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Carrot cake pancakes are light and fluffy and bring the taste of carrot cake to your breakfast or brunch table. These pancakes are made with staple ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry, plus shredded carrots, coconut, and walnuts. It’s pretty much like having carrot cake for breakfast – can’t beat that!
Table of Contents
This carrot cake pancake recipe is moist and soft, just like cake, but it’s made with no butter and no refined sugar. I use plant-based milk, maple syrup, and oil to make the batter. Now you can have your favorite dessert for breakfast!
These pancakes are SO delicious! I will definitely be making them again!! – Wendy Michael
Recipe at a Glance
Cuisine Inspiration: American
Primary Cooking Method: Stovetop
Dietary Info: Vegan
Key Flavor: Sweet
Skill Level: Easy
Why They’re So Good!
- Nutrient-Rich: The carrots, coconut, and walnuts add vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fiber, and healthy fat to these pancakes.
- Convenient: These carrot cake pancakes take less than 20 minutes from start to finish, making them a quick, easy, and convenient breakfast any day of the week.
- Customizable: Like all pancakes, you can customize this recipe with mix-ins like strawberries or chocolate chips to change things up easily.
- Family-Friendly: These pancakes are naturally sweet and taste almost like dessert for breakfast, making them loved by kids and adults alike.
Ingredients for Carrot Cake Pancakes
- All-Purpose Flour: As in many batters and doughs, all-purpose flour is the dry base for these pancakes.
- Baking Powder: Baking powder is a leavening agent that helps your pancakes get light and fluffy.
- Cinnamon: Cinnamon has a sweet, woody flavor that perfectly compliments the carrot in these pancakes. It also contains antioxidants and has been linked to a variety of health benefits.
- Almond Milk: Almond milk gives the carrot cake pancake batter its classic, pourable pancake consistency and adds protein, fiber, and calcium.
- Maple Syrup: Maple syrup adds sweetness without any refined sugar.
- Avocado Oil: The oil takes the place of butter in these pancakes, making them vegan and replacing the saturated fat of butter with poly and monounsaturated fats.
- Vanilla: Vanilla is a classic flavor addition to pancakes, adding an even more natural sweet taste and an aroma that pairs well with the other ingredients found in this recipe.
- Shredded Carrots and Coconut: Shredded carrots and coconut both add natural sweetness to the pancakes and work together to create a classic carrot cake flavor.
- Walnuts: Walnuts are a classic carrot cake ingredient, and they bring their signature crunch and earthy flavor to these pancakes, along with healthy fat, fiber, and protein.
Popular Substitutions and Additions
- Add whole wheat flour: Use a mixture of whole wheat and all-purpose flour. It’s important to use a mix of flour, not pure whole wheat. Pure whole wheat flour will make the pancakes too dense.
- Try other natural sweeteners: Honey or agave syrup can be used in place of maple syrup.
- Add sweet mix-ins: Try adding your favorite berries or chocolate chips to your pancakes for a fun addition the kids will love.
- Any neutral oil works: Sunflower, avocado, or vegetable oil will work in this recipe.
- Add more spices to your liking. If you love the taste of cinnamon, add more. Yu can also use other warming spices such as nutmeg, ginger, allspice, and ground cloves.
- Make a whipped cream cheese topping. For a decadent breakfast or brunch, top your pancakes with a simple cream cheese “frosting” made with cream cheese, maple syrup, and plant or dairy milk. Just whisk until smooth and enjoy!
How to Make Carrot Cake Pancakes
Start by shredding or grating carrots. There are many ways to do this: a food processor, a blender, a microplane, or a cheese box grater. I prefer the cheese box grater because the consistency is not too crunchy/raw or too soft/wet. It’s the perfect texture, especially considering we’re not cooking the carrots for a long time.
You’ll need about ½ a cup of shredded carrots. If you end up grating more, throw it on top of the carrot pancakes for serving to bring out that extra carrot flavor, throw it in soups, in a smoothie or even in one-pot rice dishes.
Once you grate the carrots, it’s time to put the batter together.
YUM! Love these! I made a lot of mods to make them even healthier, though. I used oat flour, skipped the oil completely, added 1 TB chia seeds + 1 TB ground flax, and approx 1 TB of fresh ginger. DELISH!!! – Caroline G
Tips for Making the Best Carrot Cake Pancakes
- Use fresh carrots for the best taste. Since baby carrots and pre-cut carrots are treated with chlorine to preserve them, the taste is not as prominent when shredded as compared to whole carrots. I also found that the pre-shredded store-bought carrots are too long and thick to work well in this batter. Be sure to chop them finely if you want to use them.
- Allow the batter to rest: I recommend letting the pancake batter rest for 2 minutes before frying them and you will notice that the mixture gets thicker which helps to make more fluffy pancakes.
- Don’t overmix your batter. Just like any other pancake batter, this one should be mixed until everything is just combined. Overmixing creates excess gluten, resulting in dense, chewy pancakes.
