Perfect fluffy protein pancakes made without bananas, refined sugar, or flour! Made with protein powder, eggs and greek yogurt, these pancakes pack 9 grams of protein and are going to fuel you through your morning!
It's no secret that we love pancakes around here. We have 7 Homemade Pancake Flavors including Fluffy Blueberry Pancakes and Sweet Potato Pancakes. But the most popular pancake recipe on the blog is definitely these perfect, fluffy protein pancakes!
Protein powder has the tendency to make things dry or dense, but after many experiments, I got the right ratios to get perfect protein pancakes that are light and fluffy!
These are really a blank canvas for your favorite toppings. I like topping with extra greek yogurt, fresh blueberries and of course: maple syrup.
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Reasons you'll ♡ this recipe
- the pancakes come out so fluffy and light
- they have no bananas (unlike 99% of the protein pancake recipes out there!)
- with 9 g protein per pancake, they'll fill you right up!
Recipe video
Watch the video below to see exactly how I prepped these protein pancakes. It’s so easy! You can find more of my recipe videos on my YouTube channel, or on Facebook.
Ingredient notes
- Rolled oats- for this recipe, we blend the oats into flour, so quick oats should also work fine. Do not use steel cut oats.
- Protein powder- I recommend vanilla whey protein powder; pea protein powder yielded thicker pancakes that require more milk to thin out, and the texture was not quite as enjoyable.
- Eggs- we have not tested these pancakes with flax eggs; if you give it a try, we'd love to hear how your pancakes turn out!
- Greek yogurt- essential to provide moisture and thickness to the pancakes- use plain
- Maple syrup- for a touch of sweetness; swap for an equal amount of honey or your favorite liquid sweetener.
- Coconut oil- essential to provide moisture to the pancakes; I recommend using refined coconut oil. You can swap for melted butter or olive oil
Step by step directions
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1. Blend oats- Add the oats to a blender, then blend for 30 seconds- 1 minute, until powdery (as pictured above).
TIP- I'm a big fan of this Vitamix!
2. Blend remaining ingredients- add the baking powder, protein powder, eggs, greek yogurt, vanilla extract, melted coconut oil and maple syrup. Place the lid on the blender, and blend until mixture is completely combined and no pockets of oat flour remain.
TIP- if you swap protein powders, you may need to add milk to thin the batter out.
3. Cook pancakes- Grease a nonstick pan and heat over medium heat. Cook ¼ cup portions of pancakes for roughly 2 minutes on the first side and 1 minute on the second.
TIP- Edges of pancakes dry out and pancakes will move around on the pan when shaken when they are ready to flip.
4. Enjoy! Top your pancakes with extra yogurt, fresh fruit and maple syrup.
FAQ
Yes! These pancakes can be kept in the fridge for up to 4 days. Be warned that they are best served fresh and do get a little drier as they sit in the fridge. But smother with greek yogurt and you won't notice. They can also be frozen for up to 1 month.
Yes, but you'll need a completely different recipe. Check out this No Flipping Sheet Pan Pancake.
I tested this with three types of protein powder. I highly recommend using a flavored whey protein powder (like vanilla). I did test with a vegan (pea protein) powder, and the pancakes were very thick... you can give it a try and add some almond or dairy milk to thin them out. The texture was completely different, so I really do recommend sticking to a whey protein powder.
I tested one variation of this recipe with 1 cup white whole wheat flour and they were good! However I haven't tested the final version of this recipe with it so if you try, I'd love to hear how they went for you!
Storage and meal prep
Due to the protein powder in these pancakes, they dry out a touch while storing. Smother with yogurt and syrup to serve and I doubt you'll notice 😉
- fridge- store in an air tight container for up to 4 days
- freezer- separate pancakes with strips of parchment or wax paper. Wrap the bunch loosely in parchment and store in a larger meal prep container or freezer bag. Freeze for up to 1 month.
- reheating- heat in the microwave, or in a frying pan over medium heat. The air fryer may also work!
More pancake recipes
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Perfect Fluffy Protein Pancakes (no banana!)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups rolled oats 135 g; see note 1
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 scoop vanilla whey protein powder 30 g; ½ cup roughly; see note 2
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup plain greek yogurt 120 g
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil melted; swap for butter or olive oil; see note 3
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
Instructions
- Blend oats- Add the oats to a blender, then blend for 30 seconds- 1 minute, until powdery (as pictured above).
- Blend remaining ingredients- add the baking powder, protein powder, eggs, greek yogurt, vanilla extract, melted coconut oil and maple syrup. Place the lid on the blender, and blend until mixture is completely combined and no pockets of oat flour remain.
