It’s hard to beat these homemade coconut flour pancakes for breakfast. Their fluffy texture and coconut flavor make the effort totally worth it when you want a delicious start to the day.
Coconut flour can be a weird ingredient to bake with. If you’re into gluten-free or paleo recipes, you’ve likely encountered it before and eagerly incorporated it into a recipe only to find the result dry as chalk. I sometimes get comments on recipes with people asking if they can swap out coconut flour for something else in the ingredient list. My answer is always: No.
It’s too complicated of an ingredient for substitutions, but when you build a recipe around it, like these coconut flour pancakes, it can work beautifully. Typically, it’ll take a lot of trial and error. Lucky for you though, I’ve done the leg work on that and these pancakes are honestly one of my favorite stacks on the whole site. That’s saying a lot too, because I’m pretty sure I have over 30 pancake recipes on here.
When I recently re-photographed this recipe, my husband asked if he could have some (you know you’re a food blogger’s spouse when you ask before you eat anything on the counter) and I turn around 10 minutes later after cleaning up to see him polishing off 8 of these. I think that speaks for itself.
What I Love About This Coconut Flour Pancake Recipe
- They taste special and fancy. Thanks to sleeper ingredients like nutmeg, these pancakes trump your typical buttermilk stack in flavor. Banana nutmeg pancakes are a personal favorite for the same reason.
- The texture is so doughy and fluffy. It might sound weird to put those two descriptors together, but you’ll know what I mean in one bite. Coconut pancakes are fluffy but still moist, which is my ideal quality in any pancake. They’re very similar to these cassava flour pancakes in that way.
- Instead of most coconut flour pancake recipes that just rely on coconut flour, this recipe goes all in on the coconut thing by using coconut oil in the ingredients and topping the pancakes with an almond coconut butter sauce. I like garnishing them with toasted coconut flakes too. There’s coconut in every bite.
- Coconut flour is high in fiber so each serving offers 7g of fiber. Pair a stack with these homemade ground chicken sausage patties for a protein boost and this breakfast will keep you going for hours.
FEATURED COMMENT
“I stumbled upon this recipe/blog from google while looking for something to make with my coconut flour. I have made them two times since then (and am actually eating some now, I’ve saved the left over batter in the fridge) and they are delicious!”
— Hope
The Deal With Coconut Flour
In baking, coconut flour acts like a tiny sponge, absorbing up to four times its weight in liquid. That means you only need a little to thicken your pancake batter, but you must balance it with extra moisture like eggs, milk or yogurt to avoid dryness.
While I typically offer substitutions and tips on most recipes, this is one where it’s important to stick to the ingredients as written because coconut flour is such a prima donna. I don’t suggest flax or chia eggs and even swapping the two tablespoons of maple syrup for granulated sugar instead can impact the texture of these pancakes.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the overall flavor, adding a hint of sweetness and warmth.
- Spelt flour: Adds structure and a mild, nutty flavor, helping balance the coconut flour’s absorbency.
- Coconut flour: The star ingredient, bringing fiber, natural sweetness, and that signature coconut flavor.
- Baking powder: Provides the lift necessary for fluffy pancakes, ensuring they rise without getting too dense.
- Cinnamon & nutmeg: These warm spices enhance the coconut flavor and add a touch of cozy depth.
- Milk: The liquid base that binds everything together, creating a smooth batter.
- Egg: Acts as a binder, giving the pancakes structure and helping them hold together.
- Coconut oil: Adds richness and moisture while keeping the pancakes tender.
- Maple syrup: A natural sweetener that adds a touch of depth and sweetness without overpowering the coconut flavor.
How to Make Coconut Flour Pancakes
Prepare the Dry Ingredients
In a medium bowl, whisk together the spelt flour, coconut flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
Mix the Wet Ingredients
In a separate small bowl, whisk together the milk, egg, melted coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla.
Combine Wet and Dry Ingredients
Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until fully combined. Be careful not to over-mix the batter. It should be thick and just slightly lumpy.
