5 Ingredient Banana Bread Pancakes
Pancakes made with just five ingredients. Are you ready for this?
Seriously, this recipe has revolutionized my weekday breakfasts. Pancakes are too much work for everyday, right? Not these.
These 5 Ingredient Banana Bread Pancakes are what I call “blender cakes”: just dump all of the ingredients into your blender (or food processor), give her a whirl, and you’re done. No messy bowls, no electric beaters. Any old blender will do the trick.
Even better? You can eat half a batch of these pancakes (heck, you could technically eat all of them if you were REALLY hungry) without one twinge of guilt. You don’t have to buy special flours or gluten-free binders to make these pancakes. You don’t need a scale to weigh the ingredients with precision. You barely even need a measuring spoon if you’re comfortable with eyeballing ingredients.
Can pancakes truly be made without flour, sugar, and leavening? This recipe is proof that yes, they can!
If you’ve got bananas, eggs, flaxseed, cinnamon, and coconut oil, you can make these simple griddle cakes. And if you feel a little reckless and want to throw in a sixth ingredient—chopped walnuts—to drive home that banana bread vibe, be my guest.
As for toppings, go crazy with whatever you like! A few of my favorite pancake toppers:
- A big schlop of almond butter or sunflower seed butter
- Fresh or thawed frozen berries
- Applesauce (or pear sauce)
- Mashed avocado (I’m serious…it’s good!)
- Extra cinnamon
- Unique homemade nut butters like this one
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Really, you can’t go wrong with toppings for pancakes. They’re kind of like oatmeal. Whatever you put on top just makes them taste that much better. I can’t believe I’ve been doing this blogging thing for nearly 4 years and have yet to post a pancake recipe. Thank heavens that’s changing today!
One quick note: these aren’t your diner-style light and fluffy and buttermilky pancakes. They’ve got flavor, but they’re on the thinner side, more like a thick crepe (they’re easier to flip, though). They’re satisfying but won’t knock you to your knees in a carb coma or give you that unpleasant belly bloat that often comes from traditional pancakes. I don’t know about you, but I’ll take the lighter, thinner pancakes and a flat belly any day.
Tell me: What are your favorite pancake toppings? Do you make pancakes regularly?
5 Ingredient Banana Bread Pancakes
Makes about 10 pancakes
This gluten-free, grain-free pancake recipe can be made with just 5 ingredients. Top the pancakes with your favorite nut or seed butter, fresh fruit, applesauce, or extra cinnamon. (Please note: the eggs are a necessary ingredient in this recipe. You cannot replace them with an egg substitute.)
2 medium bananas
4 large eggs (preferably from organic, pastured chickens)
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Coconut oil, for cooking
Optional: chopped walnuts
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In a blender or food processor (I use my Vita Mix), combine the bananas, eggs, flaxseed, and cinnamon. Blend until smooth.
In a large skillet (I like cast-iron for pancakes) over medium-low heat, melt about a tablespoon of coconut oil. Drop the pancake batter by the 1/4-cupful into the skillet once it’s hot. (If using the chopped walnuts, sprinkle a few onto each pancake now.) Cook until the pancakes get bubbly on top, about 2 minutes. Flip and continue to cook for another minute or so. Transfer to a plate. Continue cooking the pancakes until all of the batter is used up, adding more oil to the skillet if needed.
Important Note! As your skillet gets hotter, your pancakes will cook more quickly. The first batch will take about 2 minutes on the first side, but batches after that will be done in 60-90 seconds if you’re working over medium-low heat. Stay close by the skillet so you can keep an eye on the pancakes and make sure they don’t burn.
This post is part of the Virtual Whole Foods Potluck hosted by Eat, Recycle, Repeat.
Easy enough for me and packed with protein – I’m so gonna try it!
Love this – easy, healthy, and looks delish!
Yum! I’ve made a version of the banana+peanut butter pancakes before – love your version!
LOL – I just reread the recipe…yours has flaxseed not peanut butter. Doh. I saw almond butter as a topping suggestion and then my brain went to peanut butter…anyway. Nevermind. They STILL look amazing. XOXO
I make something just like this! Looks amazing!!!
Mmmmmmm…very Delicate taste! kids love them!!!
how many people does this serve, would you say?
zosia: It depends on how hungry you are. :) For regular appetites, I’d say it serves 2-3 as breakfast or 4-6 as a snack.
Oh, thanks for the warning about the eggs. I was on my way to sacrifice bananas for lunch. One day I WILL figure out how to replace the structure all those eggs bring to the best recipes because this sure looks like one.
Love this Hallie! Such an ingenius idea. And I love pancakes with nut butter on top :)
Have you tried these as waffles?
These look fantastic! I’m not a fan of thick pancakes either, so I make mine very similar to this. I love using coconut sugar for sweetness and topping them with fresh fruit and chopped nuts.
I’m tempted to make this for dinner tonight, but that would require me to go out and buy some more eggs, as I’ve only got two left.
But I’ll definitely have to print out this recipe and try it over the weekend!
Alisa: Yes, nut butter is the best! I haven’t tried them as waffles (don’t have a waffle maker…) so I’m not sure if that would work or not. It seems like they might be a bit too thin to make a sturdy waffle.
These look great and I’d love to make them tonight for the children.
Can the flaxseed be substituted? What would you recommend? I have ground almonds and I could buy some cashews and grind them, but flaxseed will mean mail order so not for today.
Just discovered and liked your FB page, buy the way.
Thee look fabulous, Hallie, and I love that they’re grain-free! I wonder if there’s any way to replace all those eggs. . . . ? And thanks so much for linking to my butterscotch nut butter! I bet it would be great on these pancakes!
These look great! I am very new to this lifestyle, but so excited to eat healthier and be better! Thanks for sharing
I will have to try these soon~ :) Thanks for sharing. I like grain free pancakes. I have a sunflower seed pancake recipe on my site.
You’re right, 5 ingredients can transform weekdays — even early morning school and work days! Of course I love the toppings idea since I blog for the SunButter brand of sunflower seed butter (I’m currently into the organic variety, which has no sugar or salt; just sunflower seeds blended into a creamy spread/topping). But as a mom looking to fuel up our kids right in the morning, I’m eager to try this — and the other intriguing toppings you recommend. Thanks for the inspiration!
I am all for easy breakfasts! Now that Callum is eating eggs again we should be able to try this soon! I love making them pancakes for breakie, especially healthy ones!
Will my vitamix ground flaxseed for me? i only have whole flaxseed. Hmmmm…
Jennifer: It probably will. Vita Mix’s can do just about anything. :) I use a coffee/spice grinder to do mine.
When you speak of the belly bloat from carbs i TOTALLY get that!! Do you think rice has the same affect or is it really just breads?
Jennifer: For me, it is carbs in general if I eat too many of them (rice, fruit, bread, etc.). For others, just cutting out gluten is enough, though.
Made these this morning with my 4-year-old son. We put honey on his and he ate 3 of them! He told me they were his favorite pancakes ever! I made an almond butter and honey pancake sandwich for me. Yummers!
Yummy! I took some liberties and added a few extra ingredients (coconut mana, protein powder, and cocoa powder). Delicious and filling!
great recipe. thanks for posting this.
i used two tbsp of corn starch as i didn’t have flaxseed, and i left out the cinnamon. still so yummy. thanks.