- Cook pancakes- Grease a nonstick pan and heat over medium heat. Cook ¼ cup portions of pancakes for roughly 2 minutes on the first side and 1 minute on the second.
- Enjoy! Top your pancakes with extra yogurt, fresh fruit and maple syrup.
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Tips:
- fridge- in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days
- freezer- separate pancakes with squares of wax or parchment paper; store in an air tight container or freezer bag for up to 1 month.
Video
Nutrition Information
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Teresa says
These were wonderful! Thank you. I used my chocolate pea protein, added banana and splash of milk to thin it out. My protein itself is quite nasty so I am happy to have found a recipe that makes it enjoyable😊
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Theresa, thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a rating and review! We are so glad to hear that you enjoyed this recipe, and that it worked out well with your chocolate pea protein!
Gage says
Absolutely beautiful! Couldn’t fault these at all! Probably better than normal pancakes and unbelievably filling. Exactly what I needed to start my day off.
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Gage, thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a rating and review! We're so glad that you enjoyed this recipe, I hope it becomes a regular in your home!
Daniela says
Hi there, where do I find the recipe? 🙂
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Daniela, the recipe is above in this blog post. If you click this link, you'll be taken directly to the recipe portion. I hope you enjoy!
Cameron says
Hi Denise, what is the disadvantage of the steel cut oats?
I don't mean to sound stubborn since you specifically indicate not to use them, but I have an entire container of steel cut oats that I never use and was hoping I'd finally be able to make use of them, so I am really curious what I'll be sacrificing.
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Cameron, steel cut oats take longer to cook, and would make for a more dense, course and chewy texture. I'd recommend using up your steel cut oats up with some of these delicious recipes: 5 Minute Overnight Steel Cut Oats, Maple Apple Steel Cut Oats, Creamy Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats. I hope that helps!
Natasha says
Thank you for sharing! I use Max Effort Blueberry Muffin protein powder. Did need to add some milk to thin the batter a bit, no more than 1/4 cup I think. Excellent recipe! I love the texture!
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Natasha, thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a rating and review! We're so glad to hear you loved this recipe!
Katie says
Great protein pancakes, better than any I've made before. Protein-conscious teenage son loved them, ate half the batch. Subbed vanilla Greek yogurt for the plain yogurt and vanilla extract, which worked fine. Last couple were thicker and had to cook a little longer to be thoroughly done. Probably because bigger oat pieces sunk. I don't generally comment on recipes, but finding a protein pancake that my son and I both really like is a major victory.
Denise Bustard says
Hi Katie, I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed! Thanks so much for taking the time to come back and leave a review <3
Angelica Carey says
Hi! I'd like to try these but noticed you have a different recipe for the sheet pan pancakes which includes double the flour, and thus the carb grams is also double per serving. Have you tried using oat flour? Is there a reason why you use two flours for the sheet pan recipe- does it just help make more volumen? I'm just trying to see how I could do a sheet pan version but not double the carbs!
Sonofawhatthe says
Denise- my daughter made these for us this morning. Really really good considering the low guilt factor. I put some peanut butter and fresh blueberries on mine. Delicious!
Casey says
Mine may be missing something maybe we use different protein powders, but I was getting an incredible bitter taste. Do you think these would still work with a bit less baking soda or perhaps I can add cream of Tartar to cut the bitterness. Or is there a better brand of baking soda you recommend. I was using arm and hammer. Besides this, they were definitely airy and reminded me of regular pancakes.
Denise Bustard says
Hi Casey! That's so weird about the bitter taste. There is actually no baking soda in the recipe, though, just baking powder. Were you mixing them up?
Melissa says
Do you mean baking powder or baking soda? It says baking powder in the recipe though..
Denise Bustard says
Good catch! It is baking powder only. Maybe that's the culprit.
summer greenfield says
if you used butter that’s why there was a bitter taste as my partner made this mistake last night.I use olive oil and their so lovely with skinny syrup on top!
Denise Bustard says
I'm so happy to hear you and your daughter enjoyed! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a review 🙂
Eloise says
Denise, I have tried Cottage Cheese Pancakes and now the Fluffly Protein Pancakes, they’re so effective and help me keep full.
Denise Bustard says
Hi Eloise! I'm so happy to hear this! Thanks so much for taking the time to come back and leave a review, that's so helpful 🙂
Jessamyn says
Fabulous recipe IF you add some salt!!
Coral says
Can't believe anyone would recommend these. Dry, stodgy and taste awful.
