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If you’re looking for wholesome breakfast ideas, keep a batch of this homemade Healthy Pancake Recipe mix in the pantry. Whenever the mood strikes, mix up batter for as few as 3 to 4 pancakes at a time. It’s and ideal scenario for weekday breakfast with kids or a big family brunch on the weekend.
In that everlasting battle to feed my kids more nutrient-dense food, I was looking for easy breakfast options beyond the cereal box. We do a lot of scrambled eggs with fruit on the side, but kids get antsy when it’s always the same thing.
Pancakes always felt like a weekend indulgence, but I wanted to change that. I already had this fantastic pancake mix recipe, but I needed to make it approachable for a random weekday morning.
I scaled the recipe down so it would make just 3 to 4 pancakes around 4 inches each. This is perfect for right before school; everybody gets a hot and fresh pancake! I keep the dry mix in the pantry and it only takes a minute or two to whip up the batter. I even created a handy-dandy Healthy Pancake Mix Label that you can print out and tape on your container. That way, you never have to look up how many eggs, milk, etcetera, to make pancakes.
Now, more days than not, I’m making pancakes for breakfast. Even if I cannot control what they eat at lunch, at least I know they started off the day with a full belly.
Making pancakes for the whole family on Saturday morning? Just double (or triple!) the batch and you’ll be good to go.
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Whole wheat flour: 4 cups whole wheat pastry flour may be substituted for the 3 cups whole wheat flour + 1 cup all-purpose flour.
Step-by-step instructions
To make the dry pancake mix:
- In a large bowl, whisk together wheat flour, all-purpose flour, and the other dry ingredients you choose. Store in an airtight container at room temperature (grab the Healthy Pancake Mix Label pictured below).
To make the pancakes:
- In a medium bowl, add dry pancake mix, milk, eggs, baking powder, and olive oil. Whisk to combine, then thin with water to desired consistency.
- Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pancake batter ¼ cup at a time. Cook until the batter starts to set at the edges and the pancake is lightly browned on the skillet side, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Flip and continue cooking until the second side is browned and the pancake is cooked through, about 2 to 3 minutes longer.
- Transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining batter. Serve with butter and maple syrup or strawberries and whipped cream.
Do I need a pancake dispenser?
Although a pancake dispenser isn’t completely necessary for making delicious pancakes at home, after testing a bunch, I loved how easy the Norpro Batter Dispenser made making breakfast. It has an even pour and was way less messy getting my batter into the pan, and I am now a pancake dispenser convert! You can get it for $20.66 at Amazon, and you can use it for dispensing cupcake batter and sauces, too.
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: The dry mix yield depends on how many different dry ingredients you add and in which amounts. Making pancakes with ¾ cups dry mix plus associated ingredients yields enough batter for 3 to 4 pancakes, about 4 inches each. Double or triple the batch for large weekend batches for the whole family.
- Storage: Store leftover pancakes covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: Arrange cooled pancakes in a single layer, not touching, on a small baking sheet or plate. Freeze until the pancakes are individually frozen, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag. Freeze up to 2 months. Reheat in the microwave or toaster from frozen (yes, you can just pop them in the toaster!).
- Oiling the skillet: If you love crispy edges on your pancakes, you’ll want to lightly grease your skillet with oil or butter before adding the batter. If using a non-stick skillet, you can skip the fat and cook the flapjacks in a dry skillet for a smooth, brown surface.
- Keep them warm: To keep pancakes warm while you’re preparing them, or to store them for an imminent brunch, preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Set a rack over a baking sheet and place in the oven, then transfer cooked pancakes to the rack until serving time.
- Mix-ins: For more fun, add fresh blueberries, strawberries, or chocolate chips to your pancakes. I usually just sprinkle mix-ins on the exposed side of a pancake while the first side cooks; that keeps it easy and ensures even distribution.
- Classic Homemade Pancakes: For standard white-flour pancakes better than anything you’d get at the diner, try my beloved Homemade Pancake Recipe. It’s ready in 20 minutes or less, and they are so good! Definitely a family and reader favorite.
- Buttermilk pancakes: Whip up a batch of tall, fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes for your next breakfast, brunch, or brinner.
- Vegan Pancakes: For a hearty plant-based breakfast, try my Vegan Pancakes made with oat milk, flax seeds, and coconut oil.
- Lemon Ricotta Pancakes: These luscious pancakes are lemon-scented, light as air, and make every day a little sunnier. Make them as-is, or add blueberries for the best breakfast ever.
- Waffles: This Healthy Pancake Mix can also be used for making waffles. Just preheat a waffle iron and proceed according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you don’t want eggs in your pancakes, make a flax egg, an egg substitute made with ground flax seed. To make a flax egg, combine one tablespoon ground flaxseed meal with three tablespoons of water. Let sit in your refrigerator for 15 minutes to set up before adding to the recipe.
All-purpose flour is milled from both hard and soft wheat, enough of both to reach a 10 to 12% protein content. The bran (exterior of the wheat kernel) and the germ (inner seed) are removed before milling, leaving the endosperm. Whole-wheat flour is made from everything: the endosperm, bran, and germ. It’s higher in protein (up to 15%) and tends to have more nutrients, fiber, and taste. Both the bran and the germ disrupt gluten formation, so most bakers avoid whole wheat flour because it can make foods dense and even heavy. Baked goods with whole-wheat flour also tend to brown faster.
