Hiya Gorgeous!
The holidays are almost here! Many of us will be hosting our loved ones in our homes or making the trip to stay with family & friends. I don’t know about you, but I love impressing my peeps with some “Mmm” inducing plant-based deliciousness this time o’ year.
With that in mind, I want to share a decadent breakfast for you to prepare for your family this season: Gingerbread Spice Pancakes with Cinnamon Apples and Maple Whip. OMG, they are sooo frickin’ good!
It’s the perfect recipe to make to kick off the merriment one holiday morning. I’ll be honest, this one has more of the sweet stuff than I usually would include. But it’s a seasonal treat for a special occasion and it’s meant to do just that—treat you and your fam!
As a reminder, Test Kitchen Tuesday is my way of sharing new recipes that are simple to make, have few ingredients to buy and come with a little step-by-step video tutorial to guide you along the way.
Hit play below to see just how easy it is to whip up this mouth-watering holiday morning feast. Bonus: you’ll definitely impress your family, friends and loved ones with this one! Without further ado, let’s make some delicious and dreamy pancakes together!
Gingerbread Spice Pancakes with Cinnamon Apples and Maple Whip (video)
Makes 10-12 Pancakes, about 5-6 servings
Pancakes:
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
¾ cup oat flour (3/4 cup of rolled oats, blended or processed in a food processor)
2 ½ tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 cups nondairy milk
¼ cup coconut oil, melted
1 tsp vanilla extract
Nonstick spray
Cinnamon Apples:
1 tsp coconut oil
2 medium apples, peeled, cored and chopped
½ tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pure maple syrup
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbsp hemp seeds
small pinch salt
Maple Whip:
1 13.5 oz can coconut cream, chilled overnight*
2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
Pancake Instructions:
1. In a large bowl, whisk to combine all purpose flour, oat flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, whisk to combine nondairy milk, coconut oil and vanilla extract. Add to dry mixture and stir until just combined. Some lumps are ok.
3. Heat a griddle or large nonstick pan over medium heat. Spray with nonstick spray and add ¼ cup increments of batter onto the griddle. Cook 2-3 minutes, or until bubbles form on surface of pancakes. Flip and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes. Set aside and keep warm in a 200 degree oven until apples and whip are ready.
Cinnamon Appple Instructions:
1. In a medium pan, heat coconut oil over medium heat. Add apples, cinnamon, maple syrup, vanilla extract, hemp seeds, and salt and stir to combine. Cook, stirring frequently, for 8-9 minutes, or until apples are tender. Remove from heat and set aside.
Maple Whip Instructions:
1. Open the can of coconut cream and scoop the cream into a large bowl. Using an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, beat the coconut cream on low until fluffy and smooth (this can take up to 12 minutes). Add maple syrup and vanilla extract and beat an additional 1-2 minutes. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.
To Serve:
1. Place 2-3 warm pancakes on each of 5 plates, topped with vegan butter if desired, and divide cinnamon apples and whip toppings evenly over the plates.
Note for coconut cream: Some brands (like Trader Joe’s) are more dry than others and may be hard to scoop out of the can once chilled. If you find this to be the case when opening the can, sit the can in a warm pot of water for 10 minutes. Then, once you’ve made the maple whip, you can chill it in the fridge for an additional 30 minutes.
I kris, I’m confused. I thought you were a plant based all natural ingredient kinda gal!! I don’t use white flour or anything white in my cooking!,, so I’m wondering can I use almond flour as a one to one substitute for the white flour? Thank you in advance for taking the time out of your busy day to answer my questions!,, have a great day!
Hi Yvonne! Thanks for your comment about all purpose flour. I’m the nutrition director here at Crazy Sexy Wellness and tested the recipe multiple times for Kris, so I’ll chime in. When experimenting with this recipe, the pancakes were too heavy and didn’t rise as well using whole wheat flour, which is why we used a combination of all-purpose flour (preferably unbleached) plus oat flour. The recipe is still quite high in fiber. If you prefer, you can substitute whole wheat flour, but you will get a heavier pancake. If using almond flour, you’ll need to add an additional 1/2 tsp of baking powder to counteract the higher fat content and you may find that the inside of the pancakes still don’t cook as well. If you play around with the recipe and have success, please let us know! xo – Jen
My question exactly–as it was for others, it looks like! Jen, thanks for explaining, but do search around a bit for other whole grain options. I think limiting yourself to whole wheat could be part of the problem because it is indeed heavy. Try experimenting with sorghum (my favorite) and brown rice. I’ve been making light and fluffy GF, whole grain pancakes for years. Here’s a recipe I made for a health fair to good reviews, even from attendees not accustomed to whole grains or GF dishes–and you could add Jen’s nice spice mix for the holidays.
