Gluten Free Blueberry Protein Pancakes
Gluten free Blueberry Protein Pancakes
Fluffy American-style pancakes, bulked up with a scoop of protein powder and topped with a thick blueberry compote for a filling breakfast that’s easy on the carbs.
PREP TIME: 5 MINS
COOK TIME: 20 MINS
TOTAL TIME: 25 MINS
Until recently, I was never particularly creative and rarely made much effort with cooking breakfast.
Any excuse to go out for a brunch, sure. But actually making time to destroy my own kitchen and create heaps of washing up? Not so much.
Which is why starting this blog has been a good excuse to start making more exciting food – just for “research” though. Yup. That’s my rationale, and I’m sticking to it.
How to make healthier pancakes
For me, deciding on American-style pancake toppings will always come down to two options:
- Bacon & maple syrup
- Blueberry compote with cream
This time though, I wanted to make a breakfast with a big protein boost while keeping the carbohydrate and sugar content minimal. So while this recipe does still use a spoon of flour, the bulk of the mix is protein powder, egg and dairy free milk.
If that’s not your jam and you’d prefer to go the full-flour-monty, try out my GF American-style bacon pancakes instead. You can always substitute the bacon for the blueberry topping instead.
Or crack open the Nutella jar and load up these low-carb coconut-flour raspberry pancakes. They’re so squidgy and fluffy!
Substituting flour for protein powder
Since going dairy free, I’ve been using egg white powder as an occasional protein supplement in shakes and sprinkled over porridge. However, as a bulking agent in recipes like this, it tends to make the cooked mix go very thick and stodgy, which isn’t the most pleasant of textures.
If you’re lactose intolerant but can otherwise eat dairy, I would recommend getting your hands on some whey isolate powder, which doesn’t cause any intolerance issues in most people. Otherwise, mixed vegan powders which have a neutral flavour such as vanilla work well.
How to reduce the sugar content
The blueberry topping is naturally very low in sugar. If you’ve adjusted to not sweetening any of your food, you can get away with cooking the blueberries in some water with no added sugar. However, for those of us feeling less hard-core, I sweetened the sauce with a teaspoon of honey.
How to make a thick compote
Previously, I’ve made the blueberry sauce just by simmering the fruit in a tiny bit of water. This still makes a really nice topping, but it’s a lot thinner and more watery than I would otherwise have liked.
To make a really thick, jammy consistency, I added some glucomannan powder. This is a great ingredient to keep in the cupboard, as it instantly reacts with water to form a thick gel.
It also has almost zero calories, which makes it great for thickening up any sauce or even batter without having to adding resort to more flour.
You can buy reasonably priced glucomannan powder online from various places, such as Amazon, Bulk Powders or Holland & Barrett.
Alternative thickeners
Other thickeners can also help with that jam-like texture, such as a teaspoon corn starch. I wouldn’t recommend adding too much flour-like products as they do affect the taste.
Gluten free blueberry protein pancakes
Equipment
- 2 small 6-inch saucepans
- Mixing bowl
- Whisk
Ingredients
Pancake Batter
- 45 g (½ cup) buckwheat flour
- 1 scoop (vegan) protein powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 medium egg
- 100 ml (just under ½ cup) dairy-free milk, e.g. soya or coconut
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tsp vegan butter
Blueberry compote
- 150 g blueberries
- dash water
- 1-2 tsp honey (or maple syrup / fine granulated sugar)
- 1 tsp glucomannan powder
Instructions
To make the pancakes
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour, protein powder and baking powder
- Make a well and crack the egg into it, then add the vanilla extract and whisk together, whilst gradually adding the milk to make a thick batter
- On a medium-high heat, melt the butter in two small frying pans. Pour a generous amount of batter so that it fills each pan. (If using one large pan, pour the mix into two round cookie-cutters. Remove the cutters after 60 seconds once the mix is mostly set)
- Cook over a medium heat for about 2-3 minutes, or until the top has started to bubble and solidify. Using a pliable spatula, flip the pancakes over to the other side and continue cooking for another 2-3 minutes, until golden brown
- Once cooked, transfer the pancakes to a warm plate and cover with tin foil. Repeat the process to cook the rest of the batter
For the blueberry compote
- Tip the blueberries into a small saucepan and pour in a small amount of water to just cover the surface of the pan
- Cook over a medium heat for about 10 minutes, giving it an occasional stir with a wooden spoon
- Once most of the blueberries have broken down, stir in the honey and glucomannan powder and turn off the heat. Leave to stand for a minute until a thick jammy mixture has formed, then spoon over the pancakes to serve
Check out some of my other gluten-free, dairy-free breakfast ideas!