- Let your batter rest. This ties closely in with avoiding overmixing. Letting your batter rest for a 2-5 minutes allows any gluten that has formed during the mixing process to relax, helping keep your pancakes light and fluffy.
- Flip once and only once. Flip your pancakes when the edges firm up, and that’s it. Let them cook through from the other side and enjoy. This cooks your pancakes to perfection and preserves their wonderful texture.
Frequently Asked Questions
For maximum freshness, transfer your pancakes to an air-tight container and refrigerate them as soon as they’ve cooled. When stored properly, they should last for about a week.
To reheat these pancakes, spray them with a bit of water and cook them for a minute or two per side in a covered pan over medium heat. This heats them through without drying them out.
How long will vegan carrot cake pancakes last in the fridge?
These pancakes will last for up to a week when stored in an air-tight container.
Can I freeze these healthy carrot cake pancakes?
These pancakes freeze well and will last for up to two months when stored properly. Place the pancakes in single layers separated by wax paper in an air-tight, freezer-safe container, seal, and freeze. Defrost the pancakes in the refrigerator overnight before reheating them.
Use the largest holes to shred your carrots. This creates the perfect shreds for your pancakes. The smaller holes are for grating and will result in a watery sort of carrot mush not suitable for cakes, muffins, bread, or pancakes like these.
Absolutely! Pancake batter is great for advanced prepping because the longer it sits, the more the gluten in the batter can relax. Make this batter a day ahead of time, then bring it to room temperature in the morning and make your delicious pancakes.
Pancakes should be firm around the edges with bubbles on top before they’re flipped. After flipping, cooking them until they reach a golden color is generally all you need to do to ensure they’re cooked. However, to be totally sure, just use a toothpick. If you insert a toothpick and it comes out clean, the pancakes are done.
More Pancake Recipes:
- High Protein Pancakes
- Sweet Potato Pancakes
- Oat Flour Pancakes
- Healthy Pumpkin Pancakes
- Lemon Ricotta Pancakes
- Flourless Strawberry Pancakes
- Banana Pancake Dippers
- Cottage Cheese Pancakes
- Easy Greek Yogurt Pancakes
If you try this feel good Carrot Cake Pancakes recipe or any other recipe on Feel Good Foodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below! It helps others who are thinking of making the recipe. We would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots, share it on Instagram so we can repost on Stories!
This Carrot Cake Pancakes recipe was originally published on April 4, 2020. The post has been updated to include helpful cooking tips, frequently asked questions and step-by-step photos.
Carrot Cake Pancakes
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup almond milk
- 3 tablespoons avocado oil
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup carrots shredded and lightly packed
- 2 tablespoons walnuts finely chopped
- Cooking spray
- For topping: Cream cheese whipped with honey
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt; set aside
- In a large bowl, combine the milk, oil, maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Stir in the shredded carrots and walnuts. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined, being careful not to over mix; a few lumps are okay. Allow the mixture to rest for 2 minutes.
- Heat a nonstick griddle over medium-low heat. Spray with cooking spray or leave the pan dry.
- Pour ⅓ cup of the batter into the hot griddle. Cook for 3-4 minutes, until the edges firm up and you can slide spatula under the pancake. Flip the pancake and cook for another 1-2 minutes until the pancake is cooked through. Repeat for the remaining batter. Recipe yields about 8 pancakes.
- Serve immediately with maple syrup or whipped cream cheese if desired, if desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
I added some allspice and cloves and cut out the coconut (I’m allergic) and it came out amazing! It tastes just like carrot cake with no added sugar!
Yum, sounds so good! Happy you enjoyed them. Thanks, Grace!!
I did grate the carrots. I will try it again with the shredder instead.
I hope the texture turns out better next time!
Hi Erica! I retested this recipe but my batter wasn’t watery and the pancakes came out fluffy. I made sure to let the batter rest for 2 minutes before cooking to help it thicken slightly, perhaps that will make a difference the next time you make these pancakes? Let me know if you try the recipe out again!
Pancakes came out watery and flat like a crepe. Taste was good though.
Hi Erica, did you happen to grate the carrots with a microplane? Grating them into small pieces can add extra moisture, I prefer shredding them finely. Letting the batter rest before cooking can also help with the consistency. So happy you enjoyed the flavor despite the texture issue!
Good afternoon! I am planning on making these but I noticed in your article, the amount of shredded carrots is indicated as 1 cup but in the article it mentions 1/2 cup. What is the amount of shredded amount of carrots to use? Thankyou
Thanks so much for calling this out, I just updated the recipe. It should be 1/2 cup.
These pancakes are SO delicious! I will definitely be making them again!!
Thank you so much, Wendy!!
Can I make a cake from this? Please let me know if I’m using regular baking powder. Thanks
I have not tried this recipe as a cake, I don’t think it would turn out well. Yes, regular baking powder that is aluminum free.
