any other flour, so I’m not 100% sure what the best replacement would be. If you want to maintain the protein, you could try almond flour, or non-GMO soy flour (although it’s drier than chickpea flour so watch out).
Have been eyeing off these pancakes for the past 48 hours. Unfortunately, I didn’t have all the ingredients in my pantry. As today was 37degrees celcius, (and it’s not even the start of the Australian summer yet) I didn’t want to go out to the shops and collect everything I needed. So, for the first time in my cooking life, I TWEAKED! I used goat’s milk for the non dairy milk, I used almond meal for the chia seeds and I used buckwheat flour instead of the chickpea flour. They were absolutely delicious! Thanks Leanne for allowing me to finally have a bit of freedom in the cooking department. I just love the way you play round with your ideas, you have give me some confidence in doing the same.
That’s awesome, Helen! Congrats on substituting! Sounds like you made some great choices. 37C is HOT! Where do you live?
Hi Leanne, I live in
erth, Western Australia – a beautiful part of the world! 
Um, sorry, that should read Perth, Western Australia.
Oh wow, I’ve always wanted to go to Australia… Perth especially is wonderful!
I just had to laugh at your morning in this post because the other day I was rushing to make breakfast before class and dropped a full bottle of olive oil X-| ahhh what a horrible spill to clean up! I ended up making pancakes instead of going to class. Gotta laugh at those days though, it’s the only way to get through!
Awesome recipe, thank you!
I just made these, and I can honestly say that my life will never be the same:D Love love love these! Who would have known that chickpea flour can produce such light, fluffy pancakes that don’t have any chickpea flour taste. I just can’t stop thinking about all the other things I now want to try to make with it!
) err… except for that ice cream I put on top…
I made them with hemp milk (the only one I had), added 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp NuStevia.
These pancakes are so good, I can’t stop feeling guilty about eating them, even though they contain nothing to feel guilty about
Thanks so much Leanne!
No need to feel guilty, as long as you enjoyed them… and it sounds like you did! I’ve never thought to add ice cream to my pancakes, will definitely have to give that a shot one of these days
Have a great weekend, Ksenia!
Mmm. I just had pancakes this morning with some mashed bananas!! These look lovely.
What other flours would work instead of chickpea?
Leanne, great recipe, thanks! I’ve made pancakes with chickpea flour before and wasn’t crazy about the taste. I think because of the sweetness in this recipe with the banana’s and chocolate, the pancakes tasted much better. I sifted the chickpea flour after mearing it, added a little cayenne pepper, and instead of using chocolate chips I chopped a couple of squares off of a chili flavored dark chocolate bar. I chopped bananas, and added those, blackberries, and strawberries. Really, really good!
Wow, you made a lot of great changes. Sounds delicious!
Well I just attempted these but I substituted coconut flour for chickpea flour…. Let’s just say the result was a bowl of paste! However, the proportions worked perfectly for my boyfriends non gf non dairy free version!
Hi Libby – ya… coconut flour is another breed. I could see it not working for this recipe! Sorry about the pancake paste
Thanks, but I do not digest beans well. Any way to use protein powder?