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Healthy Pancake Recipe
Equipment
- Electric Griddle (Perfect for when you don't have room on the stovetop)
- Pancake Dispenser (I tested out this one from Norpro and LOVE it!)
Ingredients
For the dry pancake mix:
- 3 cups whole wheat flour (see note 1)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup of any or all of the following: wheat germ and/or powdered milk, corn meal, bran
- 1/4 cup of any or all of the following: buckwheat flour and/or potato flour, oat flour, coconut flour
For the pancakes:
- 3/4 cup dry pancake mix
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- water as needed
For serving:
- butter and maple syrup or whipped cream and strawberries
Instructions
To make the dry pancake mix:
- In a large bowl, whisk together wheat flour, all-purpose flour, and the other dry ingredients you choose. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
To make the pancakes:
- In a medium bowl, add dry pancake mix, milk, eggs, baking powder, and olive oil. Whisk to combine, then thin with water to desired consistency.
- Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pancake batter ¼ cup at a time. Cook until the batter starts to set at the edges and the pancake is lightly browned on the skillet side, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Flip and continue cooking until the second side is browned and the pancake is cooked through, about 2 to 3 minutes longer.
- Transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining batter. Serve with butter and maple syrup or strawberries and whipped cream.
Notes
- Whole wheat flour: 4 cups whole wheat pastry flour may be substituted for the 3 cups whole wheat flour + 1 cup all-purpose flour.
- Yield: The dry mix yield depends on how many different dry ingredients you add and in which amounts. Making pancakes with ¾ cups dry mix plus associated ingredients yields enough batter for 3 to 4 pancakes, about 4 inches each. Double or triple the batch for large weekend batches for the whole family.
- Storage: Store leftover pancakes covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
Will make these again and again. I just love em
Hi, my name is Joy & I work with diabetic. I was wondering if you could make a pancake with bananas & oatmeal. That wouldn’t be too high in sugar but still be the proper consistency. Can it be done, if you can help? I would love the help. Thank you!
Hi Joy, I don’t really have a nutritional background so I don’t know that I can make recipes for diabetics. Seems like a bad idea, like I’m not qualified. But if all you want is a pancake with bananas and oats… well, that is something I could work on. Can you please email me meggan@culinaryhill.com and let me know if that’s what you want? Understanding that I’m not a nutritionist and I don’t know anything about the needs of diabetics. But I like to make food. Just email me! Thanks. -Meggan
Thank you for sharing your recipe! I’m wondering what type of milk you recommend and if you’d ever use butter milk. Thanks!
Hi, I really want to try this recipe but I was wondering if you rechecked the amount of olive oil called for in this mix. Thanks so much, Nancy
Hi Nancy, I did! It’s 1 teaspoon per 3/4 cup of dry pancake mix. I hope you love them! Please write back when you try them. – Meggan
Thank you very. much for sharing your awesome recipes just by looking @ them n reading through them we how healthy with the use of organic stuff
Looks great but 1/2 cup oil?? Lol that seems like a ton of oil for pancakes
I agree with you! I’m going to go find the original recipe and double-check and/or retest… that seems like too much!!! Thanks Kathleen.
Family recipes are the best. I bet my hubby would love this.
Annamaria
Thank you so much, Annamaria! I do agree, family recipes (and a fun story) make cooking that much more enjoyable!
It may be the middle of the day here, but I WANT these pancakes! These look incredible! And they’re healthy…. so awesome! I love guilt-free indulgence!
Thank you so much, Kathleen! My 3-year-old son in particular has been asking for these pancakes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Nonstop. He’s obsessed. I kind of am, too! And with no added sugar it’s an easy decision for both of us!
You know what? I do not make pancakes. And I should!!! This looks really great! I love that it has such a healthy twist!! YUM!
Mila! MAKE SOME PANCAKES! Just kidding. 🙂 But seriously, if you’re going to make some, these are the ones to make. Thank you so much for visiting!
Thank you for sharing your special recipe. I like the idea of having a mix already made up, so making the pancakes happens faster. My brain is going crazy thinking about which of the optional ingredients to add. I might just have to make pancakes more often… 🙂
Thank you so much, Susan! I feel like I married into this recipe, literally. There are a few other recipes from “that side” of the family that haven’t made an appearance yet, but this one has been on my mind for a long time. It’s amazing how good these taste with no sugar added. I am sure you’ll add all kinds of interesting ingredients. Please be sure to let me know if you stumble upon anything genius!
Well thank you to and Jack for passing this on, that’s a great story and a great idea. I’m sitting here with ginger mint tea and now I’m starving for pancakes.
You would have liked Jack, he even danced at our wedding. 🙂 I’m starving for ginger mint tea, so maybe we should trade.
What a great idea Meggan! Customizable pancake mix sounds awesome! Love family recipes like this one!
Thank you, Mira! This recipe is legendary on my in-laws side. I’ve been meaning to get it on the blog forever and I’m so happy I finally did. Thanks for visiting. 🙂