Teff Banana Pancakes
I am about to divulge another secret recipe. A sweet, nutritious little breakfast treat. Naturally gluten-free of course! Even those of you not following a gluten-free diet will enjoy these pancakes. They are also egg-free making them perfect for older babies and toddlers. Our 14-month old twins began eating these a few months ago and love them. In fact, if we have leftovers, I will pack them in a to-go container and take them for them to snack on during our outings.
I like to serve them topped with a dollop of raw almond butter and a tall glass of fresh green smoothie on the side. In fact, this is my perfect pre-workout meal. Clean-burning fuel that doesn't weigh you down! Energizing and refreshing!
Here are some important pancake-making tips:
- Follow the recipe. I tested this a number of ways and found this recipe works perfectly. If you add just a tad bit more liquid you may find that your pancakes will stick to your pan. Use a seasoned cast iron skillet for best results!
- Be sure to whisk together the dry ingredients well before adding your liquid ingredients.
- It works best if your milk or water is slightly warm (not hot).
- Heat your skillet to the correct temperature for about 3 to 5 minutes before adding anything to it, not too hot but warm enough to cook them without sticking (I cook mine a notch or two below medium).
- Add a teaspoon or so of oil in between pancakes.
- Most egg-free batters are thicker than pancakes made with eggs so you will need to help your batter spread immediately after pouring it into the hot skillet. Use the back of a spoon or the measuring cup you used to pour your batter into the pan.
For those of you who cannot tolerate bananas (I know it is may sound strange but yes, a banana allergy can be rather common) you can substitute an equal amount of applesauce for the mashed banana.
Ok, so now the recipe. Tom is doing the dishes now and talking to me while I am trying to type. He just got back from an Autism conference in Vancouver yesterday and has a lot of new information to talk about. Very fascinating new research on this subject! Tom also attended the DAN (Defeat Autism Now) conference in San Diego a few months ago and learned a great deal there as well. He will write about the benefits of the GF/CF diet in children with Autism in the coming weeks. But first look forward to yet another teff recipe this week. A scrumptious Yeasted Teff Sandwich Bread -- coming soon! If you are interested in more wholesome, gluten-free teff recipes you can check out my Teff Breakfast Muffins or Chocolate Chip Banana Teff Bread.
Teff Banana Pancakes
Teff, a very small Ethiopian grain, is now cultivated in Idaho. These gluten-free and egg-free pancakes will give you staying power until lunchtime, especially if combined with a green smoothie. For more banana flavor, try chopping up a small banana and fold it into the batter.
To grind flax seeds, I use a coffee grinder that is dedicated for grinding nuts and seeds. You can also use the dry grains container of your Vitamix and grind up a larger batch at once. Ground flaxseeeds can spoil quickly; if you make a larger batch of ground seeds I would suggest storing them in a glass jar in your freezer. Smaller batches can be stored in your refrigerator.
Dry Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- In a small bowl mix together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry and whisk together.
- Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-low heat until hot. Add a little coconut oil.
- Drop batter by the ⅓-cupful onto the hot skillet. Cook for about 90 seconds on the first side. Flip pancake after tiny bubbles form. Cook for another minute on the second side, then transfer to a plate.
- Add about ½ teaspoon coconut oil in between cooking each pancake. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve.
Use this recipe in our Meal Planner
About the Author
Ali Segersten
Alissa Segersten holds a Bachelor's of Science in Nutrition from Bastyr University and a Master’s of Science in Human Nutrition and Functional Medicine from the University of Western States. She is a Functional Nutritionist, the mother of five children, a whole foods cooking instructor, professional recipe developer, and cookbook author. She is passionate about helping others find a diet that will truly nourish them. Alissa is the author of two very popular gluten-free, whole foods cookbooks and guidebooks: The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook and Nourishing Meals. She is also the co-author of The Elimination Diet book. Alissa is the founder and owner of Nourishing Meals®.Nourishing Meals Newsletter
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Comments
Is it possible to get the nutrition info on this recipe? Trying to track my food.
