How do you get your kids to eat their vegetables…for breakfast? Even child visitors to our home munch down on these healthy grain-free or low-carb pancakes.
Pumpkin For Breakfast
I usually refer to these babies as “pumpkin pancakes” simply because people are used to sweet pumpkin treats, but they give me skeptical looks if I offer “squash pancakes.” They are pretty much grain-free pancakes (or at least super low-grain, depending on how you prepare them), so they’re a great substitute for the carb-loaded breakfast options we’re used to.
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Super Nutrition in Orange Veggies
Pumpkin, sweet potatoes and carrots are all on my Super Foods list, and for good reasons. Without overdoing it, suffice it to say that these orange veggies are great foods to include in your diet.
Here are the main nutrients in all three orange vegs:
- TONS of Vitamin A
- Vitamin C, anti-inflammatory (sweet potatoes)
- Super antioxidants (cancer fighters and system healers)
- Good source of fiber
- Carotenes (the orange thing)
- Antioxidant
- Fights heart disease
- Fights cancer
- Increases absorption of Vitamin A, especially when paired with fat
- Helps eye health
- Boosts immune system
Eat orange vegetables with fat (butter, olive oil, salad dressing, etc) in order to make the best use of the Vitamin A.
All varieties of winter squash are an excellent vegetable to add to your diet, not just pumpkins. They are an excellent source of Vitamin A and Vitamin C – and can even provide a nice boost of Vitamin B to your diet. Here’s more info about how to prepare many different types of squash, and some more squash recipes.
Your kids CAN make their own healthy breakfast!
Join the Kids Cook Real Food Weekend Challenge: Kids Master Breakfast and imagine your kids making breakfast independently! This challenge contains pro-filmed video lessons you can do at your own pace and finish in one weekend. Perfect for busy families!!
We love these pancakes so much, we used this recipe to teach some of the skills in our video ecourse, Kids Cook Real Food.
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Pumpkin Pancakes (Grain-Free)
- Yield: 15 small pancakes
- Category: Breakfast
Ingredients
- 1 c. cooked, pureed squash*
- 4–5 eggs**
- 2 Tbs. coconut flour OR 1/4 c. whole wheat flour OR almond flour OR 1/3 c. sourdough starter OR brown rice flour
- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp. cloves
- 1/4 tsp. ginger
- 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1–2 Tbs. maple syrup (optional)
- 1 tsp. vanilla (optional)
Instructions
- Separate eggs. In one bowl, whip egg whites a few minutes until frothy/foamy.
- In a separate bowl, combine yolks with squash, flour, sweetener, vanilla and spices. Fold in egg whites.
- Fry slowly in lots of fat in a cast iron skillet over medium-low heat OR on a griddle with a bit of butter at about 300-350F. Watch for the bottoms to begin browning when the edges look dry and flip once. If you find the pancakes are very thin and breaking apart, add a bit more flour or sourdough starter to the batter.
- The lazy way: Instead of separating the eggs, just mix everything together willy nilly in one bowl. The pancakes might not have as much height or fluff, but they’re still perfectly fine, especially for a weekday morning! I often use my stick blender to whiz it all together, especially if I have un-pureed squash or sweet potato.
- Need a little help getting healthy food on the table every day? Real Plans takes the stress out of meal planning and puts the nourishing food BACK on your table. There’s a plan for every diet type, including GAPS, Paleo, AIP, Whole30, vegetarian and more! You remain totally in control: use your own recipes, accept theirs, and teach the system what your family likes…Check out how powerful it is here!
*I recommend a sweeter squash like buttercup for these pancakes, and butternut works very well also. Cooked sweet potatoes or pumpkin puree, even from a can, is also delicious and still gets excellent super food veggie nutrition into your breakfast.
**Note on eggs: The recipe works with either 4 or 5 eggs, which you may choose depending on how large your eggs are or how many you have on hand. What kind of eggs should I use?
Make every breakfast nourishing
Is breakfast monotonous at your house? Uninspiring? Or worse…processed?
Get a little inspiration from The Healthy Breakfast Book, over 60 real food recipes plus efficiency tips and sample meal plans to make every breakfast nourishing.
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If you like this recipe, share it with friends!
Other Pancake Recipes:
- Soaked 100% Whole Grain Fluffy Pancakes
- Grain-free Almond Apple Pancakes
- Grain-free Banana Pancakes
- Potato-Vegetable Pancakes (Latkes)
- Sourdough Pancakes
Other Fall Recipes:
- Apple Flax Muffins (available in the updated 2nd edition of Healthy Snacks to Go, FREE to purchasers of the 1st edition!)
