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These low carb walnut pancakes make a quick and delicious breakfast that’s full of healthy fats, health-boosting nutrients and free of processed sugars. And they taste great!
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Today I’m bringing you a special treat from a friend I met through blogging, Shelby of Fitasamamabear.com.
Shelby’s blog first caught my eye while I was searching for new recipes to share with you on Pinterest and Facebook. I love her simple, easy, healthy recipes, and am very happy to have met her, albeit virtually.
Like me, Shelby has varied interests. That’s why you’ll find DIY type posts amongst her recipes. And, because fitness is also a big part of her life, her blog is a great resource for getting yourself into shape. That’s something I’ve been wanting to work more on lately. 😉
I think we jive because her blog really fits my old tagline… “Real food can, and should, be fun!”
Shelby is a strength coach, nutrition coach & chronic foodie and, most importantly, mama to a super cute little girl. She enjoys sweaty workouts, tasty meals and trying her best to live holistically (though there’s definitely a lot of trial and error there!). Most of all, she loves sharing knowledge on everything parent & health-related.
Healthy pancake recipes
Shelby is going to share with you a recipe for some low-carb walnut-based pancakes.
What I love about these pancakes is that not only are they grain-free and paleo, but they are also low in carbs. While I don’t follow a keto diet or count carbs personally, I do feel better when I keep my carb intake relatively low.
Here at home, I make paleo plantain pancakes quite often because my son loves them. They’re super easy to make and taste great. Because they use plantains, though, the carb count is higher than her walnut pancakes.
To change things up, I sometimes add some cocoa powder to make chocolate pancakes. If you’re really feeling fancy, you can make some impressive-looking stuffed double chocolate pancakes.
The original version is stuffed with a chocolate mascarpone filling, but if you’re strictly paleo or otherwise avoiding dairy, you can either just leave the pancakes unstuffed, or fill them with my alternative paleo filling.
Being a “total pancake fiend,” as she calls herself, Shelby also has several other pancake recipes on her blog. One tasty option is a recipe for gluten-free strawberry pancakes that use sprouted buckwheat flour.
Another nut-based pancake she makes uses almonds instead of walnuts.
She also has a popular recipe for high protein yogurt pancakes. I really need to try those out!
I’ll stop blabbing now, and leave Shelby to tell you about her recipe…
Why Make these Low Carb Pancakes?
Breakfast has often been touted as the “most important meal of the day”. Unfortunately, though, most breakfast foods are loaded with excess sugar, poor quality flours, and minimal nutrients. These low carb, walnut pancakes are far from the norm. They provide your family with a healthy, filling, and tasty start to the day!
In my house, pancakes are a morning staple (with my high protein yogurt pancakes being one of my daughter’s favorites!). We love pancakes for a few simple reasons: they’re quick, filling, and when made properly, healthy!
These walnut pancakes are not only a healthy breakfast alternative but they’re low-carb too! Using walnuts for the base ensures that the pancakes are low in carbohydrates but high in nutrients, specifically healthy fats.
Health benefits of walnuts
Walnuts have been said to be one of the world’s healthiest foods. And with good reason! They’re a wonderful source of healthy fats, particularly omega-three fats. This not only makes them taste great but also helps reduce inflammation in the body.
Omega-three fats have been shown to improve brain development (specifically in utero), help ease the pain of arthritis, reduce symptoms of depression and improve your heart health. This means boosting your intake of these fats is a great way to improve your overall health profile.
On top of their fat intake, walnuts are high in antioxidants, manganese, and copper. This means that these nuts help lower your overall risk of disease.
The importance of pancakes being low in processed sugar
Another perk of these walnut pancakes is that they’re low in processed sugar!
While maple syrup still keeps the pancakes sweet in flavor, using it also helps reduce your processed sugar intake – which is a much better start to the day!
Since most breakfast recipes are sugar-based, it’s no wonder even after eating we have trouble focusing, our energy dissipates quickly, and we’re hungry shortly after. All of this comes down to excess processed food consumption.
While maple syrup still breaks down into sugar when ingested, having a base of healthy fats and proteins helps slow the release of the sugars. This keeps you full, focused and stable.
