These Zucchini Pancakes are fluffy, full of flavor and are SO delicious! Pile on the butter and maple syrup and say hello to a delicious, healthier breakfast!
This recipe was originally published in July 2018 – I’ve since updated the photos and tweaked the recipe slightly!
Did you hear that zucchini is in season? Like, full on in season. It’s great because that means it’s SUPER cheap in the stores because it’s being pumped out so quickly. I love zucchini. I’ve always leaned towards savory recipes like my Three Cheese Zucchini Lasagna Rolls or my Healthy Pad Thai with Zucchini Noodles.
However, when I worked at the produce shop in college, there was the sweetest lady who would bring in these mini loaves of bread to sell. There were loaves of apple, pumpkin, banana and of course: zucchini. Ever since then, I’ve always wanted to try baking with zucchini.
Cooking with Zucchini: What’s it like?
Of course the questions loomed in my head and I always wondered – can you taste the zucchini in the these pancakes? Is it a savory? Is it salty? Well, the answer to all of those questions is a big NO! The zucchini might add some texture, but oh man – it adds such a great moisture to the pancakes. So much moisture, in fact, that I didn’t have to use ANY oil in these.
Unless, of course, you count the butter that I fried them in and then slathered all over. #balance
Health Benefits of Zucchini:
So what even is the benefit of zucchini? I know it’s green, but can it really be that good for me? The answer is yes! It’s super duper good for you. Some of the health benefits include:
- being anti inflammatory (yay for healthy joints!)
- super low in calories
- full of vitamin c
- also full of dietary fiber! (wooooo for healthy regular bodies!)
Okay. So now that you’ve had your crash course in zucchini, let’s actually get into these amazingly wonderful pancakes that will make you never even think of picking up a pre-made box pancake mix ever again.
Ingredients You Need:
- Zucchini
- Ripe banana
- All purpose flour
- Brown sugar
- Egg
- Whole milk
- Salt, cinnamon and baking powder
- Chocolate chips + maple syrup to garnish
How to Make Pancakes
This recipe is a breeze to whip up. First, you take that zucchini, cut off the ends, and grate it into small pieces! Once it’s grated, I put mine into a clean and dry tea towel and squeezed it over the sink to remove a lot of that excess liquid. You’d be surprised how watery those little guys are! You want to make sure and at least squeeze SOME of the additional liquid out or else your batter will be a runny mess which makes for sad pancakes. And sad pancakes make for sad people.
Once your zucchini is strained and grated, set it aside. Next, combine your dry ingredients together. Add in your wet ingredients. Lastly, gently fold in the zucchini.
And voila! You’re ready to go. Fire up a large non-stick skillet on low-medium heat. Throw some butter or non-stick spray in there, let it melt and start making the pancakes. I used a ¼ measuring cup to measure out what size pancakes I wanted.
Feel free to make extra large ones or extra small lil baby pancakes. Mine were a good medium size. When bubbles begin to form on the top of the batter, that’s a good indication of when you should flip them – it usually takes 2 or so minutes on each side, give or take.
When they’re done, I spread some butter on them, poured on some maple syrup, added some chocolate chips (which melted them!) and devoured immediately!
Y’all these are so good. They aren’t overly sweet – just the right amount and they are SO super fluffy. If it wasn’t for the green specks, you wouldn’t even think zucchini was in these!
These make for the perfect Brunch meal or maybe you’re in the mood for breakfast for dinner! However you eat them, I surely hope you enjoy!
Did you enjoy this recipe? Here are a few others you might like:
Coconut Chocolate Chunk Zucchini Bread
Thank you so much for following along here, friends! Want to see more? Be sure to follow ourbalancedbowl on Instagram and tag me with your photo if you end up making a recipe! You can also post a photo of your recipe to the Our Balanced Bowl Facebook page! Like a recipe that you saw? Follow me on Pinterest here! I always love to see your re-creations! If you do make a recipe, it would make my whole day if you were to rate and comment so I can get your feedback! Lots of love! – Haylie
Fluffy Zucchini Pancakes
These Zucchini Pancakes are fluffy, low in sugar and are SO delicious! Pile on the butter and maple syrup and say hello to a delicious, healthier breakfast!
Ingredients
- 1 large zucchini, grated
- 1 ripe banana, mashed
- 1 cup all purpose flour (can use whole wheat)
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar
- 1 cup milk (I used whole, can use skim or 2%)
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- butter and maple syrup for topping (optional)
- chocolate chips for topping (optional)
Instructions
-
Cut the ends off of the zucchini. Grate the zucchini. Using a strainer or a tea towel, squeeze the excess moisture out of the zucchini. Set aside.
-
In a large bowl, mix your flour, brown sugar sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon together. Next, add in your mashed banana, milk, and egg. Combine well. Lastly, gently fold in your zucchini.
-
Heat a non-stick skillet on low-medium heat and add butter or cooking spray. Using a 1/4 measuring cup, add in your batter. When bubbles begin to form, or after 2-3 minutes have passed, gently flip your pancake. Cook on the other side for another 2 minutes or so or until the bottom has become golden brown.
-
Continue to make the pancakes until you have no batter remaining. Serve warm with fresh butter and maple syrup if desired. Enjoy!
When people really like something, they use hyperbole like, “I just can’t stop eating these!” Well, I literally could not stop eating them. There was a pile of pancakes in the fridge and I picked one up to eat, and somehow found another reason to walk through the kitchen to get another. I had a lot of trips to the kitchen. Definitely worth checking out guys.