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
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It’s cozy season. Let’s make banana pancakes! This banana pancake recipe yields gloriously fluffy pancakes, even though they’re made with hearty 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 some peanut butter for some 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.
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 is what 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 a bit 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. 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 homemade fruit compote, almond butter, pecan butter or whipped cream!
Please let me know how these pancakes turn out for you in the comments. I hope these become a favorite weekend recipe.
Craving more wholesome pancakes? Here are more 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
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.
I made these for Christmas morning breakfast…. the only change I made was to add a couple of handfuls of chopped walnuts (because in my family nuts make everything better). They were fantastic. For years I’ve been buying “healthier pancake mix” and adapting by adding bananas and walnuts which turns out ok, but I felt so much better knowing each ingredient in the food I served my family. Thank you so much for this healthy, delicious recipe.
I’m glad you loved it, Lisa!
My 10 year old daughter surprised me with breakfast this morning using your recipe, and I absolutely loved it! Thanks!
You’re welcome!
My family really enjoyed these pancakes, we will be adding them to our weekend breakfast rotation. Thank you!
You’re welcome, Taryn!
These are so good. My five year old loved them!
That’s great, Emalie!
I can’t speak to the exact recipe, but for me it was a great jumping off place today. I had intended to follow your recipe exactly but I had no milk (had to use buttermilk instead) and when I got to the point to add baking powder I found I had none (I subbed in baking soda and cream of tartar since that’s what I had). I also deviated from instructions not to overheat and made it in my high-speed blender since I was working with a frozen banana. I also added a tablespoon of a mix of ground chia/flax/psyllium to add fiber with about 2 additional tablespoons of water. I read some time ago in Cooks Illustrated that whole wheat pancakes do better with additional beating (unlike those made with all purpose flour). My pancakes turned out light and fluffy! I was pleasantly surprised. Both the flavor and the texture were great! I do look forward to making them your way the next time! Thank you for sharing!
Hi there!
I just made these and have to say I’m shocked at how amazing they are! Sooo delicious!! I actually didn’t even add the syrup/honey to the batter, and nor did I need anything on top – the bananas made them plenty sweet enough for me! I’ll be making these very, very often!
Thanks :)
Lynda
I’m glad you enjoyed them, Lynda! I appreciate your review.
Is it really supposed to be 1 Tablespoon of baking powder, or is that a typo?
Hi Jayne, the recipe is correct. I hope you try it!
I just made these this morning, and they were DELICIOUS!! Perfect amount of sweetness and fluffiness. Thank you so much for this recipe. I see that you several other pancake recipes that I can’t wait to try :)
These were delicious! I added blueberries which created more liquid so I lowered the flame to cook the inside well. Definitely going to get an electric griddle. Took 4,5 pancakes to get the heat/oil combo right… then suddenly very fluffy pancakes!
First time making pancakes from scratch and I will never go back these were so good! I struggle with dense Banana Pancakes using the box mix and these turned out wonderfully fluffy.
I’m glad you enjoyed them, Jillian! I appreciate your review.
My 3 year old made these this morning (with a little supervision). They were great! Makes me feel so much better that they are whole wheat. We added some cut up bananas slices into the batter while cooking on the skillet for extra banana goodness.
That’s great to hear, Emily! I appreciate your review.
I have tried several banana pancake recipes throughout time but this one is indeed the best! No doubt about it.
I’m glad you think so, Lucia! I appreciate your review.
What’s a cup measurement in grammes?
I don’t provide metric conversions. I do know others have used a chart in the past.
This has been my go-to pancake recipe. I make it weekly and freeze them. I have replaced the banana with pumpkin, and most recently with cooked oatmeal and it works well to make it even heartier and healthier. You can interchange the flour freely. I always do half buckwheat as I love a hearty grain.
I’m glad you loved them!
These were so delicious! I usually add sliced banana to pancakes but mashed bananas incorporate so much better and these really tasted like banana bread! The peanut butter topping was also wonderful. Yum!
Great recipe! They were light, fluffy, perfectly sweet even with 100% whole wheat flour. I also did a version with raspberries added while cooking – so good!
Great to hear, Lauren! I appreciate your review.
We have been using this recipe religiously since my son was diagnosed with an egg allergy before he could even eat real food! We substitute the egg with Bobs Red Mill Egg Replacer and use coconut milk as our milk of choice (I have a dairy allergy). We make big batches and freeze some. It’s a definite must for our house even two years after our first try!
