High Protein Banana Pancakes

Soy-free Option

• Sub out the soy milk with your favorite plant-based milk!

Have you seen that episode of Sabrina the Teenage Witch (the original show, not the new spooky one) where Sabrina has a debilitating pancake addiction that’s destroying her life? And we find out that everyone in the Spellmen family is predisposed to pancake addictions, so they have to avoid eating pancakes. She eventually has to go cold turkey and wait for the withdrawals (which include full-blown pancake hallucinations and fever dreams) to go away. All of this to say, you should watch Sabrina the Teenage Witch because it is incredible, but also, I made these pancakes twice in ONE DAY. I literally ate like eight pancakes yesterday getting the recipe just right 😉 I had to will myself to stop making them. Luckily, you do need a very ripened banana, which I thankfully ran out of and I’m back to eating non-pancake food.

These High Protein Banana Pancakes taste nothing like the protein pancakes you buy the mix for at the store (aka kind of gross). I use vital wheat gluten in them, so you can’t even tell they’re protein-fied. They’re super easy to make – you only need one bowl and about 15 minutes. They’re also good for meal prepping. To be honest though, I have no first hand experience meal prepping these because, like I said, my partner and I consumed two entire recipes worth of these pancakes just yesterday. I think these would be a great way to sneak in some protein for kids too! Unless you have a pre-existing pancake addiction, I highly recommend you try these out!

If you’re looking for other fun things to do with the bananas slowly dying on your counter, you should also check out my High Protein Banana Bread, High Protein TVP Banana Nut Muffins and High Protein Banana Baked Oats recipes!

Stuff You’ll Need

• Banana – you’ll need one VERY ripened banana. Ripe bananas are sweeter and they also mash easier, which means you’ll have less lumpy pancakes.
• Brown Sugar – I used light brown sugar. Feel free to swap this with a low calorie/no calorie sugar alternative like monk fruit to improve the calories/macros.
• Canola Oil – I recommend having a little bit of canola oil in these High Protein Banana Pancakes. It helps with the texture, keeping the pancakes more cake-like instead of chewy, which is extra important since we’re using vital wheat gluten.

• AP Flour (All-Purpose Flour)
• Vital Wheat Gluten – if you haven’t used vital wheat gluten before, you may have heard of it in relation to seitan. It’s typically used to make homemade meats, but because it has pretty much the same flavor as flour, it’s incredible in high protein bread-y recipes like these High Protein Banana Pancakes! You can find it in most grocery stores, usually near the gluten-free flour options, and you can also buy it online since it’s shelf-stable.
• Soy Milk – I used soy milk, but if you’re soy-free, you can use another dairy-free milk instead!

• Baking Powder – baking powder is hugely important for making good pancakes! It’s a leavening agent which means it helps the pancakes turn out fluffy and soft instead of dense and flat.
• Vanilla Extract – because it’s delicious.
• Salt – adjust to taste.
• Cinnamon, Nutmeg – these add a nice warm spice to the High Protein Banana Pancakes!

How to Make it & Pictures

• In a medium-large bowl, mash a very ripe banana. I use a fork for this step. You should end up with about 1/2 cup of mashed banana. Make sure you mash them really well. This will help with the lumpiness and ensure that you get banana flavor in every bite!

• Add the soy milk, brown sugar, vanilla and canola oil. Whisk together very well.
• Add in the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Mix together well.
• Finally, add in the vital wheat gluten. You should definitely weigh out this ingredient, because it’s very dense and you want to make sure you end up with the right amount.
• We add the vital wheat gluten last to avoid over-mixing it, which can cause a chewy texture. Mix in the vital wheat gluten as minimally as possible, just enough that it’s fully incorporated. Your batter should look like this.

• Heat a large pan or griddle on medium heat. Spray the pan with a bit of oil to avoid sticking.
• Add around 1/6 of the pancake batter to the hot pan/griddle, and make a pancake shape.
• Cook until you start to see bubbles forming (should be ~1-2 minutes).

• Flip the pancake (I use a large spatula for this step).
• Cook the other side for another 1-2 minutes. You’ll know it’s done cooking when both sides are a pretty golden brown.

• Repeat until the batter is used up. You should end up with about 6 normal sized pancakes!

Silly Little Haiku

Vital Wheat Gluten

Protein Banana Pancakes

It does everything