Banana Oat Pancakes
This fluffy banana oat pancake recipe is made with 100% oat flour, so it's gluten free. These pancakes are a delicious, healthy and easy-to-make breakfast.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 30, 2024
Good morning! I’m sitting cross-legged on my hotel bed in San Antonio, next to a big window overlooking the Tower of Americas. It’s so cloudy I can barely see the top of it. The fog in my head is slowly lifting as I sip on my cup of coffee, and I just scraped the last bits of my “all natural, super premium” (what does that mean?) instant oatmeal off the sides of its disposable cup with a plastic fork. It’s not bad.
That oatmeal and these photos of fluffy banana pancakes take me back to last Saturday, when I took my time making breakfast, with Cookie by my feet. Cookie loves bananas almost as much as she loves cheese, did you know that? I couldn’t resist making her twirl around on her back feet for bites of banana. Sometimes I think she escaped from the circus, that dog.
These banana pancakes are a little more time consuming than the average from-scratch pancakes, but my oh my, was my work rewarded on my lazy Saturday morning. After making, photographing and fending the cakes from Cookie, I sat down and slid the side of my grandmother’s old fork through three layers of the most creamy, fluffy, heavenly sweet pancakes I have ever tasted.
To my pleasant surprise, I realized that the pancakes inherited oatmeal’s creamy texture thanks to the oat flour, and that the bananas contributed such a lovely, natural sweetness that they hardly needed any syrup. I topped my banana pancakes with sliced banana, toasted coconut flakes and a drizzle of maple syrup, but peanut butter or coconut butter would be a natural fit as well.
So reward yourself after a hard week of work with these banana pancakes while you sip on some freshly brewed coffee from your own mug. You deserve it!
Gluten-Free Banana Oat Pancakes
These fluffy banana oat pancakes are a deliciously healthy, naturally sweetened breakfast for lazy mornings. The recipe is made with 100% oat flour instead of wheat flour, so it’s gluten free, as well as dairy free. Recipe yields about 8 pancakes.
Ingredients
- 1 cup oat flour*
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- Scant 1 ¼ cup mashed bananas (about 3 small bananas, mashed, or 9.5 ounces)
- 2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter or coconut oil, plus more for cooking
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 eggs
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the oat flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.
- In a small mixing bowl, stir together the mashed bananas, melted butter, maple syrup, and lemon juice. Add the eggs and whisk until blended. (If your butter or oil goes back to its solid state like mine did at this point, just warm the mixture for short 15-second bursts in the microwave, stirring between each, until it is melted again.)
- Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. With a big spoon, stir just until the dry ingredients are thoroughly moistened. Do not overmix!
- Let the batter rest for 10 minutes to give it time to thicken. If you’re using an electric griddle, heat it to 350 degrees Fahrenheit now. Otherwise, you can wait a few minutes before heating your skillet.
- Warm a large skillet (stainless steel or nonstick) 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 oil or butter, carefully wiping up excess with a paper towel (nonstick surfaces likely won’t require any oil).
- Scoop ¼ cup batter onto the hot skillet, leaving a couple of inches around the pancake for expansion. Cook until small bubbles form on the surface of the pancake and the underside is golden, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Flip the pancake, then cook until lightly golden on both sides, 1 to 2 more minutes. Repeat the process with the remaining batter, adding more butter and dialing down the heat if the pancakes turn dark on the outside before they’re cooked through on the inside.
- Serve immediately or keep warm in a 200 degree Fahrenheit oven. Leftover pancakes can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 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
Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking.
Make it gluten free: These pancakes are gluten-free, so long as you used certified gluten-free oat flour or certified gluten-free old-fashioned oats.
*How to make your own oat flour: To make oat flour out of old-fashioned oats, simply pour one cup of oats into a food processor and process until it looks like fine sand. See pictures here.
Preparation tips: This whole grain batter is thicker than most, so it’s more difficult to gauge when the pancakes are ready to flip. I learned that it’s easier to go by the timer: set it for 2 minutes for the first side, then gently check underneath to see if it’s golden (if not, wait up to 1 more minute). Flip and wait another 90 seconds for the other side to finish. The time will vary depending on your temperature setting and subsequent pancakes will cook more quickly, but that’s about the time it should take.
