Whole Wheat Banana Pancakes
These banana pancakes are so fluffy, no one will guess they're made with whole wheat flour! This whole wheat banana pancake recipe is so easy to make.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 30, 2024
Let’s make banana pancakes! This banana pancake recipe yields gloriously fluffy pancakes despite being made with 100 percent whole wheat flour.
These whole-grain pancakes have more substance than your average pancake, which means they can actually fuel you until lunchtime. I like to dollop them with peanut butter for extra fiber and protein.
I adapted these pancakes from the banana coconut pancakes in Love Real Food (page 17). If you haven’t tried those yet, you’ve been missing out! These are more classic banana pancakes, and I managed to incorporate a little more mashed banana for maximum banana flavor. For an even easier option, try my 3-Ingredient Banana Pancakes.
These banana pancakes are perfect for lazy weekends and reheat well for busy weekday breakfasts. You can also double the batch and freeze extras for later. They definitely brighten up cold gray mornings, which we’ve been having lately.
Banana Pancake Tips
Make these pancakes with the random leftover bananas on the counter. Overripe bananas are perfect!
Always make pancakes by hand (not with an electric mixer). Over-mixing the batter yields rubbery pancakes. Simply combine the wet and dry ingredients as instructed. Stir them together with a big spoon until no big powdery lumps remain.
Griddles are great because you can make more pancakes at once. Electric griddles are nice because the temperature stays constant.
If you’re cooking on the stovetop, you may need to dial back the heat over time. Your temperature is too high if the pancakes are golden on the outside but still raw on the inside.
Lightly coat your griddle or skillet with butter or coconut oil in between batches. Be sure to wipe off the excess butter/oil with a paper towel so it doesn’t burn. (There’s actually too much butter in the skillet in the photo below. Oops.)
The pancakes are ready to flip when about 1/2-inch of the perimeter has turned from glossy to matte. It’s better to wait a little too long to be safe than to end up with a doughy mess.
Watch How to Make Whole Wheat Banana Pancakes
Banana Pancake Variations
You can make these pancakes as-is (my favorite) or gussy them up. Options include:
After stirring together the wet and dry ingredients, you can gently fold in fresh blueberries or chopped strawberries (up to 1 cup) or chocolate chips (up to 1/2 cup).
Top your pancakes with sliced bananas, homemade fruit compote, almond butter, peanut butter, pecan butter or whipped cream!
More Wholesome Pancakes to Try
Here are more whole-grain favorites:
- Whole Wheat Pumpkin Pancakes or Pumpkin Oat Pancakes
- Whole Wheat Pancakes or bulk Whole Wheat Pancake Mix
- Whole Wheat Gingerbread Pancakes
- Banana Oat Pancakes
- Blender Oatmeal Pancakes
Please let me know how these pancakes turn out in the comments. I hope these become a favorite weekend recipe for you, too.
Whole Wheat Banana Pancakes
These banana pancakes are so fluffy, no one will guess they’re made with whole wheat flour! Top these whole wheat pancakes with peanut butter and sliced bananas for extra protein and fiber. Recipe yields 6 to 7 pancakes (enough for 2 to 3 people); double the amounts for a family or more leftovers.
Ingredients
- 1 cup white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder (not baking soda!)
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ⅔ cup milk of choice*
- ½ cup mashed ripe banana (from about 1 large banana), plus another banana for slicing on top
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey, plus more for serving
- 2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter or coconut oil
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Optional toppings: sliced banana, maple syrup, peanut butter or almond butter
Instructions
- If you’re using an electric skillet, preheat it to 350 degrees Fahrenheit now. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Whisk to blend.
- In a smaller bowl, combine the milk, mashed banana, egg, maple syrup, butter and vanilla. Whisk until blended. Pour the liquid mixture into the flour mixture and mix just until combined.
- If you are not using an electric skillet, heat a heavy cast iron skillet or nonstick griddle over medium-low heat. You’re ready to start cooking pancakes once a drop of water sizzles on contact with the hot surface. If necessary, lightly oil the cooking surface with additional butter or coconut oil, carefully wiping up excess with a paper towel (nonstick surfaces likely won’t require any oil).
- Using a ⅓-cup measuring cup, scoop the batter onto the hot skillet, leaving a couple of inches around each pancake for expansion. Cook until small bubbles form on the surface of the pancakes, 2 to 3 minutes (you’ll know it’s ready to flip when about ½-inch of the perimeter is matte instead of glossy).
- Flip the pancakes, then cook until lightly golden on both sides, 1 to 2 minutes more. Repeat the process with the remaining batter, adding more butter or oil and adjusting the heat as necessary.
- Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200 degree Fahrenheit oven. If desired, top individual servings with a spread of peanut or almond butter and/or sliced bananas, and serve with more maple syrup or honey on the side.
