This post was created in partnership with Revol.
So excited to share this recent discovery with you today. If you follow us on instagram, you may have seen me posting an abnormal number of pancake photos recently. That would be because I’ve been cooking some variation of blender pancakes almost every morning for the past couple of weeks. Seriously obsessed.
Blender pancakes start out with whole grains instead of flour, which get soaked overnight in purified water. Soaking not only softens the grains and makes them more blend-able, but also awakens the life within each individual grain and rids them of phytic acid, making them more bioavailable and easier to digest. You could use a number of grains here, but I find raw buckwheat to be the perfect neutral base. Buckwheat is also incredibly nutritious, and is actually not a grain at all, but a fruit/berry of the buckwheat plant (related to rhubarb!). In the morning, simply combine your soaked grains with a liquid and other add-ins in a blender, whirl everything into a smooth batter and you are ready to fry up your pancakes. It’s all super quick, easy and so tasty, and there is a lot of room to get creative, too. The whole process kind of reminds me of making a smoothie because the flavor combo possibilities are endless, and because you can just throw a bunch of ingredients into the blender and expect totally delicious results (almost) every time.
I offer three of my favorite flavor combinations here, two sweet and one savory. The orange, sweet potato pancakes are subtly sweetened with maple syrup and jazzed up with spices. They are hearty, warming, and very kid-friendly. The green ones are flavored with matcha and studded with sesame seeds that add tiny pops of crunch throughout. Matcha is the star in this variation, you’ll be able to taste its lovely, grassy and sweet notes very well. The pink, savory pancakes, combine beet with spices, ginger and greens, making them a great option for those who favor a non-sugary breakfast. I love them with our avocado mayo, but you can employ pretty much any one of your favorite, creamy sauces as an accompaniment. Whichever variation you try, you will love how easily they come together and how forgiving the recipes are in terms of add-ins.
I know by now you’ve noticed the beautiful plates/cups /enamel board in the photos. They are from Revol, a French cookware and bakeware brand with a newly launched website. They sent me a few items of my choice from their Color Lab and Crumple collections, and I was blown away by the quality of their wares. The half-glazed dinner plates are handmade in France and feel incredibly sturdy. They stack up perfectly when you store them in the cupboard and are just a true pleasure to eat off of. I couldn’t resist the pink crumple cups because they are adorable, and because I was missing vessels of that size in my kitchen. They are the ideal size for espresso or cappuccino, if that’s your thing, but I will be using them for my occasional morning ginger-turmeric shots. The little cheese plate/presentation board is hand-dipped in enamel, and will make for a perfect snack board at any get-together. All the pieces are refined and minimal, yet they still feel warm and welcoming, and you can definitely sense the hand in all of them. Everything is oven and dishwasher safe, too, so there’s a perfect balance of beauty and utility.
- 1 medium sweet potato
- coconut oil for roasting sweet potato and frying
- ¾ cup raw buckwheat groats - soaked in purified water overnight
- 1 tablespoon sesame tahini or other nut/seed butter
- 1 cup almond milk or water
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- pinch of sea salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 4 cardamom pods - green shells removed (optional)
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger (optional)
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup, plus more for serving
- 1 tablespoon ground flax or chia seeds (optional)
- 2 tablespoons hemp seeds (optional)
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200° C). Prick the sweet potato with a fork several times and place it on a parchment paper-covered baking tray. Roast for 40-50 minutes or until tender throughout. Let cool, then peel. Alternatively, peel the sweet potato and roughly chop it into cubes. Place onto a parchment paper-covered baking tray and roast for 30-40 minutes, until tender. Mash the sweet potato pieces a bit with a fork when you are measuring out 1 cup of the flesh in the next step.
- Drain the buckwheat over a colander and rinse very well. Combine it with 1 cup sweet potato flesh, sesame tahini, almond milk/water, apple cider vinegar, baking powder, salt, spices and maple syrup in an upright blender, and blend until smooth. Add flax/chia and hemp seeds, if using, pulse to combine.
