What's better than vegan pumpkin pancakes on a cool fall morning? A drizzle of maple syrup highlights their delicious spiced flavor.
These vegan pumpkin pancakes are just one of the many pumpkin recipes I’ve been making lately… mostly because when you open a can of pumpkin (or make your own pumpkin puree), there’s always some left over. I think that’s the true reason why people are so pumpkin-crazy in the fall. If you start with vegan pumpkin pancakes, you might as well go ahead and make pumpkin bars… and then, well, maybe some pumpkin cookies. After all, you have to use it up! (She says while eating said cookie.)
Anyway, I’ve had so many requests for vegan pumpkin pancakes, and this recipe is our favorite! It’s super simple to mix together, and the pancakes are soft, fluffy, and deliciously spiced. What more could you want in a cozy fall breakfast?
Ingredients You’ll Need
If you ask me, vegan pumpkin pancakes are some of the best vegan pancakes period. The pumpkin gives them moisture and lift, so they’re light and fluffy even without eggs! Here’s what else makes this recipe one of my fall favorites:
- A little flax – It thickens the batter and adds fiber and healthy fats.
- A touch of cane sugar – It makes the pancakes lightly sweet.
- Baking powder and baking soda – They help the pancakes puff up as they cook, making them thick and fluffy.
- Cinnamon – For that essential warm “pumpkin spice” flavor. My homemade pumpkin pie spice would be great here too!
- Coconut oil – For richness.
- Almond milk – It adds moisture and loosens the batter. While I use almond milk because it’s the type of milk that I keep on hand, cow’s milk or oat milk will work just fine here too.
- And vanilla – For warm depth of flavor.
Whisk together the wet and dry ingredients in separate bowls. Then, pour the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients and stir until just combined—careful not to overmix. At this point, you’re ready to cook! I hope you’re excited—a hot stack of pancakes is just minutes away.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
What to Serve with Vegan Pumpkin Pancakes
I love these vegan pumpkin pancakes as they are, served simply with maple syrup. You could also make them fancier by topping them with a dollop of almond butter or peanut butter, coconut cream, or plant-based yogurt. Sprinkle a few pecans (or chocolate chips 🙂 ) on top, and pour the coffee!
These pancakes are best the day they’re made, but if you have any leftover, they freeze well. Just pop them in the microwave to reheat. Happy pancake-making!
More Favorite Breakfast Recipes
If you love these vegan pumpkin pancakes, try one of these delicious recipes next:
- Vegan Pancakes
- Pumpkin Waffles
- Pumpkin French Toast
- Vegan Banana Pancakes
- Gluten-Free Pancakes
- Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
And if you have leftover pumpkin puree, use it in pumpkin muffins or pumpkin bread!
Vegan Pumpkin Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed + 3 tablespoons water
- 1½ cups (180g) all-purpose flour* (see note below)
- 2 tablespoons cane sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- heaping 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- heaping ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons almond milk, at room temperature
- 2 tablespoon melted coconut oil, plus more for brushing
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
For serving:
- Maple syrup, not optional
- Yogurt or vegan yogurt, optional
- Pecans, optional
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the flaxseed and water and set aside for 5 minutes to thicken.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, cane sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, almond milk, coconut oil, vanilla, and the flaxseed mixture.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. A few lumps are ok, do not overmix. The mixture will be thick, but if it’s too thick, gently stir in a little more almond milk.
- Heat a nonstick skillet or griddle to medium heat. Brush the skillet with a little coconut oil and use a ⅓-cup measuring cup to pour the batter onto the pan. Use the back of the cup to gently spread the batter a little more. Cook the pancakes for 2 minutes per side, turning the heat to low as needed so that the middles cook without burning the outsides. I usually start with medium heat, and move to low heat as my pan starts to hold residual heat after each batch.
- Serve with maple syrup, yogurt, and pecans, as desired.
Notes
I was so excited to make this recipe but no matter what tricks we tried, we couldn’t get the pancakes to taste/feel done in the middle. They started to get all light and fluffy, but completely flattened out after turning over. It was like the pancakes were steaming themselves on the inside and not cooking properly.