- Healthy Pumpkin Bread (or muffins)
- Apple Bars
- Roasted Fall/Winter Vegetables
- Simple Cabbage Soup with Fall Vegetables
- Brussels Sprouts People will Love!
- Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal
- Pumpkin Pie Breakfast Bites
- Naturally Sweetened Sweet Potato Casserole
Holy cow, y’all, look how horrible my photos used to be when I first started blogging!!
More Healthy Breakfast Recipes
- The Healthy Breakfast Book with over 50 recipes!
- Tastes Like Pizza Breakfast Hash
- Autumn Spiced Pumpkin Pancakes – can be made grain-free, gluten-free, sourdough or whole wheat!
- Grain-free Pumpkin Pie Breakfast Porridge
- Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal (pumpkin pie version)
- Instant Pot Apple Cranberry Steel Cut Oats
- Best Homemade Soaked Granola
- Best Pancakes: Whole Wheat or Gluten-free or Sourdough or Paleo Apple Almond
- Veggie Potato Latkes
- Grain-free Pizza Quiche
- Best High Protein Scrambled Eggs Ever
- Candy Cane Smoothie Bowl
- 10 Healthy Brunch Dishes for Potlucks
- Creative Ways to Add Veggies to Breakfast
- Allergen Free Breakfast Hummus
- Lots of Breakfast Ideas for Meal Planning
- Hard Boil Eggs in the Instant Pot
- Protein-Packed Breakfast Cupcakes
- Make-Ahead Egg Cups
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I made these with canned pumpkin, 4 eggs, and coconut flour. They were great! My kids loved them and called them “pumpkin pie pancakes”.
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Katie, love the options you gave to use in place of coconut flour since we have that allergy to coconut. I have NEVER found a chart that gives options for how much of what to substitute for coconut flour. Do you have one you use that you can refer us to? I hear bc it soaks up so much liquid it can be tough to substitute for.
Thanks! ALWAYS appreciate your knowledge!!!
This is way old, but in case someone else is reading and wondering…the conversion I’ve read is to use about 1/4 c. coconut flour for each 1 c. of regular flour called for, AND increase the eggs.
I love this recipe, the pancakes are so yummy and its nice that its mostly squash and egg. That being said, I can’t stand that link to the right with the picture of the wart. Its so unappetizing to have my laptop open, checking ingredients as I attempt to make a yummy dinner and my eye keeps going to the wart. No, warts aren’t THAT gross, but some people are squeamish. Ick!
Zoe,
LOL I’m sorry about that! I’m glad you enjoy this recipe…the wart picture will be switched out for something more seasonal end of this month. 🙂 Katie
“Good Morning Sunshine Spiced Pancakes.” It piques curiosity and works year round. ‘Sunshine’ hints at the color. And ‘spiced’ gives a hint to the flavor. Use an introductory paragraph to explain why they’re so ‘good’.
that picture looks like lungs
Vegetable Pumpkin Pancakes? – Pumpkin Spiced “Veggies/Vegetables For Breakfast” Pancakes? – Veggie/Vegetable Packed Pumpkin Pancakes? – Healthy Pumpkin Pancakes? – Pumpkin Spice Veggie Pancakes? – Vegetable Pumpkin Pancakes? – Hope these ideas help, good luck with naming your recipe. : )
Harvest moon pancakes? Or at least that’s what my kids would most likely call them… 🙂
I would just go with something simple like Spiced Pancakes or Spiced Veggie Breakfast Cakes.
Packed pumpkin pancakes. spiced squash pancakes. Family Favorite Flapjacks
Not just for fall flapjacks
Everyday citrus veggie spice cakes. Pumpkin spice Veggie flapjacks.
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These are wonderful – thanks for the recipe! I make the batter as directed (using coconut flour) and then cook them in the oven… it’s much less messy than in a pan and they turn out fluffy and round. I bake at 350 for 10 minutes and then flip and cook a few more minutes. Yum!