Healthy fiber
Lastly, the coconut flour in the recipe not only helps bind the ingredients together but also adds a healthy fiber boost. Fiber can help lower cholesterol and improve digestion.
So truly, these pancakes give you an all-around, well-balanced start to your day.
All of these health perks are why I prefer to use nut-based pancakes as a breakfast staple in our house!
In summary:
Pancakes taste great, kids love them (they always manage to feel indulgent!), and with these low carbohydrate pancakes, you’re starting your day off with a healthy boost.
How to Make these low carb pancakes
Making these is quite easy. That said, most places don’t sell “walnut flour,” so you’ll want to begin by grinding the walnuts in a blender or food processor.
Once you’ve prepared the walnuts, add the coconut flour and baking powder. Mix the dry ingredients before adding the egg, vanilla extract, and maple syrup.
The dry ingredients Add the egg. Mixing together the batter pan fry on a skillet The finished pancakes!
Mix those ingredients together and then add enough almond milk to make a batter that’s easy to work with.
Heat up a skillet with a bit of ghee or coconut oil, and then spoon out the batter in small circles on the hot pan. If your batter is thick, use the spoon to help spread it out.
To cook the pancakes well without burning them, use medium to low heat.
These didn’t bubble up like traditional pancakes, so flip them after a few minutes, when the edges start to brown and they hold their shape. Once you’ve flipped them, turn the heat off and cover them with a lid to help them finish cooking through.
Watch me make Shelby’s walnut pancakes
Paleo Low Carb Walnut Pancakes
Paleo Low Carb Walnut Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup walnuts
- 1.5 Tbsp. coconut flour
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 Tbsp. maple syrup
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp. almond milk
- oil for frying, to keep the pancakes from sticking.
Instructions
- Grind the walnuts in a blender or food processor.
- Add the ground walnuts to a medium-sized bowl along with the other dry ingredients. Mix them together until well combined.
- Add the egg, vanilla, and syrup to the dry ingredients. Mix to combine fully. The batter should be sticky.
- Add in the almond milk and mix again until combined and the batter has thinned slightly.
- Heat a pan or skillet over low to medium heat.
- When warm, add some ghee, coconut oil, or spray with oil to prevent sticking.
- Portion the batter out into three even circles. Cook uncovered for around 6 minutes, until the edges start to brown.
- Flip and cook another 3-4 minutes until they look mostly done.
- Turn the pan off and cover. Let sit two minutes to finish cooking.
Notes
Nutritional Information
Update Information
This post was originally published on October 27, 2017. It was rewritten to better clarify the process in January of 2020, adding video and links to information about how walnuts and omega 3 fats can help promote good health.
Healthy 2-Ingredient Paleo Plantain Pancakes
When you say that the milk should thin the batter slightly, do you mean that it should still pretty much be one solid lump or actual, semiliquid batter?
In addition, how would you amend the wet ingredients to accommodate using a dry sweetener?
Thanks
Jo
Hi Jo,
Well this isn’t my recipe, but I did try making it myself the other day. (I normally always try out even guest post recipes myself before posting them, but I had posted this when I was in a kitchen remodel and wasn’t cooking much of anything at the time.)
I think I should be able to answer you myself.
When I made it, the batter was a lot thicker than the batter of my Healthy 2 Ingredient Pancakes – Paleo Plantain Pancakes. So, yes, it is still pretty thick, but you can pour it onto the pan. I did have to sort of spread it out with my spoon, though.
I would say that if you use a dry sweetener, that you would just balance it out with adding a splash more of whatever milk you are using, if needed. You don’t want this to be too liquid-y or it may not hold together well.
In comparison to the plantain pancakes I normally make myself, these are a little trickier to make because you have to use a lower heat and allow it to fully cook before flipping so they don’t fall apart. Mine cook up more like a “normal” pancake made with wheat flour. These have a lot less carbs, though. I find both types to be delicious. 😉
I love this recipe, although I, like Jo, use a dry sweetener (stevia) instead of maple syrup. Easily compensated for by adding extra almond milk, which the recipe probably needed anyway.
Hi Ed,
Great to hear that it worked out well for you with the substitution!