Hi Julie, oh no, it sounds like they perhaps didn’t cook long enough on the first side. Did you go the whole 2 minutes one each side, especially the first side? Did you change any ingredients in the recipe?
We did and used the recipe exactly.
THESE TASTE SO AH-MAZING!! I paired them with some coconut whipped cream, maple syrup, and whiskey-glazed, spiced walnuts. I am wondering how long I have to wait before I can reasonably serve them again…
Haha, I’m so glad you loved the pancakes!
My pancakes weren’t that good, they were very dry and gummy. I used cashew milk and olive oil instead of almond milk and coconut oil. Also, in my previous non vegan recipe one of the ingredients was vinegar. Maybe next time I will use it as well.
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy these.
These are good, but not as fluffy as picture.
Best pancakes I’ve made yet! fluffy! annnddd so tasty! Thanks for sharing! I’ve made them over and over.
Hi Sal, I’m so happy to hear that! Thanks for reporting back!!
I was out of flax meal so I used 1 tablespoon of chia seeds with 2 1/2 tablespoons of water instead, and these were great! I enjoyed the mild flavor of just the cinnamon with the pumpkin, I don’t care for the pumpkin pie spice blend.
Hi Amanda, I’m glad you loved them!
These were AMAZING! I’ve tried some “pumpkin” pancakes recipes and none actually tasted like pumpkin, these DID! They cooked perfectly fluffy and tasted perfect! Thanks for sharing! Making pumpkin dreams come trueeeee
Hi Sal, ha ha, I’m so so thrilled that you loved them!
My grocery store was out of almond milk this week, so I substituted soy. But they were still delicious! I also used coconut sugar instead of cane sugar because it was what I had on hand. I added a little extra because coconut sugar is supposed to be less sweet.
Hi Alison, I’m so glad you loved them! Thanks for taking a moment to come back and let me know!!
The texture and flavor was a hit! Thanks for this recipe.
So glad you loved them!
omg, look at how thick and fluffy they are 😍 I need these in my life right now!
If wanting to make these gluten free, do you have a substitute flour thats GF that you would recommend? Looks amazing! Thanks
Hi Siobhan,
Here’s my gluten free recipe, it uses Pamela’s gluten free flour which is wonderful – I recommend using this recipe because it’s tested specifically with the GF flour: https://www.loveandlemons.com/gluten-free-pumpkin-pancakes/
Thats great thank you so much! Cant wait to try this!
I love your website. Thanks.
http://bruceehowelldds.com/
Looks delicious? How easy these were to make? I have sometimes tried vegan pancakes but they often end up not staying in one piece. If these are (semi) fool-proof I will give these a try. 🙂
They’re easy 🙂 Just make sure give them the 2 minutes per side and they should stay in once piece!
Hi. Is there a substitute for coconut oil? Thanks
Hi Becca, you can use any neutral oil – sunflower, grapeseed, a mild olive oil, or canola oil. Hope that helps!
Jeanine, would these work without the flax seeds or do I have to substitute them with something else?
Hi Daphne – you can use 1 egg in place of the flax and the 3 tablespoons water. Hope that helps!
Lol to your comment that maple syrup isn’t optional! I’m Canadian, so we put that stuff on everything (just kidding). But def on pancakes! Recipe looks delish.
Ha ha… well, you know, I was trying to be clear about it 🙂
yum! these are so perfect for fall!
These sound really nice, even though I am not vegan. I would probably also use a real egg. Love the idea of using that yogurt as a topping. And I like the idea of using just cinnamon instead of pumpkin pie spice. I’ll have to make these with the leftover pumpkin from my pumpkin French toast that I’ll be making when it’s my turn to cook again (my husband and I take turns – 3 weeks for me, 1 week for him).
That’s so nice that you and your husband switch off cooking weeks 🙂
Looks amazing! Can’t wait to try it this weekend for Canadian thanksgiving! I have one little question though. What is the benefit of the coconut oil in the batter and is it necessary?
Hi Mila, I hope you love them! I like a bit of oil in my pancakes for flavor and texture – I find pancakes to be a bit dry/gummy without it.
I added olive oil instead of coconut and cashew milk instead if almond. The pancakes were very dry and gummy as you say. Also the dough was too thick, so it took much more of milk.
Weekend brunch plans right here!! 🙂