These healthy grain free and Paleo Pumpkin Pancakes are packed with warm pumpkin spice and sweetened with pure maple syrup. They’re also nut free, gluten free, dairy free. Paleo Pumpkin Pancakes are kid friendly, super soft and fluffy!
This recipe marks the first time I’ve made pumpkin pancakes in my entire life, Paleo or not. Embarrassing, really, but in the past I just wasn’t all that into pancakes in general. Mostly because they always made my stomach feel horrible and I’d pay the price afterwards.
It’s not surprising that frying white flour in vegetable oil and coating it in sugar made my body scream in agony. And, I have to say, it took me a long time to get over my pancake trauma and embrace Paleo pancakes.
For a while, I made them for my family for a while but never had more than a few bites myself thinking they still wouldn’t sit right. Then, about two years ago, I started making my Maple Raisin Acorn Squash ones to sort of “break through” my pancake block.
I really like them, however, I’ll be the first to admit that they’re more “squash” than “pancake”, so I’m not sure they totally count. It wasn’t until last fall, when I made my apple pie pancakes that I started getting more comfy with the idea of pancakes!
Anyway, I’ve slowly but surely moved through my pancake issues, and these pumpkin pancakes are the perfect dive into fall-themed pancakes this year!
What’s in these Paleo Pumpkin Pancakes
These pancakes are full of flavor, but are mostly made with ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry. You’ll need:
Pumpkin puree
Coconut milk
Eggs
Maple Syrup
Vanilla extract
Coconut flour
Tapioca flour
Pumpkin pie spice
Cinnamon
Baking soda
Salt
Coconut oil
The batter comes together quickly and when you smell the fall spices you’ll be eager to get these pancakes cooked!
How to Make Paleo Pumpkin Pancake Batter
- The first thing you’ll need to do is whisk together the wet ingredients. This includes the pumpkin puree, coconut milk, eggs, maple syrup, and vanilla.
- Next, whisk together the dry ingredients (coconut & tapioca flours, spices, baking soda, salt) in a separate bowl.
- Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Nobody wants a pancake with no fluff, so adding the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients helps to incorporate the baking soda evenly, which will help the pancakes rise.
Tips for Cooking Pancakes
- Start with a nonstick griddle or frying pan over medium heat. If your heat is too high, your pancakes will cook faster on the outside, leaving the insides uncooked.
- Grease your pan well with coconut oil. This will ensure that you can easily flip your paleo pancakes without any of the batter sticking.
- Scoop about 1/4 cup of the batter for each pancake. You should aim for about 1/2 inch thickness for fluffy pancakes.
- Add a little more coconut oil to the pan between batches if the pancakes start to stick. Don’t be afraid to adjust the heat a little if needed.
Somehow I decided to make the entire recipe, big enough for 6 people, when I was home alone and certainly wound up eating my fair share of them for second breakfast/lunch. Or maybe solo brunch? Whatever it was, it was definitely worth it, and, I think I might be totally over over my pancake problems now.
Which means that these probably won’t be the last of my fall pancakes. No promises, since I’m trying to reign in my recipe impulsivity as you might remember. But then the wheels in my brain turn and snickerdoodle pancakes start to sound like a good idea right now.
I have to stop that! Back to the Paleo pumpkin pancakes! These pancakes use my favorite paleo pancake flour blend – coconut and tapioca – which also gives you the option of making them nut free if you don’t add the pecans on top like I did.
How to serve Paleo Pumpkin Pancakes
These pancakes are so full of flavor that you could honestly eat them as they are. But if you want to dress them up a little, here are some ideas:
-Spread them with butter
-Sprinkle them with more chopped nuts
-Drizzle with maple syrup or honey
No matter how your serve them, these Paleo pumpkin pancakes are soft and fluffy, filling, packed with fiber, and healthy fats, and easy to make!
Can I save leftover pancakes?
Certainly! They save pretty well in the refrigerator, as I found since I made that whole big batch for no one but myself. Keep them in an airtight container and they’ll be good for another 2-3 more days. You could even freeze them for up to 3 months if you want.