7-Whole Grain Buttermilk Pancakes
1 cup sorghum flour
1/3 cup quick-cooking (not instant) oatmeal
1/3 cup brown rice flour
1/3 cup cornmeal or coconut flour
¼ cup oat flour
¼ cup millet flour (or tapioca starch)
¼ cup potato flour
½ cup powdered buttermilk (dairy-free option: ½ tsp. citric acid crystals )
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
This makes a big batch of mix. At pancake time, in a medium-sized mixing bowl, use a large fork to beat 1 egg, then beat in 1 Tbsp. melted coconut oil (or other good oil) and ½ cup milk (or milk alternative). Add 1 cup pancake mix and stir gently, just until combined, taking care not to over-mix and adding ¼ to ½ cup additional milk to reach desired batter thickness. If possible, allow to sit for 10-30 minutes to help soften flours. Cook as with any other pancake, but keep cakes on the smaller side for more even and complete cooking.
Thanks so much for this, Mary! What would you suggest in place of the egg since we are completely plant-based at Team Crazy Sexy? Do you think a “flax egg” (1 Tbsp ground flax seed meal + 3 Tbsp water) or 1/4 cup pumpkin puree might work? I know gluten-free, egg-free combos can be a bit trickier. Thanks again! xo – Jen
It is tough to work around a number of constraints, isn’t it! I’m always one to just give things a try, though. It’s rare I end up with something inedible. So yes, try with a flax egg or the pumpkin puree. The pancakes may not be as light and fluffy, although perhaps the buttermilk (or citric acid option) might give them enough lift. Another option we’ve been playing with is just thinning out the pancakes to make more of a crepe–just skip the whole light and fluffy thing! Plus crepes aren’t quite as over-filling as pancakes and could be good with your apple filling wrapped inside and maple whip on top.
I’m really confused by the all-purpose flour too! I wasn’t expecting this at all and was wondering how it fits with your usual food philosophy? I’m happy to work out my own substitutions, but would be really interested to know the reasoning behind this inclusion. Thanks so much.
Hey Andrea! Thanks for speaking up. As I just replied to Yvonne above, when experimenting with this recipe, the pancakes were too heavy and didn’t rise as well using whole wheat flour, which is why we used a combination of all-purpose flour (preferably unbleached) plus oat flour. The recipe is still quite high in fiber. If you prefer, you can substitute whole wheat flour, but you will get a heavier pancake. If using almond flour, you’ll need to add an additional 1/2 tsp of baking powder to counteract the higher fat content and you may find that the inside of the pancakes still don’t cook as well. If you play around with the recipe and have success, please let us know! xo – Jen
Any vegan or leaning towards raw vegan individuals out there living in the Boston, MA area who would like to possibly connect via email or get togethers/ especially someone on a natural healing journey?
Cheers!
JD
What is the scoop with unbleached all purpose flour ?
Can almond or coconut flour work for this recipe ?
Hey Tim! Thanks for your questions. Here’s what I replied to similar questions above, plus a little more info on using coconut flour as a sub for all purpose flour: When experimenting with this recipe, the pancakes were too heavy and didn’t rise as well using whole wheat flour, which is why we used a combination of all-purpose flour (preferably unbleached) plus oat flour. The recipe is still quite high in fiber. If you prefer, you can substitute whole wheat flour, but you will get a heavier pancake. If using almond flour, you’ll need to add an additional 1/2 tsp of baking powder to counteract the higher fat content and you may find that the inside of the pancakes still don’t cook as well. If using coconut flour, you’ll need extra liquid and binder since coconut flour absorbs more liquid than regular flour and it’s quite crumbly, and pancakes may not cook all the way through. In my experience, texture is best if you replace half of the regular flour with nut or coconut flour, but not all, and use unbleached all purpose flour or a low-fiber gluten-free flour blend for the other half (which is basically what we ended up doing with the all purpose flour plus oat flour combo). If you play around with the recipe and have success, please let us know! xo – Jen
Hi, Jen. It’s not the fiber content that has the troops confused. It’s the gluten. Could you please address?
