Keto pumpkin pancakes made with coconut flour. These low carb pumpkin pancakes are dairy-free and gluten-free, and can be nut-free too. A perfect healthy fall breakfast. Instructional video included.
My delicious keto pumpkin pancakes get a brand new update!
I’ve come a long way in my keto cooking and baking since 2013, when this post was first written. But some recipes stand the test of time and this easy and healthy pumpkin pancake recipe is just one of those classics. So while I updated the photos and created a fun video for it, I didn’t change a thing in the original recipe.
I’m all about the pumpkin spice right now. I stood at my youngest child’s soccer game today and got thoroughly chilled through and now all I want is pumpkin spice EVERYTHING. Warm pumpkin-y goodness, I will take it any way, shape, or form.
And these keto pancakes fit the bill perfectly. They are divine with a pat of butter melting on top and perhaps a little of your favorite sugar free maple syrup.
How To Make Keto Pumpkin Pancakes
These pancakes are actually a variation of my Light and Fluffy Coconut Flour Pancakes. There are some recipes that are just right for adaptation, and that’s definitely one of them. Why reinvent the wheel if I don’t have to?
It definitely does take some modification, though, because the pumpkin puree can add enough moisture to really change the consistency. You can’t simply plop in a scoopful of pumpkin and hope for the best. You have to adjust the overall moisture content accordingly.
I found I still needed as many eggs as the basic pancakes, because coconut flour doesn’t hold together very well without plenty of eggs. But I cut back a bit on the oil and I reduced the added liquids.
Keep in mind that different brands of pumpkin puree can vary in consistency and different brands of coconut flour can vary in their absorbency. So I have left the added liquid as a range. You want to add just enough at the end to get a thick pancake better consistency.
I also included some protein powder to make these keto pumpkin pancakes extra fluffy and delicious. You can use whey protein, egg white protein, or hemp protein.
Do note that the batter doesn’t spread on its own in the pan. You need to pour it in and then use your measuring cup to spread the pancakes into a 3 or 4 inch circle.
Keep them on the small side! As with any low carb pancakes, the larger you make them, the harder they are to flip.
I’ve also noticed lately that when I cook pancakes in coconut oil instead of butter, they have less of a chance of over-browning while cooking. Butter browns very quickly in the pan as it heats and your pancakes, especially the ones toward the end of the batter, can get a little darker than they should. Coconut oil seems to help and if you happen to have dairy allergies, these are also entirely dairy free!
More Delicious Keto Pumpkin Recipes
Keto Pumpkin Cheesecake for Two
Looking for pumpkin bread? Try this Gluten Free Paleo Pumpkin Bread with Coconut Flour.
Keto pumpkin pancakes made with coconut flour. These low carb pumpkin pancakes are dairy-free and gluten-free, and can be nut-free too. A perfect healthy fall breakfast. Instructional video included.
- 1/2 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 cup vanilla egg white protein powder or whey protein powder
- 1/4 cup Swerve Sweetener
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp ginger
- 1/4 tsp cloves
- 6 large eggs
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 3 tbsp coconut oil melted
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk, almond milk, or cashew milk
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- Coconut oil for the pan
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In a large bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, protein powder, sweetener, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, ginger, and cloves.
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Add the eggs, pumpkin puree, melted coconut oil, 1/2 cup coconut milk and vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth. Add additional milk as necessary.
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Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add a little coconut oil. Once oil is melted, scoop two heaping tablespoons of batter onto skillet and spread into a 4 inch circle. You should be able to get 3 to 4 pancakes into the skillet.
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Cook until bottom is golden brown and top is set around the edges. Flip carefully and continue to cook until second side is golden brown. Repeat with the remaining batter.
mellissa @ ibreatheimhungry says
TELL IT, SISTA! I don’t think people know how time consuming it is just to get a post “blog ready” even AFTER you’ve already completed the recipe and taken the photos. I think the editing/writing/coding phase takes longer (and is more annoying) than the actual cooking/photographing phase! Oy. Anyway, your hard work and scramble were worth it (and are much appreciated), because these look AMAZING! I don’t think the watermark detracts from the photo at all – it looks fantastic! Definitely sharing this one all over the interwebs!
Carolyn says
Thanks ma’am!
tea says
…oh, I’m sorry about you having to watermark, but it does happen – to so, so many of my foodie blogging friends. Appreciate the work you put in – and another good pumpkin recipes!!