Freeze it: These pancakes freeze well. (I’ve never met a pancake that doesn’t.) Commenter Megan had good luck making the batter the night before, refrigerating it overnight, and proceeding with the recipe the next morning (add a splash of milk to thin out the batter).
Make it dairy free: Use coconut oil instead of butter.
Make it egg free: Replace the eggs with flax eggs (I’ve heard this works well from other commenters, but haven’t had a chance to try myself).
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.
I make these for my 18 month old all the time! He LOVES them. So easy to freeze and then pop into the toaster for the morning. A few months ago I was making a batch and had some extra ground up pecan from another recipe so I just threw it in, delicious!!!
Perfect! I hope these have made your mornings a bit easier. :)
My teenage boys often have several of their friends spend friday nights over and I end up feeding 8-10 18 year olds breakfast. A couple of the boys are gluten free, and I struggle to find something easy and delicious to feed them. I can finally stop my search! These turned out so great, and the boys even asked if there was any way I could make a few more for them to take home. The batter was slightly thick, so I added buttermilk to thin it and it was perfect. I also added a touch more cinnamon as I love a little extra cinnamon flavor. THANK YOU for this delicious recipe!
I’m so glad you found this recipe, Theresa! I hope it makes feeding your weekend crowd a little bit easier. :)
These Banana pancakes were AWESOME! I really didn’t need syrup either! I’m making them again for dinner tonight! :) Thank you! I have found that my blender makes a quick work of the oats – faster than my food processor. It could be because I’m a food processor newbie lol. Anyway, Thanks again!
A blender works, too! Thanks, PG. I’m so glad you like them.
I made these for my grandson this morning. Absolutely delicious! Including the volume of mashed banana in the recipe was helpful. The bananas I used were small and it took 5 to make up the volume. I will be making some to keep in the freezer. Handy to pop in the toaster as needed.
That’s great! Thank you for sharing, Mary.
These are amazing! Mine looked like your pictures (very satisfying when that happens) and they were really easy to make. The flavor is outstanding – I was actually eating them without maple syrup because they’re so tasty. Of course they’re even better with maple syrup.
I made these on my husband’s birthday. He’s not eating DF and GF, and we both agreed these pancakes stand up to all other recipes!
Wow! Such a kind comment, Becki. You know the pancakes are good when there’s no syrup required!
Just made these last week for the first time since you linked to them from your waffle recipe, since I randomly had oat flour to use up. Normally, I do not care about pancakes, but I was in the mood for some. I added blueberries to these but otherwise kept the recipe the same…and they were BOMB! This recipe has changed my pancake game and I’m already craving more.
I’m so glad this was such a pleasant surprise, Katherine! Thank you!
Hi, Kate:
I’m making these for Mother’s Day, but I have no lemon – if it is necessary for activating the baking soda, would white vinegar have a bad taste? Could I use fresh orange juice?
Thank you for sharing! Hope you’re having a great weekend.
Sorry I didn’t get to this sooner, Serena! Did you try it with the white vinegar, or did you just do without? Let me know, I’m curious!
Kate,
I used orange juice! They turned out perfectly, my mom loved her dessert. Thanks again, magic baker :)
Serena
I’m out of lemon juice but I have orange juice, YAY!!!! Thank you for your reply. I’m so excited to make these .
Ok, these are amazing! Great recipe for gluten free lovers. Also, cooked on a cast iron skillet which is a bit of a challange on my electric stove, but they still came out tasting delicous and that is becuse Kate gives great directions, pictures & comments!! It helps so much with all your tips!
Thank you Kate!
Kate,
I almost never comment on the web, but now I have to. The pancakes turned out incredibly delicious: not too sweet, moist and fluffy. Also, no wheat flour or added sugar – a true blessing for people who avoid fast carbs. I think next time I’ll skip honey as well.
The only downside is that there were too few pancakes from this amount of ingredients. So, I plan to make ~7 times as much dough and just freeze cooked pancakes to have mealpreps for mornings.
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe.
I’m so glad you like these, Karina! That sounds like a good way to have breakfast all week.
