These sweet Banana Spinach Pancakes are a favorite when you’re looking to boost nutrition in a favorite breakfast option. Or to have a little fun at the breakfast table by serving up a colorful meal.
Spinach Pancakes
I never thought that my older daughter would be such a fan of green pancakes, but just when you think you know your kiddo, they go and surprise you! It turns out that she’ll eat pretty much anything in pancake form. This (and Spinach Pesto and my Spinach Muffins) are by far her preferred ways to get her greens.
I love how these are both easy to make and they’re so easy for the kids to enjoy.
The beauty of this kids pancake recipe is that it comes together in the blender so you don’t have to dirty a sink full of dishes to make it happen.
And it includes two bananas and small pile of spinach, so everyone will get a nice amount of vitamins and minerals to start the day.
TIP: The flavor is sweet, so despite the color, they taste like healthy banana pancakes.
Ingredients You Need
To make this simple pancake recipe you’ll need:
- Very ripe bananas: Those with brown spots will have the best flavor
- Eggs
- Buckwheat flour or whole wheat flour
- Milk: Dairy or nondairy
- Baby spinach: You can use fresh spinach or spinach that you’ve frozen
- Ground flaxseed
- Baking powder
- Cinnamon
- Vanilla extract,
- Oil or butter for cooking
Ingredient Substitutions
Both whole wheat and buckwheat flour work well in this recipe, though the pancakes cook through more easily with buckwheat. Look for it in the natural flours section of your supermarket. It’s widely available and very nutritious. For tips on using whole wheat flour, see the Notes section at the bottom of the recipe as you’ll want to reduce the milk amount slightly.
Use an egg replacer like the one from Bob’s Red Mill to make these egg-free.
Use buckwheat flour to make these gluten-free.
Use nondairy milk to make these without dairy.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s a look at how to make these healthy pancakes. Scroll down to the bottom of this post for the full information.
- Add all ingredients to a blender except the flour.
- Blend, starting on low and working up to high. You want the spinach to be very well incorporated.
- Stir or pulse in the flour. Avoid over-blending but do make sure to get all of the flour blended in.
- Cook as you would any other pancakes and serve warm.
TIP: I like to cook these in a nonstick skillet or griddle since they are easiest to flip. Cast iron also works if well greased.
Gluten-Free Spinach Pancakes
Yes! Buckwheat flour is naturally gluten-free and it works well in this recipe.
Dairy-Free Spinach Pancakes
To make these dairy-free, simply use nondairy plain unsweetened milk instead of dairy milk and cook with neutral oil.
Easy Baby Pancakes
Due to the very soft texture of these pancakes, they tend to be much easier for babies to eat than traditional ones. And since they are packed with nutrients, this is a favorite pancake recipe to make for baby led weaning and once a baby is starting to eat finger foods.
TIP: Find my favorite early finger foods for babies here.
Serving Suggestions
Maple syrup and butter of course, or nut butter, yogurt, applesauce, chopped fruit, or jam are all good options. When my middle kiddo was a baby, she ate them plain!
TIP: We like to have ours with a fruit salad rainbow (without the pot of gold at the end, unfortunately!) for St. Patrick’s Day, but that part is of course optional.
How to Store
These store really well if you let any leftovers cool and store in an airtight container or zip top freezer bags. You can store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days or in a freezer safe container or bag for up to 3 months. Warm in 15 second increments in the microwave to serve.
Tips for Making the Best Spinach Pancakes
- You can store a bag of baby spinach in the freezer to use in smoothies and pancakes. Freezing it maintains the nutrients but it knocks out any “green” flavor which is handy! It’s also nice that you don’t have to worry about it going bad before you can use it up.
- Be sure to blend the batter very smooth to get the greens very well processed.
- You can sub in whole wheat flour for the buckwheat, but you’ll want to reduce the milk by ¼ cup.
- If the bottoms start to brown too much before they are set, lower the heat to medium-low.
- Look for buckwheat in the natural flours section of your supermarket. It’s widely available and very nutritious.
- If making for a baby who’s not yet consuming cow’s milk, you can use unsweetened nondairy milk.
- I prefer to use a nonstick skillet or griddle for this recipe, though cast iron works too.
- You may also like Spinach Banana Muffins, 2-Ingredient Pancakes, Banana Oatmeal Pancakes, and Yogurt Pancakes.
I’d love to hear what you think of this recipe so please comment below with feedback!
This post was first published March 2018.
Best Banana Spinach Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2 cups lightly packed baby spinach
- 2 small very ripe bananas (about 1 cup tightly packed sliced bananas)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup buckwheat flour or whole wheat (See Notes at the bottom if using whole wheat)
- Coconut oil for cooking (or unsalted butter)
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a blender except the flour.
- Blend on high until very well combined, about 20-30 seconds, or until you no longer see any noticeable flecks of spinach.
- Stir or pulse in the flour and thoroughly combine without over-mixing.
- Warm a nonstick or cast iron skillet or griddle over medium heat and coat with oil or butter. Pour small rounds of batter onto the hot surface—the batter should spread fairly thinly on its own—and let cook until bubbles form on the surface and the surface is mostly set, about 3-4 minutes.
- Flip and cook for an additional 3 minutes, or until fully cooked.
