Healthy oat flour pancakes that are actually fluffy and made with ingredients you can feel good about. These have been my go-to clean eating pancakes for years. They come together in one bowl in about 25 minutes and are perfect for meal prep or weekend breakfast the whole family will love.
I love using oat flour since it's naturally gluten-free and unrefined. You'll also find me using oat flour in my gluten-free banana protein muffins and oat flour chocolate chip cookies.
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"Well this just changed the game as far as breakfast goes! My kids loved these pancakes and I'm happy they are on the healthy side. Thank you!" ~ Ned
About These Oat Flour Pancakes
I originally developed this recipe because I wanted fluffy, classic pancakes that were gluten-free and also made with better-for-you ingredients. In addition to being soft and fluffy, these pancakes are:
- Made with whole grains - Just like my oat flour brownies, these healthy oat flour pancakes use just oat flour, which is packed with whole grains.
- Naturally sweetened - A little bit of pure maple syrup is all you need to sweeten these.
- Gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan-friendly - Naturally gluten-free and can easily be made dairy-free and vegan.
- Perfect for meal prep - These are great when stored in the fridge and freeze perfectly, making them great for busy moms and prepping ahead (my healthy oatmeal breakfast cookies are also great for food prep)!
I personally love adding blueberries right into the batter, but my girls prefer a generous handful of chocolate chips (obviously). If you love pancakes and waffles (like us) you might also love my gluten-free dairy-free waffles and chocolate protein pancakes.
If you've ever tried oat flour pancakes before (or any gluten-free pancake for that matter) and they are dense and gummy, you are not alone. I promise you that is not what you'll find in this recipe.
I've made these so many times that I've had many opportunities to test them and have unlocked the key to the perfect oat flour pancakes. This recipe produces light and tender pancakes, just like traditional pancakes.
So what's the secret? A little bit of apple cider vinegar and letting the batter rest. Since oat flour doesn't have gluten, the vinegar reacts with the baking soda to help the pancakes rise and become light and fluffy. Enjoy!
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Ingredient Notes
- Oat flour - You can either buy this or make your own oat flour from scratch. If needing these pancakes to be gluten free, make sure to use certified gluten-free oat flour. Even though oats are naturally gluten free, they can become contaminated during processing.
- Milk - Cow's milk or dairy-free milk can be used. Since I'm mostly dairy-free, I use almond milk. If using a dairy-free milk, make sure it's plain and unsweetened.
- Apple cider vinegar - This reacts with the baking powder to help make these light and fluffy. Fresh lemon juice works well, too. I promise you won't taste it.
- Coconut oil - For the oil you can use either melted coconut oil, avocado oil, extra-virgin olive oil, or melted butter.
A complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below. The above are some specific notes to help with selecting ingredients.
🤍Clean food tip: Look for organic oats when possible. Most conventional oats are sprayed with glyphosate, a common herbicide. Choosing organic helps reduce exposure.
Substitutions and Add-ins
- To make these vegan, replace the egg with a flax egg or a mashed banana.
- For dairy-free oat flour pancakes, use your favorite unsweetened/plain dairy-free milk (since I'm mostly dairy free, I use Malk - it's a clean alternative to cow's milk).
- For gluten-free oat flour pancakes, use certified gluten-free oat flour, as oats can become contaminated during processing.
- Throw in some mini chocolate chips (regular works too) into the batter for chocolate chip pancakes. Chocolate is always a good idea... especially in healthy pumpkin chocolate chip bread.
- And if fruit is more your thing, add some sliced blueberries, chopped strawberries, or any of your favorite chopped fruit.
- Some dye-free sprinkles for funfetti pancakes are also a fun option for kids!
Step-by-Step Directions
- Step 1: To a large mixing bowl, add the dry ingredients (oat flour, baking powder, and salt).
- Step 2: Mix the dry ingredients together and make a well in the center. Add the remaining wet ingredients and whisk together.
- Step 3: After mixing the wet ingredients, fully combine them with the dry ingredients. Allow batter to rest for 5 minutes before making the pancakes.
- Step 4: Using a ¼ cup measuring cup (or spring-loaded scoop), scoop batter onto a skillet/pan that's been heated over medium heat. Once bubbly and edges are set, flip the pancakes, and cook for an additional 1 minute, or until lightly browned.
Sara's Tips for Fluffy Oat Flour Pancakes
- Spoon and level oat flour into the measuring cup, or you may end up with too much oat flour.
- Use a room-temperature egg. This will help create a more uniform batter, which leads to softer, fluffier pancakes.
- Allow batter to rest for 5 minutes before making pancakes. Oat flour absorbs moisture as it sits. Letting the batter rest so it can hydrate and thicken will result in irresistibly fluffy pancakes.
- If the batter ends up too thick as you are making the pancakes (the longer it sits, the thicker it will get), slowly add more milk, 1 tablespoon at a time to thin.
- Cook over medium heat. If the griddle/skillet is too hot they will brown too fast without cooking through.
How to Make Your Own Oat Flour
While you can buy oat flour, making your own is easy, affordable and only requires a blender.
To make oat flour: Place oats in a high-speed blender and blend until fine and powdery. Here are a few tips:
- Use rolled oats (also called old fashioned oats). Avoid steel-cut oats as they are too coarse.
- For gluten-free oat flour, use certified gluten-free oats.
- Clean eating tip: Organic oats are best as conventional oats are often sprayed with glyphosate.
For extra tips, be sure to check out my full how to make oat flour guide. And if you have more oat flour, try my gluten-free banana oat muffins.
Serving and Topping Suggestions
There are so many ways to enjoy these healthy oat flour pancakes.
For brunch, you can serve alongside an easy dairy-free frittata or quiche with sweet potato crust with some oven roasted rosemary potatoes.