- Leftover pancakes can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or frozen for up to 3 months. To reheat, stack leftover pancakes and wrap them in a paper towel before gently reheating in the microwave.
Notes
*Milk options: This recipe will work with cow’s milk, nut milk (almond milk, cashew milk, macadamia milk), soy milk or coconut milk.
Make it dairy free: Use non-dairy milk (see list above for a suitable alternative) and coconut oil instead of butter.
Make it vegan: See above, omit the egg, and use maple syrup instead of honey.
Make it egg free: Simply omit the egg!
Make it gluten free: Use gluten-free all-purpose flour blend instead of whole wheat flour.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
https://sooka.info/whole-wheat-banana-pancakes-recipe%3C/p%3E
These wer delicious!
Could I use this same exact recipes for zucchini pancakes ?
I don’t know if it will work. You could try it, but adding zucchini can change it as it adds additional moisture.
Great simple recipe. If I was to make them again, I wouldn’t put maple syrup in the pancakes as they are sweet enough with banana and a bit of maple syrup on top.
I keep mashed up ripe bananas in my freezer to use for smoothies and other recipes. I came across your whole wheat banana pancake recipe this morning and decided to give it a try. Let me tell you….this is the best pancake recipe I have ever made! The flavor is so delicious and the pancakes are nice and thick and cook up beautifully. I used Almond Milk because I had it on hand and added a 1/2 tsp. of almond extract along with the vanilla simply because I love anything almond. I could have eaten the whole batch, but I used restraint and only had two! I topped mine with blueberries and a drizzle of maple syrup. Thank you for sharing a super recipe! This one is going in my file for repeat performances!!
I love it! Thank you for sharing, Joy.
Kate – is white whole wheat pastry flour the same as white whole wheat flour? Just got your cookbook! Love it.
Hi Jennifer! Great question. They are actually different. Pastry flour is finer.
Well these were a win! God has been dealing with me about changing our eating habits and I wanted a healthy breakfast that my kids would love. They were so easy to make. I’m thrilled! Thanks so much!
I can’t stop making these!! They’re super easy, delicious and healthy (i don’t use honey/maple syrup, the bananas often add adequate sweetness!)
These were really good! I loved how fluffy and light they were. I’m trying to go added-sugar-free so I left out the honey. Between the banana in them and banana sliced on top of them, they were plenty sweet enough. I’ll be making these again!
These are so delicious! The banana adds a really nice sweetness. Have you ever tried whole wheat crepes before? I would love to add something like that to my go-to health breakfast recipes!
Thanks, Rebecca! I have a crepe recipe here, actually! I’ve been meaning to revisit it. I think you could sub whole wheat flour for the spelt, no problem.
These pancakes are AWESOME! I’ve made them so many times now, basically whenever I have overripe bananas nobody wants to eat. I made another batch today and I’m going to try freezing them so I have pancakes available for a quick breakfast option.
Hi, do you think these would work with frozen bananas/fruit? We are staying at home and all our fruits and veggies are frozen!
Yes! Thaw first and then follow as directed. I hope that helps!
This also happened to me (without the vomiting) – we could still taste the baking powder
Hey!! It turned out soft and fluffy!!! But a little bitter.. Can you tell me why??
Hi Priya! Did you use aluminum free baking powder? Was your baking powder fresh? Or possibly, did you forget the salt?
I love you and love your recipes and there isn’t one thing I think of and can’t find on your page. I’ve practically made every salad and soup on your blog..you are my Julia ❤️❤️
These are super fluffy and delicious! I tripled the recipe to freeze for breakfasts before work.
I’m happy you love them, Rebekah!
Hi can I replace the oil with applesauce, I’m plant base and don’t use oil.
Thx
Nikki
Do you have a suggestion to substitute instead of oils or butter?
Hi April, this really needs the oil, sorry! I now sometimes others have tried applesauce in my bread recipes, but I don’t think that would work as well here.
These are by far my favorite pancakes! So fluffy and perfect topped with peanut butter and extra banana slices! Thanks for another great recipe!
I tried this recipe on a Saturday. I was out of ideas and thought of pancakes. Didn’t want to use all-purpose flour :-/. Searched google and found this. Bang! I had all the ingredients :-) They turned out amazing. My little 6YO said ” Mom this is heaven ;-)” That made my day. Thank you so much for sharing.
These were absolutely delicious! So fluffy and easy to make! Topped them with banana and peanut butter :) Might try adding walnuts next time to the batter too
Fluffy, flavorful, and simple to make. My two year old loves them!! I just have to make another batch! Thanks for the amazing recipes. You have a gift!
You’re sweet, Erica! I’m glad you love them and are excited to make them again.
So tasty and batter was so fluffy! Yum! Toddler approved as well!
