Carrot Cake Pancakes

Carrot cake fans rejoice! Everything you love about carrot cake is rolled into these delicious and nutritious pancakes. They’re even topped with cream cheese frosting. Breakfast never tasted so good.

Feb 13, 2024

Carrot cake meets homemade pancakes in today’s recipe. Call it fusion cuisine or just a fun food mash-up, these carrot cake pancakes are going to become a new family favorite for breakfast.

Anytime it’s feasible to sneak vegetables into a breakfast dish, I’m all in. I packed about 3 medium-sized carrots into these scrumptious pancakes. I highly recommend grating whole carrots yourself instead of using bagged shredded carrots. Compared to fresh whole carrots, pre-shredded carrots lack flavor and moisture. If your shredded carrots are flavorless and dry, your pancakes will be too.

While this recipe serves eight (two nice sized pancakes per serving), I’d make the entire batch even if you’re only cooking for a few people. Freezing pancakes is so easy you’ll be able to enjoy the leftovers when the mood strikes. Here’s what to do. Once the cooked pancakes have cooled completely, set them on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet in a single layer, making sure they’re not touching each other. Place them in the freezer for at least an hour. Once completely frozen, transfer pancakes to a zip-top freezer bag, label and date, and return to the freezer. Packaged properly, frozen pancakes should stay fresh for up to three months.

To reheat frozen pancakes, pop them into the toaster until they’re warm and slightly crispy on the edges. You can also reheat frozen pancakes in a 375-degree oven. Place pancakes on a cookie sheet in a single layer. Cover tightly with foil to keep them from drying out and bake for 10 to 15 minutes. For a softer pancake, arrange on a microwave-safe plate and heat uncovered for 30 to 60 seconds, or until heated through. Stacking them when reheating in the microwave may cause them to stick together.

The cream cheese topping for these pancakes, is not freezer friendly. That creamy, perfectly sweetened frosting will need to be made fresh when enjoying your leftover carrot cake pancakes.

To your health,

Darlene

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CARROT CAKE PANCAKES

Yield: 8 servings

Serving Size: 2 pancakes with 2 tablespoons cream cheese topping and 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts

Prep: 20 minutes

Ready: 1 hour

INGREDIENTS

Pancakes

1 cup white whole-wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups 1% milk
1 large egg
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons neutral oil (such as canola or vegetable oil), divided
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 2/3 cup freshly grated carrots
2/3 cup raisins

Cream cheese topping and walnut garnish

6 tablespoons (3 ounces) reduced-fat cream cheese (such as Philadelphia 1/3 less fat Neufchâtel cheese), softened
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup plain low-fat Greek yogurt (such as FAGE Total 2%)
1/4 cup 1% milk
1/2 cup walnuts halves, chopped

DIRECTIONS

To prepare pancakes, combine whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl; set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, egg, oil (2 tablespoons), and vanilla extract. Pour liquid mixture over dry ingredients and stir until batter is just combined. Allow batter to sit while grating carrots. Add grated carrots and raisins to batter and stir until just combined.
Coat a nonstick griddle or skillet with 1 teaspoon oil and set heat to medium-high. When hot, spoon batter onto griddle using a level 1/4 cup measure per pancake. Turn pancakes when tops form bubbles and edges appear cooked. Briefly cook second side just long enough to brown. Repeat with remaining batter, using additional 1 teaspoon oil to coat skillet if necessary. Batter will yield 16 pancakes.
To prepare cream cheese topping, using an electric mixer, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract until smooth. Add yogurt and milk and continue to beat until smooth.
To serve, place 2 pancakes on a plate, dollop with 2 tablespoons cream cheese topping, and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts.

Nutrition Information per Serving

362 Calories, 12.5 g Total fat, 3 g Saturated fat, 0 g Trans fat, 33 mg Cholesterol, 366 mg Sodium, 54 g Total carbohydrate, 4 g Dietary fiber, 27 g Total sugars, 13 g Added sugars, 9 g Protein, 1 mcg (6%) Vitamin D, 128 mg (10%) Calcium, 2 mg (10%) Iron, 306 mg (6%) Potassium