- Continue to prepare the rest of the batter, keeping the finished pancakes warm in a 275 degree oven if desired.
- Serve warm with fruit, maple syrup, or another favorite dip.
Video
Notes
- To store, let cool fully and keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Warm slightly before serving. Or, store in a zip top freezer bag for up to 3 months and warm through to serve.
- Whole-wheat flour: You can sub in whole wheat flour for the buckwheat. Just reduce the milk to ¾ cup.
- You can use baby kale in this recipe if you prefer.
- You can store a bag of baby spinach in the freezer to use in smoothies and pancakes. Freezing it maintains the nutrients but it knocks out any “green” flavor which is handy! It’s also nice that you don’t have to worry about it going bad before you can use it up.
- Be sure to blend the batter very smooth to get the greens very well processed.
- If the bottoms start to brown too much before they are set, lower the heat to medium-low.
- Look for buckwheat in the natural flours section of your supermarket. It’s widely available and very nutritious.
- If making for a baby who’s not yet consuming cow’s milk, you can use unsweetened nondairy milk.
- I prefer to use a nonstick skillet or griddle for this recipe, though cast iron works too.
Awesome recipe, thanks for sharing! My 3.5yo and 14 month old devoured these! What other vegies could be either added or substituted?
You could use kale in place of the spinach and you could probably try mashed, roasted sweet potato for the banana!
I didn’t have spinach on hand, so I actually went outside and cut some stinging nettles to throw in, and I had frozen kale and swiss chard, so I put some of that in as well…I used a cauliflower based flour, because we are mostly grain free here, but they turned out great! I did also need to add a bit of water as the batter was super thick… my one year old and my three year old loved them!
If stored in the fridge, can these be eaten cold? Other than the microwave, could I heat these in a pan or would that over cook them? Maybe on low heat?
Yes, they can be eaten cold. You could warm them over low heat in a pan, sure!
My one year old ate 2 of these this morning! They are a bit soft for me (I halved the recipe so hopefully I didn’t measure wrong) but not bad. He doesn’t care for spinach but eats these 🙂
Do you happen to know the nutritional value?
The nutrition info is at the bottom of the recipe. I’m glad your kiddo enjoyed them!
Just made these, and I can’t wait to offer them to my LO. Quick question, I have a 9 month old , and my pediatrician said not to give the baby raw milk. Do you know if it’s okay if I used 2% milk in the pancakes?
Babies aren’t supposed to have dairy milk since it can be hard for them to digest. In this case, since the milk is both cooked and the amount in each pancake would be small, I would feel okay giving it to my baby. Maybe start with a smaller serving to be sure it all goes well?
Quick question. What almond milk is everyone using? I usually have unsweetened vanilla almond on hand but also have original (never tried this before).
You could use either of those. I’d start with original since the vanilla flavors can vary (but really both are likely going to be fine!)
The kids loved these, thanks for the recipe! I followed it precisely and they came out just right, a bit more wet like a crepe.
Can I make less?
Should I half all the ingredients?
You could half the recipe or make the whole thing and freeze some for a future week.
Thanks for the recipe. I put it in a penguin shaped waffle maker and our son loved it. ?
That sounds so fun!
Hi, these sound great. Does it work making them ahead of time and leaving the batter in the fridge overnight?
I haven’t tried that but I think it should be okay. It’s possible it will thicken up a little so you may need to stir in a little extra milk and/or spoon out the batter.
We loooooooove this recipe! We make these pancakes once a week and my girls (3.5 and 19 mo) and husband gobble them up so fast! My picky preschooler knows there’s spinach in there and doesn’t mind at all! Thanks!!
Yay! I’m so happy to hear that and thanks for taking the time to let me know!
These sound great, but I’m not sure my 4 yr old would eat green pancakes. Do you think adding a bit of coco powder would taste good and make them look chocolate?
I think that could work well! Start with 1 tablespoon and increase a bit if it’s not quite dark enough. I’m going to try this!
Haven’t tried this recipe yet. SOO excited. Quick question though, how much butter do you use? I know it’s to grease the pan, but an exact amount would be nice if you don’t mind ???
I’d use about a teaspoon at first, which should last through 2 pans worth of pancakes (though it can depend on your pan). Then add more, let it melt and warm, and make more pancakes!
My 15 month old loves waffles so I tried this receipe in the waffle maker. They’re great! Made 4-5 full size waffles that I cooled, tore into quarters, and froze. I take 1-2 out at a time, toast in the toaster oven for 2-3 min, and they’re the perfect breakfast / snack!
I love the idea of these as waffles and I’m so glad that your kiddo enjoys these. Thanks for sharing!
I made 3 other “healthy” pancake recipes for my 2 year old before trying this one. The consistency of these 3 pancake recipes were never right and it got messy in the pan.. I am so glad I found this one! These were perfect and despite it being green, my daughter ate it all! Thank you for an awesome recipe!
I’m so happy to hear that they worked out so well Tina and that your daughter enjoyed them!!
Really? You can just pop a bag of baby spinach in the freezer?? That never occurred to me, but it sounds like a good trick! THanks for the cool tip!!
It’s so helpful to keep it on hand without worrying that it will go bad!