Yes of course! While many of the Crazy Sexy recipes are gluten-free, not all of them are. If you’re sensitive or allergic to gluten, obviously you need to avoid it. But if you’re not sensitive to it, gluten-containing foods are loaded with nutrients and can be a healthy part of your diet. Kris’ Crazy Sexy You program and some of her other cleanse programs skip gluten for a period of time to help folks determine whether or not they’re sensitive to it, and because gluten may be contributing to inflammation if it’s a day-in and day-out dietary staple. However, long-term gluten elimination isn’t necessary for everyone. But, we do always recommend non-GMO products and organic if possible. For more info, check out Kris’ blog on gluten-free diets here: https://go.kriscarr.com/blog/is-gluten-free-healthy/. Hope that helps clear things up! xo – Jen
I second Stephanie’s question, especially with everything we know about the effects of gluten. This recipe looks delicious but as a nutritionist and holistic chef, I can’t advise something that may be harmful to my clients’ health because it tastes better. I feel like there is always an alternative. For pancakes, I actually use Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-free mix. Maybe using that and the flavors from this would work well. I love sharing this website with clients that are looking to eat more plant-based, but many of them have issues with gluten so I wouldn’t want to confuse them in thinking that a recipe like this was healthy for them when it actually could be detrimental. I’d love to hear your thoughts on the gluten issue.
Hi Nicole! If you’re recommending a gluten-free diet to your clients, Cup4Cup Wholesome GF Flour is an incredible flour substitute. It not only behaves like regular flour, but it has omega 3 fats and 4 grams of fiber per 1/4 cup. The downside is that–just like Bob’s Red Mill–it’s expensive: $14 for 2 lbs. As I mentioned above to Stephanie, gluten-free diets aren’t necessary for everyone, and Kris goes into more detail in her blog here: https://go.kriscarr.com/blog/is-gluten-free-healthy/
If you are gluten-free, the good news is that the majority of healthy plant-based recipes can be made gluten-free with a few easy substitutions outlined in our handy recipe substitution chart. Knowing how to make substitutions in recipes means you don’t have to be limited to recipes or websites that already avoid gluten: https://go.kriscarr.com/blog/healthy-recipe-substitutions-vegan/ Hope that helps! xo Jen
I love pancakes and these ones look amazing and healthy! Thanks for the inspiration
Thanks Nicole! Hope you love them as much as we do 🙂 – xo Jen
These pancakes look delicious. Thanks so much for the effort you and your team put into this recipe and for answering all the questions from those that had a hard time with 1 cup of unbleached all purpose flour! What is going on?!?! Can’t one share a recipe without getting all this comments like Kris has fallen off the whole Food plant based wagon. Please people take breath and it sounds like you are so informed that you had solutions for this 1 cup of flour. Happy Holidays!
Thanks Rinee! Hope you love the pancakes and Happy Holidays to you too! xo Jen
I look forward to testing this recipe with my family over the holidays. I was taken aback by the kind of flour Kris chose, too, but read that this is a treat that she wouldn’t prepare all of the time. And while Kris has championed being GF, she has never promoted herself as a GF cook. (I think it’s awesome Jen gave multiple answers and options regarding the flier choice, too.)
Let us know how it goes, Rebecca! xo Jen
Thanks for sharing!!! They look so delicious!
Dairy is a hard one for me to omit from my diet and my cholesterol is very high, so going vegan is beneficial!
I’m looking for new versions to replace 2 of my favs ~ grilled cheese and mac n cheese.
I’ve made grilled sourdough w/ ghee and Daya slices, added tomato or pickle. Any other ideas?
For Mac n cheese I’d love to have a recipe that’s lower in carbs so I could eat a bit more than 1 cup.
There is pasta made from edaname ~but carbs are still pretty high. I have some other ideas but would love to see what you come up with! Let the fun begin! Thanks Test Kitchen Peeps!
Anyone who has been gluten free for any amount of time would have a perfectly viable gf flour option in their cupboard. Instead of pointing out the flaws we see in something, a solution would be more helpful. Bob’s red mill gluten free all purpose flour works great here. I had to add an additional 1/4 cup to make it the right texture. Nut flours are so very high in PUFAS and create more inflammation than almost anything you can eat. So gf isn’t the only thing we have to look out for. 😉
These look wonderful! Thank you ????????