Easy High Protein Pancakes

June 28, 2024

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These easy high protein pancakes take just minutes to make, use only 5 ingredients, and have 30g of protein per serving. Make a bunch and freeze them for a quick breakfast anytime!

High protein pancakes on a speckled plates shot from above and garnished with black cap raspberries

I was planning on easing into the non keto recipes with semi keto friendly options after making an announcement about the future of IBIH last week, but these easy (definitely not keto) high protein pancakes were just too good not to share immediately.

As in I was testing them this morning and ended up photographing, editing, and I’m now writing this post all in the same day because I wanted you to have them in time for the weekend good.

For those of you that are still limiting your carbs, I recommend my keto cream cheese pancakes or the squeaky clean keto pancakes from the ebook. Another option for keto pancakes are these highly rated fluffy keto pancakes from the Big Man’s World.

Stack of high protein pancakes on a blue plate with black raspberries for garnish

Growing up, pancakes were an indulgence. My mom always made them from scratch, and we didn’t have them very often, so when we did it was a treat. As an adult, I always thought of them as unhealthy carb bombs with no nutritional value, so they were reserved for breakfast out or special occasions. Or camping – because pancakes and sausage when camping is just necessary breakfast perfection.

Getting the protein grams up to 30g per serving in this high protein pancake recipe is a game-changer for me, because now this isn’t just basically breakfast dessert, but a respectable meal that is helping me reach my daily protein target.

Of course, what you put on them matters too, so choose your toppings wisely and measure them out, because those syrup calories add up quick if you aren’t paying attention.

A stack of three high protein pancakes with maple syrup running down the side.

These high protein pancakes contain only 5 ingredients (not including water) and one of them is store-bought pancake mix. I debated making them with all “from scratch” ingredients, but in this climate of everyone being super busy and looking for shortcuts (including myself,) I figured this would be a realistic and easy substitution.

The ingredients that bulk up the protein in this high protein pancakes recipe are low-fat cottage cheese, egg whites, and unflavored whey protein powder. The combination created a truly fluffy and light pancake that browned beautifully.

As you can see from the photos these are sturdy and have a great texture on the inside. They would definitely hold up really well to the addition of blueberries without falling apart. I ate mine with black cap raspberries picked from my garden this morning, and they were so so good. I can’t wait for you to try these!

forkful of high protein pancakes showing the interior texture to be fluffy and light

Recipe Notes

I’m not sure if it’s the egg whites, or some other reason, but these high protein pancakes definitely want to stick to the pan, so be sure to use a non-stick skillet and some form of oil or butter. To keep the calories down I use an avocado oil spray, which worked great to keep them from sticking, and resulted in a nice golden brown exterior.

I used Krusteaz buttermilk pancake mix because that is what I had in the pantry, but any complete (just add water) mix will work. I don’t recommend a high protein pancake mix, because that might result in a much denser pancake, and I have yet to try one that I thought tasted good or had a good texture out of the gate anyway.

I used Good Culture low fat cottage cheese, which is our favorite, but any small curd cottage cheese that isn’t super liquidy should work ok in this recipe. Breakstone or Daisy are both good options.

For convenience sake, I used liquid egg whites (store brand) in this pancake recipe, but you could definitely just use separated egg whites. To equal the 1/2 cup I used, it would take about 4 large eggs.

I used unflavored, plain whey protein powder in these high protein pancakes, but you could get creative and try vanilla, chocolate, or even strawberry protein powder if you wanted to.

I am putting the serving size as 3 pancakes (half the recipe) and it is a very generous and filling amount, so you may decide to only have 2 pancakes per serving. I ate them at about 9:45am and I’m still full now at 2pm.

To make these high protein pancakes gluten free, simply replace the regular complete pancake mix with a gluten free pancake mix or baking blend.

Unfortunately this recipe hasn’t been tested in a dairy free format so I can’t recommend any substitutions, but here is a dairy free protein pancake recipe I found online that you might want to try instead.

These pancakes can be made ahead and reheated in the microwave for those hectic mornings. They will keep for about a week in the refrigerator, and about 6 months in the freezer. If frozen, reheat for 30 seconds or until warmed through, if refrigerated it may only take 10-20 seconds to warm them up, depending on the strength of your microwave. Err on the side of less time so you don’t dry them out.

If you try this recipe I hope you will report back in the comments, because I can’t wait to hear your thoughts! And if you have questions that aren’t covered here, leave them in the comments and I’ll add them to the recipe notes for others to benefit from.

Thanks for being here!

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