These homemade Banana Nut Pancakes have the perfect balance of delicate sweetness and nuttiness- perfect for a quick breakfast that the whole family will enjoy. The recipe is so simple, it is ALMOST too good to be true.
Top these fluffy banana pancakes with pecan butter or butter pecan syrup, and they're guaranteed to become your next breakfast obsession.
When it comes to cooking up a fancy breakfast, I almost always find myself turning to my classics like these chocolate chip banana muffins, buttermilk blueberry breakfast cake or our German Pancake Muffins when I'm in the mood for something fancy.
And while like everyone else, I usually think of banana bread whenever I end up with some ripe bananas, this time, I really wanted to try something a bit different. And that's when I whipped up these easy banana pancakes.
Why You'll Love This Banana Nut Pancakes Recipe
- They're healthy: Packed with bananas, pecans, and an egg, this is truly a super healthy pancake recipe.
- Super easy to make: This is the easiest banana pancake recipe there is!
- Customizable: You can also customize these banana pecan pancakes by adding different mix-ins of your choice. Chocolate chips, walnuts, berries, and even honey are all great choices.
- Family-friendly: The delicate flavor of these pancakes makes them a hit even with picky eaters! They're the perfect breakfast that the whole family can enjoy.
Ingredients
- Flour: You'll need just the regular all-purpose flour. No fancy stuff!
- Bananas: Use ripe or browned bananas for this recipe. They have a delightful natural sweetness, which is exactly what you want. Plus, they're easier to mash.
- Leavening agents: To make the pancakes fluffy, I used both baking powder and baking soda.
- Milk: This will help loosen the batter and get it to the right consistency. Choose full-fat milk instead of skim milk for a richer flavor.
- Sugar: This one's of course, to sweeten the pancakes. Use light brown sugar if you want a deeper flavor.
- Egg: Eggs lend the pancakes structure and flavor. Use room-temperature eggs for best results.
- Pecans: For that extra bit of crunch and flavor, I used pecans. They complement the flavor of these banana pancakes beautifully.
- Vanilla: That hint of vanilla really makes everything better! Use vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste- whatever you have at hand.
- Cinnamon: I also like to add a bit of cinnamon powder for a bit of extra flavor. Feel free to skip this one if you don't have it.
- Butter: You'll need this to add richness and moisture to the batter. Use vegetable oil if you want to skip the butter.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations
- Gluten-free: Swap the all-purpose flour in the recipe for any gluten-free flour of your choice to make these pancakes gluten-free.
- Dairy-free: Use dairy milk (preferably oat milk or almond milk) instead of regular milk to make a dairy-free version of these pancakes and swap the butter for any neutral oil of your choice.
- Chocolatey: Want a bit of extra flavor? Throw in some semisweet chocolate chips or a teaspoon of cocoa powder into the pancake batter!
- Nut-swap: Swap the pecans in the recipe for walnuts to make banana walnut pancakes.
How to Make Banana Nut Pancakes
Grab all your ingredients ready and let's get started!
Step 1: Prepare dry mixture. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, cinnamon and a pinch of salt.
Step 2: Prepare wet mixture. In another bowl, mix the egg with mashed bananas, milk, butter, and vanilla.
Step 3: Mix it up. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of wet ingredients and mix to combine.
Step 4: Make pancakes. Spoon the mixture onto a hot pan over medium heat and allow it to cook.
Step 5: Flip it! Flip the pancakes and cook for a few more minutes.
Step 6: Serve. Take the pancakes off heat. Top them with the maple pecan butter and some toasted pecans or your favorite pancake toppings!
Hint: To toast pecans, arrange them in a single layer on a prepared baking sheet and roast for 3-4 minutes in the oven at 350 degrees.
If you love this recipe you've got to try my banana mug cake, fluffy mango pancakes or chocolate chip banana bread.
Storage Directions
- Storing: If you have any leftovers, you can refrigerate them for up to 3 days. Simply move the pancakes to an airtight container and pop them in the fridge.
- Reheating: You can reheat the pancakes in the microwave or your toaster.
