Healthy vegan pancakes made with whole grain spelt flour and no weird additives. These are flavoured and topped with blood oranges to take advantage of their short season, but would be just as good with lemon and berries in the summer months.
Apparently today is pancake day! I don’t usually notice these themed food days until after they’re over but people sure love pancakes, and it’s all over instagram. As luck would have it I already had these vegan orange spelt pancakes in my schedule for today, and they’re great.
I usually prefer German pancakes (a bit like a thicker crepe) but Graham always wants fluffy American style pancakes – but I couldn’t stop eating these. I kept going back to the kitchen and sneaking another and another, just eating them plain. These are adapted from a very old recipe of mine for fluffy vegan pancakes made with kamut flour but are quite honestly by far the best American pancakes I’ve ever made.
I took the pictures last week and blood oranges are already gone for the season now, but regular oranges work just as well! Once oranges are out of season I think I’ll use bottled orange juice and top them with berries instead (or I’ll have a new favourite by then). I’ve made it as a pretty small batch, only about a dozen small pancakes, which is perfect for the two of us.
Next up is to try this batter in the waffle maker! They end up properly light with a little bit of a crispy outer layer, almost like a fluffy cookie, instead of being completely soft. I like it.
I haven’t yet tried making these gluten free. There’s a recipe on the blog for banana pancakes made with buckwheat flour, but bananas are the binding agent there. The orange pancakes will probably work with a gluten free flour if you add a little arrowroot or cornstarch to help hold everything together. If you try it, let me know in the comments!
Let’s connect! If you liked this recipe, make sure to leave a comment below, I love hearing from you! Tag me on instagram @occasionallyeggs and #occasionallyeggs so I can see what you’re making, and stay in touch via facebook, pinterest, and bloglovin.
Orange Spelt Pancakes
Healthy vegan pancakes made with whole grain spelt flour and no weird additives. These are flavoured and topped with blood oranges to take advantage of their short season, but would be just as good with lemon and berries in the summer months.
Ingredients
- 150 grams / 1 cup whole spelt flour
- 1 tablespoon coconut sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla powder
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 180 ml / 3/4 cup oat or another nondairy milk
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil melted
- Juice of an orange ~3 tablespoons
- Zest of an orange
Instructions
- Heat a large pan over medium heat. Melt the coconut oil* in the pan.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, coconut sugar, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla, and salt. In another bowl, mix the milk, coconut oil, orange juice, and zest. Add this to the flour mixture and whisk until just mixed.
- Lightly oil the pan if needed. Place about 3 tablespoons of batter (I use a gravy ladle) onto the preheated pan and cook until bubbles start to appear, then flip and cook for another minute or so, until golden. Adjust the heat if required and continue until all of the batter has been used, adding a small amount of coconut oil to the pan each time.
- Serve hot with extra oranges, coconut, and maple syrup.
Notes
• Cook the first side just until the pancakes can be flipped - if you wait too long they won't rise as nicely. Bubbles should be appearing but the edges won't be darker.
* Melting the oil in the pan you're using for the pancakes is just for convenience.
kankana says
February 14, 2018 at 5:04 amThose pancakes looks perfectly fluffy and a perfect way to share the Pancake Day 🙂
Yvonne says
February 14, 2018 at 1:23 pmHi Alexandra, I tried to place a comment on the bergamot scones, but it failed, three times. So I try here, a quick note that these pancakes look good and I will love the flavor (blood oranges!).
The scones worked great with the Earl Grey leaves, next time I will add more for a more pronounced flavor or make an Earl Grey glaze with it.
Have a nice day – the sun is shining here 🙂
Alexandra Daum says
February 14, 2018 at 6:04 pmThank you 🙂
Alexandra Daum says
February 14, 2018 at 6:05 pmHi Yvonne! How frustrating, I'm sorry! I'm switching to a new server soon so hopefully it'll improve. I'm so happy to hear that the scones work with the tea leaves, and the Earl Grey glaze sounds lovely. It was sunny here today, too 🙂
Yvonne says
February 15, 2018 at 7:59 pmAbsolute no need to apologize – I'm sure google account just got very tired of my lengthy comments : )
By the way, the other week I also dared to make the banana babka … Well, I am sad to say that it did not cure me from my 'yeast trauma' – I'm afraid that by now I am beyond cure : (
What happened was that my babka smelled and tasted very, very 'yeasty' and I am 100 % sure it's my fault. I only had instant yeast, so I added this directly to the flour mixture (no proofing beforehand). I added the same amount as you do the active dry yeast – should I have added less?
My kitchen counter was not very warm, my dough refused to rise so I put it in a low oven. Then it already began to smell awfully yeasty (as if I weren't nervous enough!). Being a newbie, I also might have not kneaded the dough (with my hands) the way an experienced baker does.
To summarise, I am not sure what my biggest error was and if it could easily be amended next time, because I am afraid in the future I will only venture in a yeast recipe when I am almost certain it will turn out fine – are my demands too high? : )
Alexandra Daum says
February 16, 2018 at 8:49 amOh no! It sounds like there were a few issues with the babka. You can use instant yeast, it should just rise a bit quicker, but that's not really an issue. I suggest not skipping the proofing. Was it smelling yeasty but not rising? Did you skip kneading altogether? Haha no, I don't think your demands are too high, but if you're not a yeast-dough pro I'd recommend following the recipe to a tee!
Yvonne says
March 13, 2018 at 1:55 pmHi, I made these pancakes and they tasted good even though mine were a bit scrambled because I used a skillet instead of a non stick pan and I'm not a very experienced pancake baker 🙂 I served them with pecan butter and honey. I ate half of the recipe and that was more than enough for me! Thank you!