Heather says
Hi Carolyn, Have been using a bunch of your recipes the last three months and I’m loving it!! Last week I made the pumpkin spice cake and this week I think I will tackle the lemon cream cake! One question, in this recipe and others, can regular milk be substituted for almond milk? I don’t usually have almond milk in my fridge. Thanks!
Carolyn says
Yes, you can always sub regular milk…it will add about 1 g carb per serving. It’s really about the right liquid content.
[email protected] says
Thanks for putting in the work on these…scrumptious!
mekaylah says
Do these reheat well? i’m just a single lady, but these would make a great breakfast! how about freezing? thanks!
Carolyn says
Yes, they do! I made a double batch this last time and they are an easy and quick breakfast. I think they’d easily withstand freezing too, although I haven’t tried it yet.
Donna says
What do you use for syrup? Just maple?
Carolyn says
I give my kids about a tbsp of real maple syrup on their pancakes. For me, I use this xylitol sweetened maple syrup from Nature’s Hollow. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002AJ0SZ6/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B002AJ0SZ6&linkCode=as2&tag=aldaidrabfo05-2
Debbie says
OMG, I’m going to be making these this week! And I already have my fav lc syrup-we use Nature’s Hollow too! They also make the most heavenly jams and honey.
Thanks for all your efforts bringing the masses these wonderful recipes!
Gwen @SimplyHealthyFamily says
I have phases where I tend to stress too much about the ‘hassle’ of blogging and I have to remind myself that I do it because I enjoy it not because I have to! ;} Writing is definitely one of the hardest parts for me, trying to find something interesting to say when it seems most people don’t even read the posts anyway ;}
I have some leftover pumpkin in the fridge that would love to turn into these pancakes!
Jessica @ A Kitchen Addiction says
Great tip about using coconut oil instead of butter to help with browning!
Gerry @ Foodness Gracious says
Genius, this is a stack I could demolish asap!
Carolyn says
Thanks, Gerry!
Kelly says
Hi, I just love your recipes!. Could I add some grass fed gelatin to this recipe, I’m trying to get grass fed gelatin into the recipes I make as much as possible; I know how important it is especially when I’m trying to lose weight and build muscle.
Carolyn says
Is it in powder form? I need to think about how it would combine….
Stephanie @ Eat. Drink. Love. says
Blogging is no easy business! I’m glad you posted this though because these pancakes look super yummy!
Jeanette says
I hear you on that Carolyn – sometimes I have to go back through my photos just to remind myself of all the food I’ve made but never blogged about. These look fantastic BTW!
Carolyn says
I have to do the same, Jeanette! I have an ice cream recipe from August that I never blogged!
Ruth E. Chidley says
Thank you, Carolyn, for all your hard work and wonderful blog. Your recipes are delicious and enjoyed by my family. I really appreciate your using ZipList. It makes it so easy for me to download your recipes and always have them handy when I need them. Thank you again and have a great day!
Carolyn says
Good to know you find the tool useful! Thanks.
Jessica says
Do you need the protein powder? The whey bothers my husband’s stomach so wondering what else I can use. Thanks!
Carolyn says
You need some sort of protein to make them fluffier…hemp or soy would be fine and so would powdered egg whites.
Loretta says
Carolyn,
I made these tonite. They were good and cooked up nicely. Smelled so good cooking too. I had them for dinner. smile.
Carolyn says
Perfect dinner, actually!
Rae says
I just made these for my daughter and myself for breakfast. They were so good…and now I am so full. Thanks for another wonderful recipe.
Susan says
help! mine are burning before they are cooked! What am I doing wrong? I started off with low flame, they never cooked but burnt, then I raised the flame to med high and they still burnt before cooked. The whole thing wasted! Any assistance would be appreciated for the next attempt. thanks –
Carolyn says
What kind of pan do you have? It sounds like it must be the pan or the oil you used.
Hannah says
I can’t use almond milk because I’m allergic to it, can I use coconut milk instead?
Carolyn says
Yes, but get the kind with less fat in it, the kind in the carton. Otherwise it will be too thick,
Hannah says
Thanks!
Hannah says
I couldn’t get unsweetened coconut milk, but I do have coconut water. Do you think that would work?
Also, I don’t think that I can have any protein powder. Would this still work without it?