I forgot to mention that I line the baking pans with parchment paper 🙂
I found an even easier way to bake these tonight! I doubled the recipe (used 9 eggs and 2/3 cup rice flour). I lined a 15×10 pan with parchment paper and sprayed it with coconut oil… I probably could have just oiled the pan, but I really wanted to make sure it didn’t stick this first time trying 🙂 Then, I poured the ingredients into the pan and baked at 350 degrees for 20 minutes… it came out wonderful! I’m so excited to find a really easy way to make this because it’s hard to find much time in the mornings 🙂
Emily – I just made these this morning – you’re saying you get one humongous puffy pancake if you just bake it??? That is so awesome!!! 🙂 Katie
Yes, it IS awesome! The first time I tried it, I made it at night and ate some as a late snack and froze the rest because I knew that I had more puréed acorn squash to use… So, two mornings later, I made it again doubled with 8 eggs, rice flour, and only 2T maple syrup, 1T vanilla without the other spices. My kids and husband loved it! Imagine my fun when my 6 yr old who “hates” squash said, “Mom, what did you put in this to make it so delicious?!!!”. It reminded me of the German pancake we had growing up – I love it the first day with maple syrup and leftovers with plain homemade yogurt, a little maple syrup and frozen blueberries 🙂
Just another note – The pan I use is glass with high sides and I always use parchment paper on the bottom. The sides can get a little hard to clean off even if they are sprayed so I definitely wouldn’t skip the parchment paper on the bottom 🙂
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I made these tonight…in one bowl! I know how you love to conserve dishes so I thought I’d tell you my method. Beat the snot out of the eggs in the bowl, then continue as you directed, adding 2tsp of baking powder. You could easily do it in the blender this way too. I used pumpkin and almond meal.
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These pancakes were so tasty! I did them the lazy way because that’s how I roll- with sweet potato and almond meal. Yum.
I have one question… I noticed the recipe said it makes 30 pancakes but mine only made 7. They were not large. Am I missing something?
Kara,
Oof, I do make them small, but I bet I was thinking of MY normal batch, which is double or triple this recipe! Whoops! Thanks for catching my mistake! 🙂 Katie
I have never cooked with pumpkin before. I would like to try making these with pumpkin now that they are coming into season. Do I just use the gooey inside of the pumpkin to cook this recipe? Thanks!
Amy,
Yes, basically! You bake the pumpkin, then you’ll n eed to blend or food process (or use an immersion blender) to whiz up the pumpkin insides (not seeds). That’s what you measure for any pumpkin recipe! enjoy! 🙂 Katie
Thanks for getting back with me. How do I bake the pumpkin?
Sorry I took so long Amy – here’s a little note on baking pumpkins: http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/2012/10/02/recipe-connection-pumpkin-pie-baked-oatmeal/
🙂 Katie
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I thought I would just mention that pumpkin is a fruit not a veggie.
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Hey Katie,
When you say to cook this in a lot of fat, can I use butter for the fat or do I need to use something like Crisco? Thanks!
Amy,
Butter is fine…no Crisco, ack! Trans fats are one thing you want OUT of your kitchen, especially since you’re taking the time to make something homemade. Toss out the Crisco entirely…
I usually use coconut oil, either refined or unrefined, because it holds up better over heat than butter, which will brown pretty quickly.
Sorry I missed your comment; I was offline for Holy Week.
Hope you enjoy the pancakes! 🙂 Katie
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Hi, Katie, I love your blog! It’s one of my two favorites. I made these yesterday and found the taste to be a bit bland. I added some salt to the last batch and – wow – big difference. I also found the same thing with the pumpkin squares recipe in your dessert book – a bit bland. I’m planning to try it again with salt. I’m curious to see how they turn out, but haven’t had a chance to try yet.
Just wanted to update this and say that I tried them again the next day with 1/2 tsp of salt. My three year old (who previously spit them out) was going on and on about how delicious they were. Also, I when I tried them the first time, I whipped the eggs separately and, as a previous commenter commented, I also like them better just all blended together. I did add 1 tsp of baking powder after seeing that the first batch in the pan was so flat. They came out just right. Yummy!
Rachelle,
I tried adding salt, and oh, my goodness, you’re right! I’m changing the recipe now! Thanks so much!
🙂 Katie
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I LOVE having these around as a protein-filled, grain-free snack for my toddler. He calls them “pum pum cakes” and can’t get enough of them!!
I followed the recipe exactly, which I pretty much never do, and they were perfect. Fluffy and good. I will say that your suggestion somewhere else to add chocolate chips made all the difference with my picky-ish daughter. I think the fact that she didn’t eat any of the liver dinner that I made last night helped!
