These fluffy vegan banana pancakes are inspired by the deep-fried Indian pancakes in India called Malpua. It uses a combination of whole fennel seeds, cardamom, and poppy seeds to flavor the pancakes and makes this taste exotic and delicious. You are in for a treat, my friend!
You can also choose to make my spiced syrup to pour on these fluffy vegan pancakes!
Why Spiced Banana Pancakes?
So, some time back, I kinda never understood the hype after pancakes. They did not taste phenomenal, and neither did they fill me up for breakfast. And it’s not that I didn’t try! I was curious to see why the Americans (and in turn all of social media) raved about it so much.
So I tried making regular pancakes, protein pancakes, and pumpkin spiced pancakes etc., partially also because I was also trying to fit into the vegan foodie space and saw a lot of oatmeal and vegan pancake situations going on. I then gave up. I mean if I needed a base to add toppings to, I would rather choose bread. Like a really good toasted sourdough, you know? I can’t be the only one!
Anyway, then I decided to change my strategy. Instead of trying to force myself to like things that were clearly attached to childhood nostalgia for most people, I decided to use the tool I have at hand: SPICES. I don’t mean chili peppers! But real whole spices. Say hello to my spiced, super Fluffy Vegan Banana pancakes spiced with real whole spices.
This whole fennel seed-cardamom-white poppy version is what really turned me into a pancake lover now.
I could eat this all day!
Ingredients and substitutions for Fluffy Vegan Banana Pancakes:
So I went with basic vegan banana pancake ingredients and then flavored it.
Basic ingredients:
- All purpose flour: You can easily sub with with whole wheat flour. Just know that the pancakes could be denser.
- Baking powder: Levener to make thee rise and fluff up.
- Ripe banana: Acts as a binder and natural sweetener for these vegan pancakes. I don’t add any other sweetener. If your banana is not ripe enough, then add a teaspoon of sugar into the batter.
- Plant milk: I used Soy milk, but feel free to use another type of plant milk.
Spices for the pancakes:
- Whole fennel seeds: We add half crushed and half whole seeds to enjoy the variety of flavor profiles obtained by changing the flavor extraction method (to learn more about spices, join my cooking courses 😉)
- Cardamom seeds: You can sub with pre-powdered cardamom, but the taste won’t be as
- White poppy seeds: Adds a unique nuttiness to the flavor. You can choose to skip it out.
For sugar syrup: Sugar, water, cardamom, saffron strands
Spiced Banana Pancake variations
To change up the spices you can use cinnamon, saffron, anise, cloves, or just cardamom
For spiced chocolate chip pancakes, add 1 cup of non-dairy chocolate chips to the batter.
For spiced berry pancakes, add around a cup of fresh or frozen berries to the batter.
How to store these Fluffy Vegan Banana Pancakes
These vegan pancakes will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, in an airtight container. Simply reheat in the microwave or toaster oven until warm.
These pancakes also freeze really well! Make sure to let them cool completely, then stack them in a large ziplock bag. Try to get most of the air out of the bag, close it, and freeze. To reheat, pop them in a toaster oven or a microwave until warm with your favorite toppings.
Other breakfast recipes to try:
- Healthy Vegetable Pancakes – Vegan, Gluten-Free
- Mango Basil Breakfast Pudding
- Mango Cardamom Nice-cream
Fluffy Vegan Banana Pancakes – Spiced with Fennel, and Cardamom
Ingredients
For Pancakes:
- 1 banana
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp Kala namak or black salt use a pinch of regular salt instead
- 1 cup All purpose flour
- 1 tsp fennel seeds divided
- ½ tsp White poppy seeds
- ½ tsp ground cardamom seeds
- oil for cooking
For sugar syrup:
- 1½ cup sugar
- 1½ cup water
- ½ tsp crushed cardamom seeds
- Few strands of saffron optional
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl sift in 1 cup all-purpose flour, ½ tsp kala namak, ½ tsp whole fennel, ¼ tsp crushed cardamom seeds, baking powder.
- In a blender add 1 banana and 1 cup milk and ½ tsp fennel seeds.
- Blend it smooth and transfer the banana smoothie mix to the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix it well.
- Make sure the batter is lump-free and set it aside to rest for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the sugar syrup. In a pan, add 1 cup sugar, 1 cup water, a few strands of saffron, and 1 tsp ground cardamom seeds.
- Bring this to a rolling boil then reduce the heat to a simmer.
- After 5 minutes or until the sugar syrup turns sticky in consistency, turn off the heat. Check doneness by doing the string test. If by touching with the tip of your index and thumb finger and pulling apart gets you a single string, then it is ready. If not, keep boiling it some more.
- Now heat up a seasoned skillet.
- Pour a ladle-full of the batter and cook one side on medium heat for about 2-3 minutes, or until you see bubbles on top.
- Flip and cook on the other side for another 2-3 minutes until you have golden brown sides.
- Repeat for the rest of the batter.
- Stack the pancakes on a plate, pour over the spiced sugar syrup, top with chopped pistachios and enjoy!
This recipe came as a boon! I was casually checking out your website, saw this, and decided to make it. I didn’t have white poppy seeds, but I had cardamom and fennel.
It was phenomenal. Best pancakes I have ever had! These are going to make a regular appearance at home now 🙂
Whoa! That was quick, Sarah! I’m SO happy to hear that you loved them. I fell in love with it too the first time I made these pancakes. It’s so special!
AMAZING!! My sister is so picky and doesn’t eat things easily, this is a true game changer! I didn’t get a chance to try them since she ate mine so I made them for breakfast today and it definitely is a killer! It’s perfect for me since I don’t like the sugary taste of normal ones, Thank you so much! These will be a everyday appearance to see at my home now!