Rhiannon says
Hi! Fabulous recipe – but what is the trick to flipping these pancakes? Whenever my fiancee and I attempt it turns into a jumbled mess. This was our first time making these, and maybe we added too much almond milk, but if we hadn’t they were way to thick. Any tips? Suggestions? We are losing the pancake flipping battle…
Carolyn says
First, make sure you don’t make them more than about 4 inches across. Also, you might be turning them too early…wait until bubbles start to show in the center of the top so you know the bottom is cooked enough to flip. Finally make sure you are using a good non-stick pan and a big-ish spatula…really wiggle to get the spatula under them more and then quickly flip.
Deb says
For those of us who are cooking-challenged and can’t digest protein powder, what can we substitute and in what quantity? An earlier post mentioned powdered egg whites; can we sub fresh egg whites? If so, how many would you use?
I tried the recipe without the protein powder and it is delicious but the pancakes fell apart. Still, to this pancake-deprived person they were fabulous!
Carolyn says
Yes, you can easily get meringue powder (just powdered egg whites) at Whole Foods. If you add regular egg whites, you will find your wet/dry ratios are off. There are other things to help keep it “glued” together without protein powder, though. Try some flax or chia seed meal, that might help. Or xanthan gum or arrowroot starch.
profwood1 says
I just made these & they tasted good but they were a bit dry . I found the recipe late last night so I used what I had in the house: pure pumpkin instead of puree because I use it as a veggie; Designer whey protein sustained energy mix which has extra fiber ( 5g); Silk Almond milk with protein & fiber( 5g) because I had it in the house. Should I have added more almond milk? The batter seemed thick enough & I didn’t want to make it runny. I’m thinking there was a lot more fiber than usual because of the pure pumpkin, Almond milk with extra fiber, & protein powder with extra fiber. I also used 5 extra large (they are BIG) eggs because that’s what I had & I thought 6 would be too many. Any advice would be helpful. I’m all for good low carb recipes to get rid of midlife weight. Thanks !
Carolyn says
I think you’ve already identified the issues.
Cassie says
Is there a different type of protein powder that I could use? I have food sensitivies to soy, vanilla and milk products (whey). How neccessary is it for the structure of the pancake?
Carolyn says
It just helps it rise more. You could forego it and do a little extra leavening agent, or you could do hemp protein. Or even egg white protein powder.
Rachel Russ says
These were a huge hit with my kids and husband! I substituted almond flour for the hemp powder, and omitted the erythritol. Thanks!!
Patti says
These look fantastic! A couple of questions for you, Carolyn. What brand of Vanilla Hemp Protein Powder do you like and do you have a favorite almond milk?
Carolyn says
I used Nutiva in this but I just discovered Manitoba Harvest. Haven’t tried it out in baking yet but I liked the samples they gave me.
S M says
I just made these today, and they turned out great! I’ve enjoyed the pancake recipes I’ve tried so far (plain coconut flour and cinnamon roll), but this one turned out best. Using actual eggs instead of egg substitute seemed to make a difference. To give the unsweetened whey protein powder I have on hand a vanilla flavor, I added a little more vanilla extract and erythritol, based on a comment you made in the Cinnamon Roll Pancakes post. Thanks for the great recipes! I think I’ll try my hand at the chocolate peanut butter whoopie pies next!
Carolyn says
So glad you liked them!
Anne O says
Wow Carolyn I think you are the smartest person on earth. Another fantastic recipe. Just made the batch, exactly as called for and they are perfect. Keep up the fantastic work. I still can’t believe your service is free to all of us. Lucky us.
Lisa says
just made them for the first time since my husband is a pumpkin lover! I followed your recipe exactly and they came out so good! Thanks for your recipe and so happy we won’t be deprived of pancakes that taste just as good as wheat flour ones!!
Alston says
Love the pumpkin pancakes. Had some issues of them holding together. Any chance a little milled flax seed might bind and add to nutritional value?
Carolyn says
Yes, it could help bind them. I find the trick is to keep them quite small…no more than 4 inches in diameter. A good non-stick pan helps too!
Denise says
These look AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Lisa says
I just made these and while the flavour is amazing, they were quite grainy, especially the first one. The last one less so, but still a rather odd texture. Consistency was great and they cooked perfectly. Did I maybe not combine the ingredients well enough? I’m a bit stumped. Thanks for any advice. I love your recipes!
Sue says
Is there a reason there are so many eggs in the recipe? Could you cut down to 4 and substitute something else? 6 seems like an awful lot, but they definitely were delicious!! By the way, your cinnamon roll pancakes were scrumptious too, but could you use coconut flour for half of the almond flour with those?
Carolyn says
Coconut flour really requires a lot of eggs so I wouldn’t suggest cutting back in the pumpkin pancake recipe. You could do some more coconut flour in the cinnamon roll pancakes but then you’d need to add eggs. It’s a fine balance.