Katie, I love your blog, but these pancakes weren’t so successful!! They were so puffy and meringue-like, that when I tried to cook them in the pan, they burnt on the outside and were raw in the middle. I ended up baking them in the oven for about 25 min at 300. I think they would be much more successful without whipping the egg whites. The flavor was good, they were just HARD to cook right.
Emily,
Ooooh, bummer. I almost always take the lazy way and just mix everything up, and I do pat down the batter to keep them thin. I hope that helps next time! 🙂 Katie
Yeah, I think I was trying too hard to keep these fluffy! LOL! I’ll be more aggressive with them next time! No pampering these guys. 🙂
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Going to try a savory version for dinner tonight. And I think I’ll use the rest of the sweet potato puree for muffins in the morning!
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Oops! Sorry–I just read the previous comments!
Katie, have you ever tried these w/out eggs? I have successfully used flax meal/water as an egg sub in some other pancake recipes, but I wasn’t sure if you thought it might work in this one. Meal planning for Oct! Thanks!!
Do you serve anything over them or butter? Of course pancake makes me think of syrup but that defeats the low carb doesn’t it!
Rebecca,
We do use real maple syrup, but not *too* much. 😉 Katie
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I like to make pancakes and other breakfast foods ahead of time and freeze them. Then we pop them in the toaster in the morning before school. Do these pancakes freeze well? Also, you gave 4 options for the “flour”. We don’t have gluten sensitivities, so that is not a consideration. In your opinion, which option makes the “best” tasting pancakes?
Your blog has been a Godsend. This is exactly the direction my family wants to go in. And I love that you’re a fellow Catholic. You tend to mix our rich faith into the articles- another blessing! Thank you!
Jane,
You know, I’ve never frozen them. They’re nicely sturdy, though, so I imagine they’d freeze great. I’ve kept them in the fridge for a week before w/o problem.
As for the flour, keep it simple and go whole wheat, sourdough starter if you have one.
Glad to have you here! 🙂 Katie
I thought I’d save some hands- on time by using my waffle maker. Dont’ try that. It was a mess! I’ll be trying this again.. cooked in a pan with coconut oil. Hoping for a better result next time! These look so good.
Oh, dear, Laryssa, I can only imagine the mess that made. Yes, w/o flour these are not the most robust of pancakes! Yikes! 😉 Katie
How did the coconut oil work for you?
Looks like yummy pancakes and I have been trying to find a way to add new things and veggies of course into our breakfast routine. I hope they freeze well too. A note about eggs after reading your egg article. We have chickens in our backyard that just started laying so that is awesome. But for those who are not crazy enough to have chickens in their backyard consider calling around to local feed stores for eggs. We bought 2 dozen eggs super cheap when we bought our chicks.
Wondering if I can try it with an egg substitute of some sort? Don’t know how you feel about that but I’ve been using lots of different things since my son is reactive to eggs right now (like unsweetened applesauce or chia seeds mixed with hot water). It has been so hard trying to brainstorm breakfast ideas for him lately!
Heather,
I would think the applesauce wouldn’t work, but the chia (or flax) seeds might – the eggs are a pretty important binder here. Good luck!
🙂 Katie
Hi Heather & Katie! My son is extremely allergic to eggs and we have been advised to avoid dairy as a precaution. I typically find 2 eggs is the most I can sub out without the recipe failing in some way or another. Here’s our pumpkin pancake recipe:
2 1/2 c Whole Wheat Flour
2 1/2 c Water
1/2 c Almond Milk + 1 T apple cider vinegar
1 T baking powder
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 c pureed pumpkin (I use about half a small can)
1/2 tsp salt
Optional: 1 T maple syrup and/or 1 tsp vanilla
1. Add vinegar to almond milk, let stand 5 min to sour (or use buttermilk if not avoiding dairy). Sift together dry ingredients, mix together wet ingredients and pumpkin, add wet to dry and cook.
I’ve also tried this with an equal amount of ripe, well mashed banana and that turned out great too — it has a very “eggy” texture and tastes delicious, and no need to get hard to find ingredients!
Thank you! My son has egg and dairy allergies as well. I am going to try this recipe with gf flour (for me) so we can all eat it. 🙂
Have you tried duck eggs? We are all very allergic to hen eggs, but duck eggs work very well. I found some from a farmer near me on craigslist. Worth a try!
If you have a nourishing breakfast idea that works well, serve it daily with the exception of one day per week. Then serve something special. This way, your child knows what to expect daily, and will help him to look forward to that one special day. This can help a child to be more grateful as well.