- Freezing: You can also choose to batch-make the pancakes and freeze them. They last for up to 3 months. To do this, simply flash-freeze them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and once they're frozen solid, pop them in a freezer-safe container, with parchment paper between each pancake to keep them from sticking to each other. That's it!
Serving Suggestions
These delicious banana nut pancakes can be enjoyed on their own, or topped with some whipped cream, chopped toasted pecans, and a nice drizzle of maple pecan butter.
If you have fresh bananas, you can also slice them up and top them over your stack of pancakes.
Still need a bit of inspiration? Use my list of best pancake toppings for more ideas.
Sometimes, when I'm in the mood to whip up a whole breakfast spread, I also whip up a couple of side dishes like sausage patties or crispy bacon twists to go with them. Use my list of pancake side dishes for some inspiration!
Recipe Tips
- Mash-mash: Make sure you mash the bananas really well so you have a smooth batter. You might want to do this in a separate bowl before you combine it with the eggs and butter.
- Heat it right: When you're mixing the batter, start heating the pan or griddle. If the pan isn't heated enough, the pancakes might not brown up nicely on that side.
- Don't press: You might be tempted to, but don't flatten the pancakes with your spatula. This causes them to lose their shape and fluffiness.
- Use cooking spray: Even if you're using a nonstick pan, remember to grease the surface with a bit of butter or cooking spray before you pour the batter.
Recipe FAQs
Keep an eye on the surface of the pancake batter. If you start to see lots of bubbles come up from the center, it's time to flip.
Use the corner of your spatula to gently touch the center of the pancake. If it feels springy and slightly firm, it is ready to be served.
Over-mixing the batter is almost always the reason behind chewy pancakes. Remember to gently combine the ingredients until you get a smooth batter.
More Delicious Breakfast Recipes
Here are some more of my favorite breakfast dishes for you to try!
Ready to get cooking? Remember that you can print this recipe if you would like.
How to Make Video
Homemade Banana Pancakes with Nuts
Equipment
Ingredients
Banana Hotcakes or Pancakes
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ - 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup milk
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ cups mashed ripe bananas about 3 bananas
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil or butter, melted but not hot
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice or vanilla
- cooking spray or butter, for greasing
Toasted Pecans
- ½ cup pecans chopped
- parchment paper
Maple Pecan Butter
- ½ cup butter softened
- ½ cup pecans roughly chopped
- ⅓ cup real maple syrup or honey
Optional Toppings
- syrup
- whipped cream
- ice cream
Instructions
Banana Pancakes
- In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium sized bowl, combine egg, milk, bananas, oil or butter and lemon juice or vanilla. Add slowly to flour mixture.
- Stir until incorporated. Do not over-mix.
- Over medium heat, prepare a skillet with butter or cooking spray,
- Scoop batter onto your hot skillet. Make the pancakes any size you want.
- Once bubbles start to form on the top of the pancakes, they're ready to flip over.
- Once golden brown on both sides, serve with the Maple Pecan Butter and toasted nuts.
Roasted Pecans
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Line a rimmed cookie sheet with parchment paper and spread out pecans in an even layer.
- Roast or toast for 4 minutes, rotate pan, and adjust pecans. Continue to toast until fragrant and color deepens slightly; about 4 minutes more.
- Place cookie sheet with toasted nuts on top on of a wire rack to cool.
Maple Pecan Butter
- In a small bowl combine butter, pecans, syrup or honey. Stir until blended and smooth. Set aside.
Mary says
These pancakes are perfect with your pecan butter I will be making these again my kids loved it Thx
Karin and Ken says
Kids usually do love these! Glad your kids were not the exception! I love them myself too! Thank you for letting me know. Take care of you and be well. Karin
Cindy says
These pancakes were so good and the pecan butter was AMAZING!!!! I actually used the leftover butter on toast and loved it. Thank you I will be making this recipe again.
Karin and Ken says
I love the pecan butter too! What a great idea to put some on toast! It will taste delicious! Happy to hear you enjoyed the pancakes too! They are a favorite around here! Can’t thank you enough for taking the time to let me know! All the best. Karin