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These AIP Pancakes made with cassava flour are a delicious and luxurious addition to your morning. When you're looking for that special weekend AIP breakfast treat, these whip up quickly and easily!
When I did the AIP Diet (Autoimmune Paleo Protocol) the first time in 2014 I don't think there WERE such things as AIP pancakes. At least that I was aware of.
It was kind of the dark ages back then.
Now though, AIP pancakes are a lot more common and they're made from all kinds of stuff – coconut flour, tigernut flour, bananas, plantains, you name it.
It's a fun time to be eating AIP as a result!
Table of contents
This post was updated on Feb 13, 2021.
This is an excerpt froom the whole tutorial video. Want to watch the whole video? You can see it on YouTube here- AIP Pancakes.
My AIP pancake recipe
When I had to do AIP again after a major Hashimoto's flare in 2018 I decided I needed a good recipe to use, so I came up with this one I share below.
It's gone through a few iterations as I've learned more and more about using AIP ingredients and techniques, and I'm pretty proud of the result!
They're as fluffy as egg-free, cassava flour-based pancakes can be and make me oh so happy 🙂
Note: Cassava flour does have a tendency to be a bit gummy, but as long as you make these silver dollar-sized (about 2-inches wide) and not plate-sized you should be fine.
And when you add the “chocolate” sauce as shown in the pictures, mmm mmm mmmm…. treat heaven!!
(Not familiar with Cassava Flour? Learn about it in The Ultimate Guide to AIP Flours)
How to Make these AIP Pancakes
Originally my recipe instructions were simply to mix the ingredients in a bowl and then cook in a pan, but I discovered by a happy accident recently that making these in a blender makes them even fluffier!
So you could do either way, but they seem to come out much flatter via the bowl method.
Either way you do it, mix the ingredients for the pancakes first before stirring in any additions like blueberries.
Then simply heat a pan (nonstick or cast-iron work best) over medium heat and then add a small amount of fat, like coconut or avocado oil to the pan, then add about 1-2 spoonfuls of batter per pancake into the pan. They will be small, silver dollar-sized pancakes, about 2-inches wide.
Cook 3 minutes, then flip and cook for an additional 3 minutes.
Freezing the Pancakes
You can also freeze these pancakes for later as they freeze beautifully.
I recommend laying them flat, not touching on a baking sheet or dish and then freezing for at least 4 hours. Then you can transfer them to a freezer-safe container.
Doing it this way ensures that the pancakes won't all freeze in one large frozen block and you'll be able to take out just what you need.
Thaw them either by leaving them in the fridge overnight or quickly from frozen by heating them in a microwave, toaster oven, oven, or in a pan on the stove.
The “Chocolate” Sauce
Of course, I must mention how to make this “Chocolate” Sauce if you really want to make these pancakes into a super special weekend treat.
All you need to do is add 1/2 cup of your favorite dairy-free milk (coconut milk or tigernut milk if on AIP), 2 tbsp of carob powder (cocoa if not on AIP), 2 tbsp maple syrup, 1 tsp arrowroot powder, and a pinch sea salt in a small saucepan.
Just whisk it all together and then heat over medium heat for 4 minutes, whisking occasionally.
You can store it for up to 5 days in the fridge, but it may get a “skin” on top. Just remove that and stir.
I also topped these pancakes with my AIP “Chocolate” Tigernut Granola and some fresh berries as well.
Adding Spinach to the Pancakes
Another fun variation is to make these as spinach pancakes! They taste the same, yet it's a great way to sneak in an extra serving of veggies and some fun color.
Literally the only difference is that you add a handful or two of baby spinach to the blender before blending.
Want More AIP Breakfast Recipes?
10 MORE delicious AIP Breakfast Ideas
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Lemon AIP Scones – sink your teeth into these amazing baked goods
AIP Breakfast eCookbook – 61+ AIP Breakfast recipes and ideas!
More Helpful AIP & Paleo Resources in the Freebie Library
If you find this recipe helpful, you may really enjoy the resources in my Paleo & AIP Freebie Library! There's a “dump” freezer meal plan, a list of AIP-compliant breakfast toppings, and so much more. Plus, you'll get even more ideas sent to your inbox! Get the password here.
AIP Cassava Flour Pancakes Recipe
If you make these pancakes, I'd love to hear how it turned out! Either comment below or share a pic on Instagram and tag me @thrivingautoimmune!