Thanks for this awesome recipe. It turned out super fluffy & totally delicious!!
I just made these for my partner’s birthday breakfast- he loved them! I realized I didn’t quite have 1/2 cup banana, and didn’t have any applesauce or the usual substitutions, so just added a little plain yogurt. They were very soft in the middle but still absolutely delicious and we gobbled them up.
Thanks for another awesome recipe!
I’m happy you loved them, Susan! Thank you for sharing.
Made these this morning for a nice Saturday breakfast! Perfect because I only had one banana. Love this recipe and making homemade pancakes. Will have to try adding chocolate chips next time.
Great recipe! My toddler and husband enjoyed it a lot! I’m always looking for new recipes and healthy ones especially for my little one. I do like simple and easy and this is easy. Thank you!
Just awesomely perfect ❤️
My favourite pancake recipe. They are fluffy, light, perfectly sweetened, and the best texture. We’ve used almond milk, cows milk, coconut milk without a change in the final pancake. We add blueberries and it’s so so good :) Thank you, Kate!!
We had them twice this week and I made them with whole wheat flour. They were gobbled up by everyone! They were delicious, but also light too. I will definitely make them again.
Gooey mess. I followed the recipe and it was a wet mess?
Hi Leslie, I’m sorry to hear that. How did you measure your flour? I wonder if there was too much flour. See how to measure flour in this post.
Hi, thank you for sharing this recipe. Mine turned out a bit bitter – used honey instead of maple syrup. I couldn’t use Vanilla as I ran out of it. What else could have been the cause of the pancake tasting a bit bitter? Thank you
Hi! Adding vanilla rounds out the flavor. Did you add any salt?
Hi Kate, Thanks much for clarifying. I believe the label doesn’t explicitly mention it’s aluminium free. Will get one the next time around and try it co otherwise it was super fluffy and tasty.
Best pancakes recipe I have followed, I’ve had trouble finding a healthy recipe that I really like and it’s not complicated, I got to new recipes almost every time I make pancakes, the main trouble is the pancakes tasting too doughy/heavy. Not with this one though, very yummy and light. I added blueberries and some nuts, my mouth waters just thinking about it. Definitely doing this recipe again and again haha
Hi Kate, the pancakes left a slight bitter taste in the end. What could have gone wrong please?
Hi Divya, I’m sorry to hear that! Did you add the recommended salt to the recipe? Also, was your baking powder on the fresh side and aluminum free? Let me know!
I made these for as a breakfast option for my toddler. I obviously had to taste test (to make sure they were safe). Delicious! I used whole wheat flour and maple syrup. I plan to freezer them for easy breakfasts. Thank you for sharing!
Hey Kate, can I freeze this batter?
Unfortunately the batter doesn’t freeze well. You can freeze the made pancakes!
Very tasty, but may try 50/50 whole wheat and white flour. So filling!
Delicious!! I topped my first one with blueberries, bananas, and chopped walnuts…..will add peanut butter to the next one! Great texture. Thanks!!
Oh wow, these look delicious and the recipe it not difficult!! Just printed your recipe, love pancakes!! thank you
Michael
Flavoursome, fluffy, my young family demolished them. Thank you
can I add coco powder in recipe. If yes than how much
I made these for a Father’s Day brunch and made them dairy free with almond milk and vegan butter. I used half whole wheat flour, half all purpose from a local mill. I also added some dark chocolate chunks. They turned out so delicious and fluffy! We could have never guessed they were dairy free. Thanks for another great recipe!
This is a cracker of a recipe Kate!
I have tried many other recipes, but this one (with a tiny tweak of more milk and added chocolate chips) gave me pancakes that were fluffy and just gorgeous! Thank you for making my Sunday special. I’m sure there will be many more C+K Banana Pancake days to come :)
Best banana pancakes ever! Remind me of breakfast at a favorite small restaurant in Costa Rica. I added some chopped pecans and omitted the cinnamon. Fabulous and indeed, gloriously fluffy!
I haven’t made this yet but is TBD of baking powder a lot? Please correct me
Hi! 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder and ½ teaspoon baking soda, but tablespoon.
Got it. Thanks Kate. You just simplified it for us :) I thought it’s a typo. Damn me
So good! Will make these again :)
Would oat flour work with this?
Hi Tony! I would follow my oat flour tips. Or check out my oat pancakes
It turned out great… Thank you
This is my go to recipe when I have bananas to use up! I often make a batch after my toddler goes to bed, then freeze them for easy breakfast throughout the week. Delicious!
Hi Kate, ive made this recipe twice now-using wholemeal SR flour. These are tasty, fluffy, & my little ones & hubby bog right in. Thank you
Made pancakes for the first time ever in my life. These turned out amazing! I used coconut milk and added a bit of my favorite chia and flax seeds! Loved it.