Tisela says
I pin a lot but never make anything I pin. However, I was craving pancakes but wanted to stay as wheat free as possible, so I tried your recipe. I substituted hemp for half flaxseed meal and almond meal, did not have cloves, used pumpkin spice, and used almond milk. Oh my lawd, they were soo filling and delicious. Made the whole batch to have for other days. Thanks for sharing and working so hard to come up with recipies that really taste good. Congrats!
Suzanne Wedeking says
Can something be subbed for the protein/whey powder? I don’t keep either of those around! Thanks so much!
Carolyn says
You can skip it in this recipe, although your end result may not be as light.
Suzanne Wedeking says
Thank you!
katy says
want it.
Myra says
I substitute THM super sweet blend for the swerve sweetener. Is that why my batter is thin and pancakes flat? They do taste awfully delicious though!!!
Carolyn says
I don’t know that the sweetener would make too much difference here…what brand of coconut flour are you using?
Myra says
Homemade
Suzy says
Oooh love the idea of using coconut flour here!
Annette says
Saturday morning, 9/29/18, I opened up my computer with plans to try your pumpkin pancakes for the first time….imagine my surprise when they were front and center on your blog as part of an update! It was meant to be. And my family and I were thrilled with the results. After 3.5 years keto and trying countless pancake recipes, these are by far the closest thing to the real deal. Fluffy, moist, and soft with just the right amount of mouth chew (is that a thing?). I was a happy fall loving gal that morning enjoying pumpkin pancakes and coffee. They reheated great a few days later as well. Thanks once again for another winner!
Carolyn says
So glad to hear it!
Elishia Coleman says
Yummm!!! I can’t wait to make these. I love all your work. You should be so proud!
What are your thoughts on substituting collagen or bone broth powder for the protein powder?
Thanks for all you do. Cheers!
Carolyn says
I find that adding collagen can make things like this really gummy. I have yet to try the bone broth powder.
Katie says
This is fantastic! I have so many friends that will be so happy to have a pancake option while eating keto!
Jennifer Blake says
Delicious! Gonna have to treat myself to these for a weekday breakfast since my family doesn’t like pumpkin (gasp)! Can’t wait!
Amanda Burr says
I absolutely love your pancake recipe!!
I also love the tune in the video but have no idea who it is!
Are you allowed to tell me? X
Enis Blizman says
Omg, must try this recipe. These look awesome.
Alyssa says
Hey! So I threw this recipe into My Fitness Pal to know the macros because I did not have the protein powder. Somehow it’s saying there should be 8.5 net carbs. Did I do something wrong?
Carolyn says
No, it’s probably just counting the erythritol… which you shouldn’t because it doesn’t affect blood sugar. Please see my nutritional disclaimer at the end of the recipe.
Sarah says
These pancakes are delicious with the perfect pancake texture and fluff. The pumpkin spice blend is Fall in every bite, giving some cozy warmth to this chilly gray PNW morning. Thank you for another fantastic recipe!
Carolyn says
So glad you like them!
Stephanie Floyd says
Made these tonight and I have to say they are by far the best low-carb pancakes I’ve ever had!! Simply amazing by themselves without syrup! Will definitely be additthese to my weekly food prep. Thank you for sharing!!
Carolyn says
Thanks so much!
Tami Proctor says
I had extra batter leftover so two days later I made a waffle and topped it with chopped pecans and Lakanto maple syrup, Next time I’m going to try the caramel syrup. I actually preferred the waffle to the pancakes however both were excellent. I used powdered monk fruit for the sweetener and it was a little to sweeet. This is definitely going to be my go to recipe! Thank you!
N says
What about using almond flour instead of coconut flour? I normally use almond flour for everything. What would the difference be or should I have to add a starch?
Carolyn says
I have an almond flour pancake recipe already. You can try adding some pumpkin and some spice to that…
Bharat says
Thanks for these pancakes. I wanted pancakes which doesn’t have nuts as I’ve been having too many nuts daily through my granola etc. I swapped whey protein with collagen powder and the pancakes came out fine. But these pancakes are eggy. Do you suggest any replacements to not make them eggy?
Carolyn says
It’s likely your brand of coconut flour. Some are thinner than others. I always use Bob’s Red Mill.
Bharat says
I used collagen instead of whey protein. How long do you think these pancakes can last in fridge?
Carolyn says
Okay… well then that’s part of the reason they were eggy.