- Warm ½ tablespoon of coconut oil in a medium non-stick frying pan over medium heat. The pan should be very hot, but not smoking. Pour ¼ cup of the batter per pancake into the pan and spread each one out slightly with the back of a spoon, into roughly a 4-inch pancake. Fry as many pancakes as the pan can hold, I did 3 at a time. Fry until the edges turn dry and bubbly, for at least 2 minutes, flip and cook for 1-2 minutes, until the underside is golden brown. Continue with the rest of the batter, keeping the cooked pancakes covered and warm. You should not need to add any more oil, and you may need to lower the heat a bit once you've fried up your first batch to keep the pan from smoking.
- Enjoy right away with fresh fruit, maple syrup/honey, yogurt and/or cacao nibs. These pancakes are best eaten fresh, but you can also reheat them on low temperature in the oven or toaster, in case you have leftovers.
- ½ cup raw buckwheat groats - soaked in purified water overnight
- ½ cup almond milk or water
- 1 teaspoon matcha powder
- 1-2 tablespoons maple syrup, plus more for serving
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds (I used black)
- Drain the buckwheat over a colander and rinse very well. Combine it with almond milk/water, matcha, and maple syrup in an upright blender, and blend until smooth. Add sesame seeds and pulse on low to mix the seeds into the batter.
- Warm ½ tablespoon of coconut oil in a medium non-stick frying pan over medium heat. The pan should be very hot, but not smoking. Pour ¼ cup of the batter per pancake into the pan. Fry as many pancakes as the pan can hold, I did 3 at a time. Fry until the edges turn dry and bubbly, for at least 2 minutes, flip and cook for 1-2 more minutes, until the underside is golden brown. Continue with the rest of the batter, keeping the cooked pancakes covered and warm. You should not need to add any more oil, and you may need to lower the heat a bit once you've fried up your first batch to keep the pan from smoking.
- Enjoy right away with more sesame seeds, coconut flakes, fresh fruit, maple syrup/honey, yogurt, etc. These pancakes are best eaten fresh, but you can also reheat them on low temperature in the oven or toaster, in case you have leftovers.
- ½ cup raw buckwheat groats - soaked in purified water overnight
- ½ cup whole sorghum groats or more buckwheat/barley/quinoa etc. - soaked in purified water overnight
- ½ small cooked beet
- 1 tablespoon sesame tahini
- ½ cup water
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon tamari or more to taste
- ½-inch piece ginger
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon chia or flax seeds (optional)
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast (optional)
- 1 tablespoon dulse (optional)
- large handful chopped spinach/kale leaves or small handful sliced scallions
- avocado mayo - for serving (optional)
- Drain and rinse the buckwheat and sorghum very well. Combine the grains with the beet, sesame tahini, water, apple cider vinegar, tamari, ginger, baking powder, smoked paprika, cumin, red pepper flakes, and chia/flax, nutritional yeast, dulse, if using, in an upright blender and blend until smooth. Add chopped spinach/kale/scallions and pulse to mix in.
- Warm ½ tablespoon of coconut oil in a medium non-stick frying pan over medium heat. The pan should be very hot, but not smoking. Pour ¼ cup of the batter per pancake into the pan and spread each one out slightly with the back of a spoon, into roughly a 4-inch pancake. Fry as many pancakes as the pan can hold, I did 3 at a time. Fry until the edges turn dry and bubbly, for at least 2 minutes, flip and cook for 1-2 minutes, until the underside is golden brown. Continue with the rest of the batter, keeping the cooked pancakes covered and warm. You should not need to add any more oil, and you may need to lower the heat a bit once you've fried up your first batch to keep the pan from smoking.
- Enjoy right away with avocado mayo/plain yogurt/any sauce of choice and more sliced scallions.
Kestrel says
What a great idea! Creative vegan cooking opens up a whole new world of nutrition and flavors.
Anya says
Thank you Kestrel :)
Jessica says
Each one of these is so creative. I love the vibrant colors. I think my favorite might be the sweet potato but it’s a close draw between all of them.
Anya says
Thank you Jess! I think the sweet potato is my favorite too :)
Jo Blair says
You have some great receipe. Those are creative idea.
Thanks for sharing. It is worthy for trying