My son loves banana pancakes and now that he is gluten-free we had to find a new recipe. I’m so glad I came across your recipe first as it was a winner. I was short on time so I just threw all the wet ingredients into a bowl and whirled it with my immersion blender and then added the oats (whole, rolled oats – not flour), soda and salt and blended a bit longer. We didn’t mind the chunkier texture of the oats that weren’t reduced to powder. We topped with peanut butter and a little maple syrup. Perfection! I love having a tasty and quick way to use up over-ripe bananas – but I also wonder if pumpkin would work as well for a different flavor. I look forward to experimenting with the waffle iron and mini muffin cup too ;)
I’m glad you found this recipe, Bonnie! It sounds like this came together quickly and turned out great.
These came out delicious! ANOTHER WINNING recipe by Kate, as I tried the gluten free waffle recipe not too long ago and that was amazing as well :) I also added some chocolate hips to a few of the pancakes and that was a yummy addition as well. I wouldn’t love to figure out how to make a vegan version of these as well. Any suggestions on what can be used in place of egg
Thanks, Melissa! I think you could use a flax egg in place of the egg. Just take 1 tablespoon of flax powder, and mix it with three tablespoons of water, and let it sit until it becomes gelatinous. Then, just use it in place of the egg as the recipe calls for.
THESE. PANCAKES.
I found this recipe about a week ago and have been making it almost everyday because they’re so good!
I made some last night, but since I didn’t have any oat flour, I tried a gluten feee flour instead. They turned out SUPER fluffy and thick. They were so good!
I do have a question. How many servings does a batch make?
I’m so glad you loved these, Rebecca! It should yield 8 pancakes.
I tried this recipe a while back and I keep going back to it, it’s so delicious!!
I find them quite sweet naturally because of the bananas and the spoon of maple syrup so i usually serve them with fruit coulis or jam but it’s always a success. I also sometime add raspberries in the wet mix, because i usually have frozen it makes the mix a bit more watery but i add a tbls of oat flour and it’s really great!
I made them again this morning but I was out of eggs so I made chia eggs instead and it worked really well!
Thanks for a great recipe!
I’m so glad you love this recipe so much, Marie! Thanks for commenting.
My toddler loves these pancakes and devours an obscene amount every time I make these. My husband, who hates anything gluten-free, vegan, or organic, eats half a batch himself every time as well – there’s barely anything left to freeze for daycare breakfasts!
Since I hate using baking soda because I feel compelled to open a brand-new box every time, I omitted the baking soda and lemon juice, and used 1/2 tsp of baking powder instead. I also add a little ground flax when I remember. They taste great!
I’m so glad, Paulina! Thanks.
Made these for breakfast this morning for me and the kiddo. Delicious! I made them silver dollar size.
Perfect for little hands!
I’ve been making this recipe very consistently for well over a year now… since our son was probably 10 months old. And just have to say how big of a hit this is with him. He is obsessed with these pancakes. I usually triple (sometimes quadruple) the recipe and freeze the leftovers. I just reheat as needed. Love having such a quick, yummy, and healthy option for him! Moms, if you’re looking for a great healthy pancake option for kids- try this one!!
sooo good! made them as “banana bread” for breakfast <3
Just wondering what the calorie info is?
thanks so much kate! I absolutely adore your blog!
Hi Mei! I haven’t gotten a chance to add the nutrition information on these, but will add them soon.
Yum! I made this for our family breakfast this morning (1 yr old, 3 yr old and 4.5 yr old) and they were a hit! I served mine with natural yoghurt, sliced banana and stewed strawberries and they were delicious – and filling. Thanks for a great recipe.
Great! Sounds like a great way to have these pancakes, Karen. Thanks so much for your review!
Hi! Thank you for the recipe I love it! was really easily adaptable to what I actually had at home this morning Just had one banana so I added a cup of almond milk mixed with a lil apple cider vinegar, then didn’t have a lot of oat flour so used 1/2 c oat, 1/4 c chick pea 1/4 b rice and then ended up adding another 1/4 brown rice because of the extra liquid. They turned out fluffy and delicious! And that has been a challenge for me with gluten free pancakes… So many thanks to you for sharing this recipe ❤
These were great. I eat GF and my husband ate these also and loved them. Also so easy. Thanks. Mary
Happy to hear that, Mary!