I am someone who can't eat bananas (or apples!) so I substitute mashed avocado. And I buy them frozen so I simply thaw what I need and never wonder about how ripe they may or may not be.
I have made these pancakes many many times and love them! Last week I made a small change that came out well. I used my vitamix to make fresh teff and amaranth flours and then used them equally in the recipe. It came out really yummy and the amaranth adds a great deal of nutrition to this already healthy recipe.
Hi Ali,
I have lost a recipe I got in one of your classes and it is not published in any of your books (I have all of them) nor on this website. I love it and am desperate for it! It was called something like Lemon Scented Almond Cake or ??? Does that ring a bell? I would love to get the recipe again. I serve it with strawberries on top and am hoping to do so again with strawberries coming soon!
Thanks, Joanie
I was recently diagnosed with allergies to soy, wheat, dairy and egg so when my naturopath suggested teff flour, i found these! I made them today and they were AMAZING! i left mine a little gooey in the center and omitted the maple syrup but added chopped banana and cinnamon on top! want to thank you for the wonderful recipe!!!
I just came across your site while looking for Elimination Diet recipes. I made these this morning and am in heaven. Thank you!
These pancakes are amazing!!! Fluffy and perfect consistency. I warmed some coconut oil on a skillet then added chopped super ripe bananas and maple syrup and poured it over the pancakes. Out of the world good!!!! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Do you soak the teff flour over night in all of your teff recipes? I ask because I don't want to ruin the recipe and I also read that teff is low in phytic acid. Perhaps soaking this flour is not necessary?
Thanks for your help!
-Emily
Wow, these were so good!! It will be a go-to recipe for us. It was my first pancake since going gluten free ;)
Best pancakes ever! Now we rarely make any other kind. Thank you for such delicious, healthy recipes! :)
~ Angela
Just wanted to share in case anyone else is in the same boat. I recently discovered that my 2 year old doesn't tolerate coconut, so I made these with grapeseed oil instead. It worked great. These are hands-down the best GF pancakes I have made. Actually, the best pancakes period, with or without gluten.
Have you tried substituting chia seed for flaxseed? Think it will work?
I made these this morning and they were awesome! I used applesauce instead of the banana, added a dash of cinnamon, and used half a cup of canned coconut milk and half a cup of water and they turned out great. Thanks for the recipe!
Would canned pumpkin work in place of the banana in these? My daughter is a huge fan of pumpkin and I'm thinking she might really like these with pumpkin in them. I may try the banana version for myself. I'm unable to eat wheat/gluten, egg, soy, yeast, etc., so this recipe is a lovely breakfast possibility for me! Thank you!
I was just gifted a blend tec food mill and am loving all the flours I can create, including Teff Flour that was otherwise unavailable to me. Looking forward to making these for the morning.
I noticed you use tapioca flour in most of your baking. What does it do and if I omit it what will happen? I am new to GF and when I was buying my pantry list at the health food store they were out of tapioca flour! Is there a replacement for this flour?
Thank you so much for this recipe. I have so many food allergies and these turned out so well, it's great to have a recipe for pancakes I can actually eat! I made pancakes out of half and cooked a few in the waffle maker and they turned out great as well. They remind me of gingerbread - maybe next time I'll add cinnamon and ginger and molasses and go with it! Thanks!
Wow. You certainly did perfect this recipe. I'm not a huge pancake-maker, if fact, this may have been the first time I made pancakes, but after browsing for recipes with which to use teff flour, I came across these pancakes. Lounging at home on a foggy, cold, San Franciscan morning, I just whipped them up and they are perfect. Thank you! I'm going to check out your blog now as I enjoy them with a smile on my face :)
I made these for my daughter yesterday and she gobbled them right up. I don't know if her body liked them however. She's been having some digestive issues since. Hopefully that's just because it's new. Fingers crossed because we all love pancakes and I feel sad when she can't enjoy too.