We have tried many different pancake recipes and this one was by far our most favorite (it was a hit with our 10 month old too)! We are so excited to add it into our rotation. Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe!
I have never left a comment on this recipe, and i feel it is high time i did because I’ve been coming back to it for at least 3-4 years. I use it every time i have old bananas and/or want pancakes. super easy, yummy, fluffy and i make little tweaks like adding chocolate if i feel like it. Thank you so much! Best banana pancakes I’ve had
I’m glad you decided to make this recipe and comment. Thanks for sharing how much you love it!
This is by far my favourite pancake recipe. They are fluffy and a banana and maple syrup provide enough sweetness. When I make a big batch I practically have to hide them from my husband because he eats them as I make them! Thank you for the great recipe Kate!
I’m glad you love it, Nancy! Thank you for your review.
I just made these for the first time and they were excellent! I used regular whole wheat flour and coconut oil and served them with greek yogurt and blueberries. I will definitely make these again.
Great to hear, Lynn! Thank you for sharing.
These are phenomenal! So light and fluffy and simple and delicious! Definitely making these over and over again. Would be great to stock the freezer with these too!
I’m glad you enjoy these pancakes, Felishia!
can I use Spelt flour in these?
They work in my banana muffins, so you could try it. Let me know how it works for you, Ann!
These were purrrfectly delicious. I was a little nervous making banana pancakes for the first time, and it was a relief to have them turn out even though I ran out of white whole wheat and had to use a combo of 1:2 Buckwheat and Whole Wheat Pastry Flour. Thank you for a fail safe recipe!
You’re welcome, Anna! Thank you for your review.
Loved the recipie made it numerous times with various toppings ,always a hit with d family ,wondering if u had an Easy Cinnamon Bun recipe to share.
Awesomeness. I threw in a ½ cup of chopped walnuts in with the dry ingredients. And my wife topped a couple of them with a few chocolate chips before flipping. Great recipe. Thanks. You rock.
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Paul! I appreciate your review.
Hi Kate, I tried this recipe today and the pancakes turned out wonderful :) Thank you for sharing this!
That’s great!
My go to recipe for pancakes!!! Can I make the batter the day before and leave in fridge?
I don’t recommend storing the batter. These are great frozen and reheated if you wanted a meal prep option.
Very fluffy and tender for a whole wheat recipe. This one is definitely a keeper, thanks so much for sharing!
Thank you, Kerri!
They’re delicious, but the real critic is my 1 year old, and he devoured them with a bit of peanut butter spread on top, and yogurt on the side. Thank you!
Omg I really loved the recipe and we didn’t have much in terms of topping so just drizzled some honey and Nutella on top and this was really a godsend recipe!
So fluffy and mildly sweet which I loved.
Thank you for sharing, Aarthi!
WOW! These were delicious! I wouldn’t have thought a pancake could be this good; and I’m a serious pancake eater! That’s how good these were. I was planning on sharing them with my neighbor kiddos but I ended up eating most of them right from the pan I used almond milk and cooked them in my cast iron pan with a drop of coconut oil. OMGoodness! Thank you for always sharing better recipes for me and the world. XO
This has been my family’s go to pancake recipe for the past 3 years. We also love the whole wheat apple muffin recipe which brings me to my question. Would I be able to substitute grated apples for the banana in this pancake recipe? Been dreaming about making the pancake version of your apple muffin recipe lol
so good!!! made a double batch and froze them for weekday breakfast toaster warm ups. making another double batch tonight
Thank you so much for this recipe! I’ve never made pancakes with whole wheat flour and I was skeptical but now I will never use white flour for pancakes! So delicate and delicious!
First time making these and they turned out perfect! My 10 month old baby devoured them too!
Hooray! That’s great to hear, Maya.
I really like this recipe, I’d very tasty. There is one gripe though, personally, it calls for too much water.
Amazing texture and so easy but mine tasted quite strongly of baking soda. I am in Malaysia so maybe their baking powder is different…
After the first pancake test, a healthy dose of choc chips and walnuts sorted out that problem! Thanks.
I made these for dinner (breakfast for dinner). They were better than I expected. I like, not love banana but needed a quick way to use 2 very ripes bananas. I plan to save the recipe. Thank you!!
You’re welcome, Renee!
This is the best recipe ever. I tried it once and it’s been my go to now for a couple of months. My kids love it. I usually make them with some white chocolate chips and skip the syrup! Amazing!
Great to hear, April! I appreciate your review.