AIP Cassava Flour Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 cup Cassava Flour
- 1/4 cup Tapioca Starch
- 1 tsp Cream of Tartar
- 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
- 1/4 tsp Sea Salt
- 1 + 1/8 cup Coconut Milk (or use tigernut milk or banana milk)
- 1/3 cup Banana (mashed (about 1 small) (can also use applesauce instead))
- 1.5 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- 2 tbsp Coconut Sugar or Maple Sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- Coconut or Avocado oil for the pan
Instructions
- Mix all of the ingredients in blender (preferred method for fluffy pancakes) or in a large bowl and mix until smooth. Go for at least 30 seconds in the blender.
- Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add a small amount (about a tablespoon) of coconut or avocado oil to the pan, melt if necessary, and then swirl around to cover.
- Spoon 1-2 large spoonfuls (approx 2-3 tbs) of batter into the pan to form a pancake, and repeat until you run out of space. (These will be small, silver dollar sized pancakes, about 2 inches wide)
- Cook for 3 minutes and then flip and cook for 3 minutes more.
Notes
I thought I was in heaven to eat these tonight. No, they are not like non AIP pancakes; however, by letting them cook until bubbles were present all across, the edges were crispy and delicious. I topped with fresh blueberries, coconut cream, and a very small touch of coconut nectar. Thank you for such an easy and tasty recipe to follow!
I’m so happy you liked them!! ❤️
I too have tried various pancake recipes. It’s the starch that makes them gummy. I leave it out or only use 1 Tbsp. (but I am able to use’eggs so that helps them.
These are really good, thank you for the recipe. They remind of the fried banana dessert at PF Changs. I do have to say, the middle is a little gummy, but the outside was nice and crispy and yummy. I think next time I will make them like mini pancakes, to avoid so much of the gummy part. I added cinnamon, topped with a drizzle of maple syrup, coconut flakes, and strawberries. Seriously tasted like a dessert!
I’ve heard that some of the gumminess goes away if you microwave them (at least, that’s what some people have told me for my AIP Flatbread recipe). Could be worth trying if you have a microwave and don’t want the gumminess – it apparently is due to the particular cassava flour brand (again, something I learned from the flatbreads). But I’m glad you enjoy them!
I love this recipe! a few tips:
– mix the apple cider vinegar in with the coconut milk before combining with the dry ingredients, this helps to evenly activate the baking soda and gives a fluffier result.
– use copious amounts of coconut oil in a non-stick pan. First time I tried this recipe they stuck horribly.. use more oil than you would think.
– for DELISH “pizza crust” make the pancakes w/o sweetener & vanilla (still use the banana) put Nomato sauce, cured meat, basil, nutritional yeast etc on the mini pizza-pancake then pop in the oven at 450 to crisp up. So happy to have my Friday night pizza night back!
Wow, never even thought about using it for pizza crust but that’s a really cool idea! Thanks so much for sharing!!
Hmm. I was going to give opposite advice. I have a great non-stick frying pan (t-fal) and found that I liked the texture better if I didn’t use any cooking fat. They are the “best” AIP pancake out there. I’ve been doing AIP for more than 4 years now and needed a reset so I was in search for an AIP pancake. I’ve probably tried more than a dozen recipes and haven’t liked any of them until I found these. However they ARE NOT light and fluffy. They are chewy but still the best out there. Also, you may want to use applesauce if you don’t want a banana flavored pancake. I was able to them normal pancake size. I really like that they don’t use gelatin. I hate messing with it first thing in the morning. :0)
couldn’t get these to cook on the stove without sticking.. so i used a waffle machine and they turned out super good. seriosuly tasty felt guilty after eating them lol.
They turned out really gooey and soft for me. Yum. Although spiked my blood sugar haha. DO you know any good pancake or waffle recipes that use plantains instead?
thanks for the recipe (:
Hmm, I liked this one by Grazed and Enthused: http://grazedandenthused.com/paleo-flourless-lemon-poppyseed-waffles-aip-adaptablevegansugar-free/ . There was another one we liked too but my husband knows which one it is, I’ll have to ask him!
Fluffy Plantain Pancakes
From “The Autoimmune Protocol Made Simple Cookbook”
I don’t have time to write out the entire recipe and I have not tried it yet, but I’m about to!
Great recipe!
What is the purpose of the apple cider vinegar and can I omit it?
Thank you
It’s to help activate the baking soda and cream of tartar to help the batter rise, so you’d need either it or some other acid, like an equivalent amount of lemon juice or white wine vinegar to help them rise.
Im confused by the amount of ACV.
You have tbs—is that Tablespoon or teaspoon?? It is not consistent with how you have the other measurements throughout the recipe.
Sorry, it is a tablespoon. I used to put everything as “tbs” but changed it to “tbsp” about a year ago to make it clearer and I guess old habits die hard. It’s fixed now.
I put the batter in a waffle iron. Crunchy on the outside and chewy in the middle. Can’t really get any better without eggs. I topped it with maple syrup, strawberries, and blueberries, and coconut cream.