Cook the Pancakes
Heat a pancake griddle or pan over medium-low heat and grease it with your preferred cooking fat. Spoon about ¼ cup of the pancake batter onto the pan once hot, forming circular shapes. Cook each pancake for 2-3 minutes per side, flipping carefully when the edges start to set and the bottom turns golden brown.
Prepare the Coconut Almond Butter Sauce
While the pancakes are cooking, combine almond butter, coconut butter and a splash of milk in a small bowl. Microwave for about 20 seconds, then stir until smooth and creamy. You can thin this out to a more pourable consistency by using more milk if desired. For some sweetness, you can also add a touch of maple syrup.
Serve and Enjoy
Stack your pancakes high and drizzle with the coconut almond butter sauce for the ultimate indulgent treat. Top however you like with fruit, seeds, coconut flakes, granola, etc.
My Pro Tips
My Best Coconut Flour Pancake Tips
- Let the batter rest for 5 minutes so the coconut flour can fully hydrate before cooking the pancakes.
- The batter can be a bit thick when dealing with coconut flour. Use the back of a spoon to swirl the pancake batter into a circle if necessary.
- Don’t make the pancakes bigger than the suggested 1/4 cup batter per pancake. They become unruly to flip due to the coconut flour.
Fun Ways to Serve these Coconut Flour Pancakes
For a sweet twist, dot the pancake batter with chocolate chips in the skillet and top them off with a dollop of whipped cream for an indulgent treat. They’ll seriously rival dessert with this approach.
If you’re in the mood for something fruity, layer the pancakes with fresh strawberries and raspberries for a burst of color and a sweet, tangy contrast to the coconut flavor.
Storage & Reheating
Reheat leftovers gently in the microwave.
Cool completely, then stack with parchment between each pancake in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. The paper helps prevent the pancakes from sticking to each other, but if you don’t care about that, it’s not necessary.
Freeze in a single layer on a baking sheet, then transfer to a freezer bag.
Try More Recipes Using Coconut Flour
This skillet brownie uses a combination of coconut flour and tapioca flour for a fudgy grain-free treat you can (and should!) eat right out of the pan.
This coconut buckwheat bake is one of my favorite single-serving breakfast ideas when I’m sick of eggs but don’t feel like pancakes or waffles. It’s so moist and flavorful and something unique to enjoy for breakfast.
If you want a classic recipe that uses alternative ingredients try this banana bread made with coconut and almond flours. Just make sure to follow the tip of using two small loaf pans for the best results.
Coconut Flour Pancakes
Ingredients
Pancakes
- 1 cup spelt flour, *see note
- 1/2 cup coconut flour
- 3/4 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
- pinch of salt
- 1 1/2 cups milk of any kind, if using nut milk, use unsweetened
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Coconut Almond Butter Sauce
- 1 tablespoon almond butter
- 1 tablespoon coconut butter
- 2-4 tablespoons milk of any kind
Instructions
Pancakes
- Whisk together flours, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a medium bowl.
- Whisk together remaining wet ingredients in a small bowl.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until combined.
- Heat a pancake griddle or pan over medium heat. Grease your pan with desired fat and spoon batter in about 1/4 cup measurements onto pan forming a circular pancake shape.
- Cook for about 2-3 minutes per side.
Coconut Almond Butter Sauce
- Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.
- Microwave for about 20 seconds.
- Stir until creamy and smooth.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
I’m so excited to try these pancakes and you already answered my question, oat flour is the option for me! I also love making my own coconut flour from the pulp of making homemade coconut milk, which I haven’t made for a while, I guess it’s time to make some coconut milk and coconut flour pancakes, yum!
It took my husband a while to get to the ‘ask before you eat’ stage but we’re finally there! I made brownies yesterday and the first thing he said when he saw them come out of the oven was: let me know when you are done photographing them.
I’ve never baked with coconut flour (only coconut sugar) but I love the look of them so I’m definitely going to add these to my breakfast rotation.