Adam wound up taking them to work the next day and said they were awesome the day after!
What are we waiting for? – Let’s make some Paleo Pumpkin Pancakes!
Grain free and Paleo Pumpkin Pancakes
Paleo Pumpkin Pancakes
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup organic pumpkin puree canned or homemade
- 2/3 cup full fat canned coconut milk*
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup plus more for serving if desired
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup + 3 tablespoons coconut flour
- 1/4 cup tapioca flour
- 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking soda
- pinch salt
- coconut oil to coat skillet
- Optional chopped pecans for topping
Instructions
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In a large measuring cup or mixing bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, coconut milk, eggs, maple syrup and vanilla
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In a separate bowl, combine the coconut flour, tapioca flour, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.
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Blend the dry mixture into the wet until fully combined - the batter with be very thick due to the dense coconut flour
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Heat a non stick griddle or frying pan to med heat** and grease well with coconut oil. With a ladle or large spoon, scoop about 1/4 of batter for each pancake and gently spread out each one to about 1/2 inch thickness***
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Cook over med-low to med heat until the first side is deep golden brown, flip and cook the second side the same.
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Repeat, cooking the pancakes in batches until all the batter is used up, making sure to coat with coconut oil between batches and adjusting the heat if necessary. I find that paleo pancakes cook best over medium low heat on my stove.
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Serve right away, topped with chopped pecans, Kerrygold butter (my favorite!) and more maple syrup if desired. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
*Blend the coconut milk together by whisking or in a blender before adding to the recipe
**Depending on your stove, med-low heat might be preferable to avoid burning and allow the middle of the pancakes to cook through
***Since the batter is thick, you will have to form the circular, flat shape in the pan
Nutrition
Want more Paleo pumpkin recipes? Try one of these!
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I have made a lot of attempts at paleo/GF pancakes and usually they end up tasting like eggs with flavorings. The first few I made had a tangible eggy flavor, but not nearly as much as the thousand other recipes I’ve tried (I’m looking at you “mix bananas with eggs and baking soda and cook”): however, by the third batch I figured out that I needed to put the pan on as low a setting as it goes, cover the pan until they are almost dry on the top, then flip. This helped them cook through more evenly and reduced the egg flavor a lot. Mine came out more like gingerbread (I don’t have pumpkin pie spice pre-mixed, I add my own ratios of spices and went heavy on the ginger) but definitely no complaint there, super tasty. I also added a 1/4 C of almond flour to my recipe for added texture. I omitted chocolate chips (blasphemy, I know) because the chocolate sort of clashed with the savory-ness of the egg and made them weird. I will definitely be making these again, probably with some walnuts instead of chocolate chips. I also subbed coconut milk for almond milk in a carton and it worked just fine.
My husband and I loved these but my 9 yr old refuses to eat them! I’m thinking he just doesn’t love pumpkin!
Hi,
Is there a way to print the recipe without printing other explanations?
Thanks
Just saw the print icon 🙂
Well that was a disaster. I was so excited about these but unlike the photos, mine would not stick together. I ended up with pumpkin pancake mush. I was so sad! I’m used to paleo but it was my first time to use tapioca and coconut flour. Do the rest of you know a secret that you don’t need to write in recipes?
Actually wait, don’t write me off yet as a terrible cook. I just noticed I misread the coconut milk amount. Take away my last comment and rating. I’ve binned this batch but I will try again this weekend when I get more pumpkin. Stay tuned!
Is it two pancakes per serving?
Would almond milk work as a sub for coconut milk?
Have you tried putting all the batter in a baking pan and baking them? I only make baked pancakes now (so much less work), I’m hoping this recipe would work that way as well?
These turned out SO good once I got through the first (bad) pancake! It’s always the test pancake! I realized the secret was to really spread out the pancake batter once on the pan because it’s pretty thick and takes a while to cook through. Also, covering it with a lid helped cook it faster too! Delicious!
This recipe did not translate even with the note of adding extra coconut flour. I reverted to a boxed paleo mix since these were a waste. It needs to be workshopped more in my opinion. I normally love your recipes.