Sooo yummy. I whipped up a batch for breakfast, after a refreshing run, and then took the extras to work the next day for lunch! I ate mine with a little peanut butter :)
Thank you!
I just made your Teff Pancakes, although I couldn't help myself from making a few substitutions because of the ingredients I had on hand, etc! I used white rice flour instead of tapioca flour, a small egg instead of flax (decreased the water to 1 cup), decreased the coconut oil to 1 T, left out the honey and threw in a Truvia packet, left out the salt as I try to eat low sodium if possible, and added 2 T of mini-chocolate chips. They ROCKED! My kids LOVED them, and so did I! I count calories, and they ended up being about 2 calories per gram. (Using a 1/3 cup scoop that made each pancake about 160-170 calories.) Thank you so much for the recipe. Can't wait to try your teff bread next!
Megan - I use a 10-inch stainless steel skillet with a heavy bottom. The key is to heat the skillet for a while before adding any oil or batter. I never use non-stick. Hope this helps! Let me know how they turn out. :)
Do we need a teflon pan for this? We use stainless steel pans and pancakes stick terribly. I even went so far as to buy a tiny teflon pan and see if I could make better pancakes with it. I certainly did but it took 1 hour to make 8 pancakes!
What kind of pans do you use for these?
An addendum to my previous comment: I've made this recipe now with teff, buckwheat, and sorghum flours, and each batch has come out just as delicious as the previous one. Thank you for coming up with such a versatile and tasty recipe!
These are incredible. I'm so grateful to have a pancake recipe that doesn't require 4 different kinds of flour. I'm sensitive to sweeteners of any kind, so I skipped the tbs. of agave/maple syrup, and used a cup of unsweetened vanilla flavored hempmilk. Delicious.
I have made these several times and really enjoyed them, but I made them this morning with 1/2 pumpkin purree and 1/2 apple butter in place of the banana. Then I added some cinnamon, ground cloves and nutmeg. They were so tasty!
I've been wanting to try making gluten free pancakes for a while now and finally had the perfect opportunity this weekend. These were absolutely incredible....my boyfriend was practically drooling over them. Thanks for the great recipe!!
I have to preface my comment by stating that I am the only GF member of our household, and I generally DON'T like pancakes. However, my husband loves to make them and he and my daughter devour them. They ran out of mix yesterday morning (the one thing in our kitchen that is NOT GF), so I offered to make this recipe since I had all of the ingredients on-hand. Imagine his surprise when I was ranting and raving (along with my 7yo daughter) about how great these were! I even requested that he make them for my birthday breakfast this morning. We did make a double batch this morning - so we have a few leftovers for yummy (and healthy) snacks.
I like the idea of making an even larger batch (3x) and freezing the leftovers (to heat up for breakfast on those "rush" mornings). Ali - do you think these would hold up to that?
Thanks again for making me a pancake lover! (My husband thanks you too)!
I am so glad I found your blog! I made these pancakes this morning for my family and they were quickly eaten up. I see I need to make a 2x batch next time!
We are vegan, gluten-free, and avoid soy products. Your blog and recipes exactly fit our needs. I love that you use teff in so many recipes and very little sugar.
Thank you, thank you for all of the work you put in and all of the recipes (which I plan to begin making)!!!!
I am one of those banana haters...so the tip about applesauce is a good one. In two weeks I go to Esalen in Big Sur to assist Leslie(queen of teff) Cerier in a GF/Veg class for 5 days (yeah!) I think I might even try fresh pumpkin!
I LOVED these! I substituted applesauce for the banana, and sprinkled some blueberries on top of each pancake, but I can't wait to try it with the banana next time. My dad (who eats gluten and all kinds of processed junk) couldn't stop eating them and is now thinking of buying teff flour. Thanks for a fabulous recipe!
I made these pancakes this morning but didn't have any flax seeds and so added 1 large egg without changing any of the other amounts.....they were fabulous!