Oh cool! haven’t thought to put it in the waffle iron but that sounds yummy!
These are the best AIP pancakes I’ve made yet. After countless recipe fails, I’m so happy to have found one that works! Thank you so much. I topped mine with warm berries 🙂
I’m so glad you liked them! Warm berries sound heavenly on them!
I made these this morning, I halved the recipe since I didnt need that many pancakes but they seem kinda gummy. I guess from reading the reviews that’s how they were supposed to be. They did satisfy my desire for pancakes. Thank u
Yeah, one of these days I’m going to get back to this recipe to see if I can make it less gummy. They’re a lot less so than any others I’ve had but cassava flour in anything seems to do that. Glad they satisfied your pancake desire though- I know that’s a total real thing cause I suffer from it too 🙂
I don’t like coconut sugar. Can I substitute with stevia or swerve of maple syrup?
Hmm, I’ve got no idea about stevia or swerve. You could replace it with maple sugar with no problem, but maple syrup would also change the consistency as well. It could be done, just not sure of the ratios unfortunately.
Thanks! We tried these pancakes this morning and they were great, definitely my most successful pancakes attempt. I didn’t have any bananas so substituted an equal amount of applesauce, added 1/4 tsp cinnamon. I did have to use coconut oil for cooking or there’s no way they would have made it out of the pan looking like a pancake. I will definitely make these again.
Glad you enjoyed – and thanks for letting me know that applesauce works too. I just made a TON of applesauce from our apple tree, so that’ll come in handy!
This recipe is great- simple, the flavor is fantastic! However….these are NOT light and fluffy. I have yet to make anything with cassava that IS light and fluffy, so I was skeptical going in. But the batter was light and fluffy, so I was optimistic. But the end result was warm and delicious, but dense and chewy. Perfectly fine and I will definitely make these again. But if you expect the fluffy buttermilk pancake of your pre-aip days, you will be disappointed. That being said, this was MUCH better than the other recipes I have tried. And my toddler was happy to have these- he has been asking for pancakes for months. So thank you!
Yeah, I guess I should have been a bit more direct there than just snarky about “about as fluffy as egg-free pancakes can be”. And I’ve not actually HAD anything really light and fluffy since I got diagnosed as Celiac 4.5 years ago, so my definition is probably a bit different than someone who recently got to enjoy a gluten-filled buttermilk pancake. Oh how jealous I am of them! These are the lightest and fluffiest AIP ones I’ve had, but perhaps I need to reword that.. Because trust me, I’ve had some flat, dense, chewy pancakes on AIP and I was so overjoyed to figure out this recipe… Hmm… Now to figure out how to reword that as to not mislead anyone…
I totally get that! And I am new…I have only been gluten free for a few months, and AIP for 6 weeks. I totally believe you that these may well be the best, and lightest, AIP cassava pancakes. I just think people will be happier with the result if they know what to expect going in. I was just happy to have something that filled the “pancake” part of “pancake day” at our house, and did it well. 🙂
I’ve been eating AIP for over two years now and have tried many pancake recipes. Most end up cooking like tortillas, or are tough and crispy and not appetizing. These are by far the best! I did do some substitutions for mine.
Sub arrowroot powder for banana flour.
A dash of beef gelatin.
Skipped the cream of tartar.
A tiny bit more coconut milk.
I’m glad I watched the video tutorial.
They make cute little light and fluffy pancakes! I topped mine with sliced banana, ginger powder and maple syrup. I will be making these again!
Thanks so much for sharing your modifications that worked! Glad you liked them.
One of our family traditions is to have pancakes and ice cream for birthday breakfast, I am currently back on AIP following a Hashimoto’s flare and was sooo happy to find your pancake recipe so I was able to fully enjoy our family tradition. They are the fluffiest and best tasting AIP pancakes I have tasted in my 2.5 year gluten free journey. Thank you!
That’s so great to hear, thanks for taking the time to leave this comment! Hope you had a great birthday!
Can these be cooked in a waffle maker?
I’ve had people tell me they’ve successfully made them in a waffle maker – I just haven’t tried it myself. Need to do that sometime!
I’ve been on the AIP diet for 7 days today and it’s been difficult for sure. I like savory spicy breakfasts and have never been big on pancakes, even chock full of yummy gluten! But, I’ve got to tell you, these were awesome! I even made them big and covered them with home made blueberry sauce and maple syrup. Thank you so much for the delicious recipe.
This is by far the best AIP compliant pancake recipe! I’ve made it so many times and it makes my day. I know one commenter said that they are not fluffy but omg they are sooo fluffy!!! Your tip about making the batter in a blender is the best tip to get it fluffy. Thank you for making my Saturday mornings the best!!