It calls for 1 Tablespoon of baking powder. They turned out inedible. Is it supposed to be 1 tsp? With 1 Tablespoon of baking powder they taste bitter. I’m sure they would be great without that much baking powder. Kids had to eat cereal instead.
Oh no! I am sorry to hear that. Did you use aluminum-free baking powder? If not, that will give the pancakes a bitter taste. The 1 tablespoon is not a typo, but it for sure needs to be made with aluminum-free baking powder.
YUM! Love these! I made a lot of mods to make them even healthier, though. I used oat flour, skipped the oil completely, added 1 TB chia seeds + 1 TB ground flax, and approx 1 TB of fresh ginger. DELISH!!!
That does sound yummy; thank you for sharing!
These has potential to be good, but the baking powder it called for was way too much. They were bitter and “fizzy”. Wondering it it was supposed to be 1 teaspoon and not tablespoon? I should have gone with my gut that ot was too much but I didn’t and they were inedible. I’m surprised no one else has brought this up, but beware. I’ll definitely give this another go and just seriously decrease the baking powder.
Hmm, that really shouldn’t have been the case, but let me know how it goes if you decrease the baking powder!
Made these for Easter morning. My husband is vegan so they were a real treat for him and even my kids loved them. Really moist and natural tasting. Loved the addition of coconut and walnuts. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m so glad you all enjoyed it! You’re so welcome! Happy Easter!
Amazing Recipe! I’ve replaced the Oat milk for Coconut milk and it worked great!!! and I shredded the carrots (we like it better) I try to increase the recipe by 1/2 to make 12 pancakes but I only ended up with 10; both, the coconut milk and the shredded carrots may have been too thick, nevertheless, they came out delicious and thick which made them very filling. One thing I added extra was a teaspoon of ACV.
I’m so glad to hear it! Yay!!
Is it possible to replace the flour with oats (blended)?
I haven’t tried that yet with this recipe, but I think it will work. Let me know if you give that a try!
Is it 153 calories for just one pancake or 153 calories for all 8 pancakes.
That’s for just one pancake
I made this for my friend and she loved it, I tried adding chopped dates and sprinkles of cardamom on top instead of the coconut, will be making it again!
So glad to hear it! Thank you!!
Great recipe for a lazy Sunday! Best part was that my kids loved it! Great way for them to eat some veggies!
So glad to hear the kids enjoyed it!! Thank you!
Hi,
I’ve just made them.
They taste really good but is it normal that the inside remain soft and wet?
Thank you
Bye Federica
No, the inside shouldn’t be soft still. Maybe you didn’t cook it at the right temperature or long enough.
These were amazing! I made them as waffles (added a bit more oil than it called for) and they turned out even better than I thought they’d be. This recipe is super simple and I had almost every ingredient already in the pantry. Definitely keeping this recipe on hand for future brunches!
Oh good idea! Love that you turned them into waffles!
Have made these delicious pancakes 5 times in the last 2 weeks!! My 2.5 year old requests them all the time! We love them in our household! So so good!!!!
Haha!! Yes so glad to hear it!!
They turned out SOOOO YUMMY❕❕❕???.
Awesome!! Thank you!!
Carrot cake pancakes: truly a very special breakfast that we enjoyed today. Will definitely make more next Sunday. Thanks!
So glad to hear it!
Loving recipes from @feelgoodfoodie! These vegan carrot cake pancakes are the best!! Highly recommend!
So glad to hear it. Thanks so much!!
What an amazing recipe! Since today they’re my favorite pancakes, perfect consistency and flavor, absolutely amazing and easy to follow! Loved them. Thank’s! 🙂
Awww, so happy to hear that!!
Loved this recipe!!! I did a few adjustments only because I just used what I had. AP flour, 2% milk and canola oil. But omg they were so good! I was so surprised how good they were even without egg! My daughter (2yr old) and husband inhaled them! And my daughter has asked me for them again today! So so good! Love your recipes! Always so easy to follow and never let us down!!
Thank you so much Brinda! I loved watching your daughter make the pancakes and to see how much she loved them. Thanks for taking the time to leave the feedback. I really appreciate it!
this recipe was super easy to follow, i made them this morning for myself and my husband. we both loved the carrot pancakes, they were delicious! definitely planning on following other recipes on your amazing blog!!!
Aww thank you so much! I appreciate that! 🙂
Made these for Easter lunch. So good! I was afraid they would be too sweet, but they were perfect. I followed the recipe almost exactly but used almond milk instead of oat and didn’t add walnuts.
I tried this recipe today with a few substitutions. I used oat flour for a Gluten free option and I didn’t have grapeseed oil so I used coconut oil. They were delicious! Such great flavour! Thank you!
So glad to hear that. Thanks so much fo the feedback!!
Tried the carrot pancakes recipe.. It was yummy.. My family loved it !! Thank you for the amazing and easy to make recipes that you share.
Thank you so much for the feedback. So glad your family enjoyed it!