Denise Bustard says
Hi Coral, sorry to hear you didn't enjoy! I do wonder if you had a technical issue, either with over-measuring something, or in using the wrong type of protein powder. Let me know if you'd like any help in troubleshooting!
Amanda says
Can confirm, these are awful. They came out tasting more like cornbread and I followed the recipe to the letter.
Mon says
Me too, unfortunately. Measured exactly yet it came out like dry, bread. I'm sorry but this was inedible 🙁
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Amanda, I'm sorry to hear you didn't enjoy this recipe. I'd be curious to know what kind of protein powder you were using? We would love to help you troubleshoot the issue as many other readers have enjoyed this recipe.
Gracie says
I have read that protein powder is the culprit. If yours is thicker you might need to thin it out with some milk of any kind. Apparently not enough wet in any recipe with protein powder causes it to dry like no tomorrow and changes the texture.
Anna says
I have made these so many times—they are amazing! Thanks for a great recipe!!
Denise Bustard says
Hi Anna! I'm so happy to hear you love the pancakes! Thanks so much for reporting back <3
Carly says
Hi how many g are in each pancake please?
Matt says
Great looking recipe. I'm going to try but I had two questions. First, can you use steel cut oats or do they have to be rolled oats? Second, does the nutrition info include the tablespoon of maple syrup or is that just for the pancake?
Thanks!
Denise Bustard says
Hi Matt! Yes, you do need to use rolled oats for this recipe. The 1 tablespoon maple syrup actually goes into the pancakes, so it is included in the nutritional information. Hope you enjoy!
Doug Misener says
Hi Denise. I'm going to try these tomorrow. Is the serving size 1 pancake or 4 for the calorie count of 147?
Denise Bustard says
Hi Doug! It's for a single pancake. I hope you enjoy 🙂
j says
I've looked up so many protein pancake recipes and decide to try this one. Glad I did. I made waffles but they were super fluffy and soft and wasn't dry. Thank you for providing this recipe!
Denise Bustard says
Hurray! So so happy to hear you enjoyed. Thank you so much for coming back to leave a review, I really appreciate it!
OLUFUNKE ONIDARE says
This recipe is simply fantastic!
I've tried other recipes but they all gave me flat and hard pancakes
But this recipe (using the Optimum Nutrition vanilla ice cream whey protein) was really fluffy and taste so good that I eat them almost everyday for breakfast!
Thanks so much Denise!
Denise Bustard says
Yay, I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed the pancakes! Thanks so much for reporting back and letting us know which protein powder you used 🙂
Celine says
Best protein pancakes so far !!
I have chocolate vegan protein in my cupboard and want a perfect sunday breakfast before going to the gym ! So simple to make ! Will definitly make these again, thanks a million !
Denise Bustard says
Woo hoo! Well, you just made my day 😉 So happy to hear they worked well for you with chocolate vegan protein, Celine, thank you for reporting back 🙂
Kim says
These were great, I actually did use pea protein because that’s all I had but I added almond milk until the batter thinned out and they turned out great.
Denise Bustard says
Hi Kim! I'm so happy to hear that thinning the batter out worked well for you with the pea protein powder. Thanks so much for reporting back!
Amber says
I need to eat grain-free, so I subbed blanched almond flour for the oats, in the same amount. I am happy to report they came out fantastic! This is my favorite low carb pancake I have tried. In case anyone is wondering, I used Nature's Eats brand almond flour (i bought mine at Walmart in the US) and Designer Whey brand vanilla protein powder (that was what I had on hand). I'm so excited to be able to eat pancakes again!
Amber says
I forgot to mention that I left out the Maple Syrup and replaced it with low carb sweetener to make it more low carb.
Denise Bustard says
Hi Amber! Wow, I'm really surprised to hear that almond flour worked in this recipe, as I've had numerous almond flour disasters with pancakes this year 😉 Thanks for sharing, and thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a review!
Amber says
Denise, I wanted to let you know I found a small error in your recipe. For the whey protein 30g comes out to be a little more than a quarter cup, not a half cup. I also wanted to let you know that my low carb version worked great for making waffles too!
Denise Bustard says
Hi Amber, thank you for letting me know. I'm wondering if there are differences between brands? Anyway I will double check the weight today.
Nancy says
These came out delicious! The only substitution I had to do was chocolate whey protein, I didn’t have vanilla. Thank you so much for sharing!
Denise Bustard says
Hi Nancy! I'm so happy you enjoyed the pancakes! That's great to hear that chocolate whey powder works as well. I'll have to try it! Thanks so much for reporting back.