Best oatmeal banana pancake recipe! So fluffy and moist!
Win! Thank you, Deepa for sharing.
These pancakes were delicious! I have thoroughly enjoyed every recipe of yours that I have made. Thank you!
Well, thank you! I’m happy to hear that. I really appreciate the the review.
I would love to try and make a vegan version of these! Do you think subbing the eggs for some baking soda and a bit more soy milk would work? Or would I need to use flax eggs?
Hey Hannah! Other commenters have had success replacing the eggs with flax eggs. I would recommend doing that with these pancakes since they are gluten free and will need some extra help binding together (most regular pancakes—meaning pancakes made with regular glutenous flour—you can actually just skip the eggs without issue).
I found so many gluten free pancake recipes but so glad I chose to try this one. I tested it after making the mix for later and I am eager to have more. Im happy for my little man to even have a couple.
Thank you!
I’m happy you tried this one too! My oat waffles are great too, if you were looking for more gluten free breakfast options. Thanks for sharing, Nicolle! I appreciate the review.
Kate,
These pancakes are great. Thanks for the recipe. I used ground oat bran instead of oat flour. I also included flax meal. I didn’t have nutmeg so I use a 1/4 tsp of vanilla. This recipe pairs well with the Saturday morning tradition my partner and I have of making pancakes and listening to Jack Johnson. She has picky taste because she pregnant with our first child and she loved them. Hope to see more.
-D
Thanks for sharing your variation, Daniel! I appreciate it.
I have made this recipe twice now, and it is quickly becoming my favorite way to use up left over, over-ripe bananas from the week before. Thanks Kate!
Wonderful! Thank you, Hannah.
Is it possible to batch make this for a few days worth of pancakes?
Sure! You can keep them in the refrigerator for a a few days. Warming in the oven would work best.
Just made and ate these and they were great! I didn’t change a thing except not adding nutmeg as I’m not a huge fan of it. I love that they actually stayed together when they were cooking. Thanks for the recipe! Will definitely make these again.
Great way to adjust to your liking, Jennifer! Thanks for sharing and for your review.
Just realized that I never reviewed these pancakes…which is crazy, since I’ve been making them for over a year and they’re amazing! So creamy and satisfying, and they fluff up really well. Unlike many GF pancakes, they’re not the least bit dry, flat, or gummy.
I love how nourishing these pancakes are. Most pancakes make me feel not-so-great after scarfing down a big plateful. These are filling but don’t weigh me down. Thanks for the great recipe!
Well, I’m glad you came back to comment! Thanks for sharing, Caitlin.
Delicious and hearty pancakes. The only change I made was adding a half teaspoon of vanilla extract. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome, Ana! Vanilla sounds like a great edition.
Hey!!!
I really really want this recipe to work… It was tad bit less sweet for me… Also, it was gummy and squidgy in texture. I followed the recipe exactly… I dont know why it turned out like this. I had cooked it properly too…also, it kept on breaking apart.. Could you tell me what could have gone wrong?
That’s interesting, Simran. Did you use store bought oat flour or make your own? It’s important that the flour isn’t coarse but fine. Also, make sure the baking soda isn’t old. Hope this helps!
I had actually used homemade oat flour… And yes it was coarse. The baking soda was fine though. I did one trick to the batter afterwards. I put the batter in a mixer grinder and blended it a bit to make it smooth and it turned out perfect in the second try.
Hi, Kate. I’ve been making this recipe for quite some time for my toddler and we love them. Any advice on how to make sure the insides are cooked through. Sometimes they are quite raw. thanks!
Interesting! Are you following step 7 and 8? It could be a little thicker if so, add a little water to thin it out. Hope this helps! Let me know how it goes.
Question about oat flour! In your recipe are you measuring the cup of oat flour before it’s been ground? Or after? I put a cup of oats in my bullet to make flour and it wasn’t a full cup afterwards, so I ground more to make a full cup of flour. Correct?
Thank you!
Cher
Once the oats are ground. Correct!