I've been missing whole grain pancakes since I went off of wheat and these are the perfect replacement. I can see this recipe will become a regular in our house. -Lara
Thank you soo much for mentioning the applesauce instead of bananas!! I'm intolerant to bananas and many many recipes for smoothies, pancakes, puddings, etc use them. I'm gonna try it right away! Thanks again - I found your blog through Nourishing Gourmet and I'm enjoying reading it! Christina
These pancakes are a hit! I love baking with teff flour. I make them for my toddler playgroup and everyone loves them! There are never any leftovers. thanks for another great recipe, Ali.
I just made these wonderful pancakes. They are so good. I was impressed. I used the applesauce alternative in place of the bananas and I used water for the liquid. As I was eating them, I thought, "Hey, these would be good with chopped pecans mixed into the batter!" I'll try that next time. These will be a favorite for sure!! Thanks so much!, Julie
I love your table cloth :)
I got an up-turned nose from Dahlia about these and it's odd since she really likes teff in all forms it seems. We'll try again. I am hoping that she'll take a liking to them soon since I loved them :-). They turned out beautifully though!
April - Thanks for sharing your ideas. Toasting is a great idea to warm them up. I usually just put them into a dry skillet and heat them that way. Thanks! -Ali :)
I made these Banana Teff Pancakes and just added an extra tablespoon of coconut oil and left out the tablespoon of maple, etc. They were still pretty sweet and very yummy. I toasted leftovers and they were equally if not more delicious with the slightly crispy outside. No syrup or butter necessary… That’s a great recipe. In fact I’m going to make them now for an afternoon “teatime” snack.
Shirley - Yes, we love breakfast here, especially pancakes and green smoothies! I hope you get a chance to try them out. And yes I did make potato soup the other night and it is all gone now. I will have to make it again so I can take a photo and then post the recipe on this blog.
Laura - I bet you will love these pancakes - it is a very easy way to use teff flour if you are new to it.
MountainMomma - I am so happy for the feedback and that your whole family loved them, thanks!
Alison- Oh good, I am sure your kids will love them. FYI - my girls turned their noses up the first 2 times I made them but now love them!
Looking forward to trying this one with my kids! I recently bought teff flour in anticipation of making one of your recipes... this will be the first one!
We had breakfast for dinner tonight...these pancakes are soooo incredibly good and very filling as well. My hubby and son gobbled theirs just as quickly as I did.
Thanks for sharing this recipe...can't wait to try other recipes now.
Here's to healthy cooking that tastes good too!
oh! i am so excited abt this pancake recipe!.. gonna try it this coming weekend!.. i have the teff grain.. and the teff flour which has never been opened.. this will be my first recipe with it! thank you thank you!
Another recipe that looks and sounds awesome. The picture is so neat. I like how you got your green smoothie in the post and the pic. ;-) I know your family loves to start their day with your fantastic meals! Ordering teff is definitely on my list. (I am in a rural area so nobody carries it around here.)
BTW, hope your version of potato soup came out wonderfully. So great for cold weather. Our snow will be gone by the end of the week when the temps go way up!
Thanks!
Shirley
Amy - Oh I am so glad you were looking forward to it and I actually got it up here as I said I would. I bet these would be yummy for dinner.
Mama Bee - Glad we can help, Teff is my favorite whole grain!
Anon - Buckwheat flour works very well here too if you have that on hand. I have yet to try it other ways, let us know what you end up doing.
Thanks for the comments! -Ali :)
I don't have teff flour. Can I use a different gluten-free flour?
Yippee! I was just telling someone that I was looking for a good whole grain pancake recipe. I've already got it printed out. Thanks!
I have been looking forward to this recipe since you mentioned it in one of your previous comments. Breakfast for dinner tonight sounds nice doesn't it? I've got some ripe bananas that need to be dealt with anyways. I think my hubby will enjoy these! Thanks!