And as far as toppings go, you can enjoy the old-fashioned way with butter and pure maple syrup, or try topping with some of the below:
- Baked or air fried apples
- A drizzle of nut butter
- A dollop of berry chia jam and/or coconut whipped cream
- Chopped walnuts or pecans
- Homemade oat and honey granola (I love a good crunchy topping on my pancakes)
Storing and Freezing
How to store: Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
How to freeze: Let pancakes completely cool and then place in a freezer-safe container. Preferably a zip-top so you can squeeze out the air. I like using Stasher bags. These will stay fresh for up to 3 months frozen.
How to reheat: Reheat by placing in the microwave for 10-15 seconds. Add an additional 10-15 seconds if reheating from frozen.
Tip! These freeze perfectly, so go ahead and make a double (or triple) batch. Your future self will thank you!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, waffle batter typically needs a little extra oil. Just add 2 additional tablespoons of oil to the batter for waffles.
This can happen if they are undercooked or if there is too much moisture. Make sure to cook them fully over medium heat and let the batter rest so the oat flour can properly absorb the liquid.
While oats are naturally gluten-free, they can become contaminated with gluten during processing. To ensure fully gluten-free oat flour pancakes, use certified gluten-free oat flour.
To me, "healthy" means using unrefined, simple ingredients and not using too much sugar or overly processed ingredients. These pancakes use whole-grain oat flour (which is an unrefined grain), are naturally sweetened and don't contain addititives, like you would find in store-bought pancakes.
Not really. Oat flour absorbs liquid differently and doesn't have gluten, so it behaves differently than all-purpose flour. You typically can't swap flour without altering the ratios of the other ingredients.
More Recipes with Oat Flour
If you make this recipe, please let me know what you think! I would so appreciate you leaving a star rating and/or comment below. And don't forget to share a photo on Instagram or Facebook and mention @CleanPlateMama!
Eat Clean.Be Well!
-Sara
Oat Flour Pancakes
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Equipment
- 1 Mixing bowl
- 1 skillet or griddle
Ingredients
- 1 ⅓ cup oat flour (certified gluten-free if needed)
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- ⅛ tsp. fine sea salt
- ¾ cup milk of choice
- 2 tbsp. pure maple syrup (or honey)
- 1 tbsp. melted coconut oil
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 1 egg, room temp
- ½ tsp. apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the oat flour, baking powder, and salt.1 ⅓ cup oat flour, 2 tsp. baking powder, ⅛ tsp. fine sea salt
- Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the remaining wet ingredients. Whisk the wet ingredients together first and then fully mix the wet ingredients in with the dry ingredients.¾ cup milk of choice, 2 tbsp. pure maple syrup, 1 tbsp. melted coconut oil, 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract, 1 egg, room temp, ½ tsp. apple cider vinegar
- Batter will be runny. Let batter rest for 5 minutes to allow the oat flour to soak up some of the liquid. The batter should spread slowly when poured on the skillet.
- While batter is resting, heat a large skillet (or griddle) over medium heat. If your pan is not non-stick, lightly grease with avocado oil, coconut oil, or butter. Using a ¼ cup measuring cup, scoop batter onto heated skillet forming roughly 3"-4" pancakes.
- When batter starts to bubble and edges are set, flip pancakes, and cook for an additional 1 minute, or until lightly browned. Remove from skillet and set on a paper towel lined plate, or cooling rack. Repeat until all the batter has been used.
- Serve immediately. Top with your favorite toppings such as fresh fruit, butter, and pure maple syrup.
Notes
- Spoon and level flour when measuring.
- To quickly get your egg to room temp, run under hot water for 2 minutes.
- Oat flour is very absorbent, so letting the batter sit allows some of the liquid to get absorbed and to make the batter the right consistency (thick, but pourable and should hold its shape when it hits the skillet). If batter does not thicken enough, add an additional tablespoon or two of oat flour.
- As batter continues to sit while you're making the pancakes, it may get too thick - if this is the case, add an additional tablespoon or two of milk.
Nutrition
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Bill scooter says
can you add blueberries?
Sara says
Absolutely! I have added blueberries (fresh work best, but frozen work too) and chocolate chips to this recipe. Both work great!
nancy says
I love these oat flour pancakes. they are easy on my stomach
Holley says
The best gluten free pancakes yet! I love this recipe!
Sara says
So happy to hear you loved these as much as we do 🙂
Sara Welch says
Enjoyed these for breakfast this morning and started my day off right! Turned out light and delicious and paired perfectly with my morning cup of coffee!
Kushigalu says
Love these easy and healthy oat-flour pancakes. Thanks for sharing.
Ned says
Well this just changed the game as far as breakfast goes! My kids loved these pancakes and I'm happy they are on the healthy side. Thank you!
Sara says
My kids love these too!
Aimee Mars says
Wow, these really are fluffy! I didn't know oat flour would work so well when making pancakes but these look incredible. We're a bit pancake family so I'm going to try this out this weekend. Love that they're also made with pantry staples!
Kathleen says
My family will love these light, fluffy and fantastic pancakes. Looking forward to trying them.
Beth says
These look amazing. I love the texture and the beautiful golden color. I'll have to make these this weekend.
Claudia Lamascolo says
my son loved these oat pancakes they were fluffier than I even expected and so delicious!
Sara says
So happy to hear... my kids love these as well!
Beverly says
Made these into a baked pancake. Greased pie plate. Baked 20 minutes at 350. White vinegar, didn't have apv as we're traveling in rv.
Served with sausage patty and homemade blackberry jam.
Very good.
Sara says
Thanks for sharing, Beverly! Love that this worked as a baked pancake and that homemade blackberry jam sounds delightful!