Whenever I have too-ripe bananas, I make your healthy banana bread, but I was in the mood for something different this weekend, so I tried these pancakes. Wow – so flavorful and tasty. Like a holiday-spiced banana bread (that I can douse in syrup or honey!). The pancake cook time guidelines were super helpful. They worked perfectly! Thank you for providing such delicious, healthy, and easy recipes. I especially appreciate you going to the trouble of calculating the nutrition stats.
I’m glad you love the banana bread and now these pancakes, Lydia! Thanks for your comment and review. :)
These pancakes made my day! I’m pregnant and the cravings are REAL! Totally hit the spot for an afternoon snack. Thanks so much for the great and healthy recipe.
Congratulations, Lauren! How exciting. I’m happy these are pregnancy approved by you. Thanks for the review!
I’ve tried several different oat-and-banana pancake recipes, and really liked the addition of cinnamon, nutmeg, maple syrup and lemon juice in these. We also sprinkled local blueberries on top – yummy! Finally, although not dairy free, I like to whip up some plain Greek yoghurt, maple syrup, and lemon zest for a topping instead of butter. :-)
Fresh blueberries would be lovely. Thanks for your review, Maura!
Super good! Loved these. Topped with fresh picked blackberries and local honey. Used vinegar instead of lemon juice as I had no lemon on hand. Thank you!
Pickled blackberries? Oh, that sounds interesting! I might need to try that for myself. Thank you, Emelia for your comment and review!
*freshly picked blackberries*
Although your idea sounds rather interesting! Thank you for your recipes, I cannot tell you how much it makes my day
Vacation brain! That makes so much more sense :) Thanks for your comment and review! So happy to hear you are enjoying my recipes.
These are delicious! I made them for dinner last night and I’m going to eat the rest for breakfast right now. Thank you for this healthy recipe.
Breakfast for dinner is the best! Thank you, Gaby.
Best pancakes ever! When my husband was ill it was hard to find recipes that he would eat, but he loved these pancakes–for any meal.
Wonderful, Theresa! I’m happy to hear that.
Okay, so these are hands down the best pancakes. Ever.
I love the taste of the Nutmeg. It really makes them so satisfying and surprisingly “fall” tasting for a cozy late-September brunch! I topped them with some macadamias and white chcolate chips. It’s going to me a major struggle not eating the entire batch myself!
I’m glad you think they are the best, Andrea. Thanks so much for your review!
We literally make these every weekend…they are unreal! My 2-year-old wakes up every day listing the ingredients and asking me to make them. Thanks for giving us a family recipe!
That’s amazing! I love that. Thanks for sharing, Liza.
Simple and delicious
Thank you, Sarah!
Best banana oat pancakes!
Thank you, Genevieve!
Best gluten free pancakes I ever had. I made them vegan by substituting the 2 eggs with 2 flax eggs (2 tbspn ground flax seeds and 6 tbspn hot water) and these came out so delicious. Will definitely be making these again!
I’m so happy to hear that, Maegan! Thanks for your review.
These pancakes are THE BEST. Thank you, Kate!
You’re welcome, Jill!
So good! FINALLY, I have a go to gluten free pancake! Added blueberries to a few pancakes, but they were best without the berries.
Thank you for all your work in bringing us so many excellent recipes. My family and I are big fans!
Thank you, Jenny!
Relatively new to GF living. I was craving pancakes and these did the trick! They are amazingly simple and delicious and are now on my “favorites” board!
Great to hear these did the trick, Mary! I appreciate the review.
This was great! Reduced the coconut oil to 1 tablespoon and didn’t notice a thing!
Thanks for sharing, Ren.
I am currently eating this pancake and omygosh i am shook!! Best banana oatmeal pancakes ever! They are fluffy, moist and just about the sweetness that I prefer. Thank you so much for this recipe and i’ll definitely make more of this in the future!
Thanks for your review, Vanessa! I’m happy you loved them.
Worst pancakes ever! Followed the recipe fully, made zero adjustments and my sunday breakfast was ruined! The reviews must be a sham or something theres no way anyone would give these pancakes a rating above two stars. Even my toddler didnt eat them and he eats almost anything. Too sweet, too dry, weird consistency..
Hi Deniz, I’m sorry you didn’t love these and didn’t have a similar experience to the other commenters. I appreciate your feedback.
Amazing! Love your recipes.
Thank you, Andrea!