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Finally, another breakfast recipe! These dairy-free almond milk pancakes are a great breakfast for the whole family. They’re quick, easy, and only use 4 ingredients! Pancakes are a great weekend breakfast, and you can top them with whatever you like, too.
This lactose-free almond milk pancake recipe is actually the final request out of the 3 winners for the recipe request competition that ended a month ago! It’s taken a while to post it for several reasons:
- I don’t have many good breakfast recipe ideas – it’s difficult!
- The first recipe I tried, a veggie fritter recipe, was an epic failure – pan-frying and baking them didn’t work and they were far too difficult, so that idea had to be scrapped
- I was working on the other two recipes, one of which was the tomato risotto with chargrilled veggies that I posted last week, and the other one went out privately by email as my photos didn’t turn out too well
If you’d like to be first to find out next time I run a similar competition, subscribe to my email list! I promise, no spam, and you’ll be the first to know about any competitions and new recipes! Plus, you’ll get a free printable.
So, on to the pancakes! I’d never used almond milk before this, so I wasn’t sure how they’d turn out. Luckily, I was pleasantly surprised. While unsweetened almond milk can be a little plain, so long as you add a little vanilla extract to the batter it’s delicious!
Of course, if you aren’t lactose-intolerant then you can use regular cow’s milk. But, since the brief was for a lactose-free breakfast recipe, I decided to use almond milk.
I believe that you could also use coconut or oat milk instead of almond milk. However, you may not need the vanilla with the coconut milk as I found it had plenty of flavour. However, I can’t guarantee success here; not all milks are even!
Plain, unsweetened almond milk made the lactose-free pancakes rather bland though. That means that you really do need the vanilla extract here!
British vs American Pancakes
As some of you may know, pancakes here in the UK are very different to American-style pancakes. American pancakes are thicker and more cake-like, while British pancakes are similar to crepes.
These almond milk pancakes are British-style. Sorry, Americans! They’re still delicious though, so I’d recommend giving them a go if you’ve never had our-style pancakes before!
The cooking process is quite different: while American pancakes need to stay as a thicker circle in the middle of the pan, these pancakes cover the whole base of the pan in a thin layer. It’s important that they are thin, or they won’t cook properly. However, this means that when it’s time to flip your pancakes they often tear!
This isn’t a disaster though. You can fix it by just adding a tiny bit more batter to cover the crack and cooking your pancake until this batter is also cooked. This helps to hold the pancake together. Or, you can just eat your pancake with a hole in the middle – it’ll still taste great!
Toppings
Now, if you are lactose-intolerant, then this does limit your toppings. Sadly, no nutella for you! I’m assuming that there are probably versions of nutella that are lactose-free though. This also cuts out things like chocolate syrup, whipped cream or even some caramel sauces!
However, you do still have options:
- lemon juice and granulated sugar – a classic, simple topping that pretty much everyone likes
- golden or maple syrup – sticky and sweet!
- peanut butter and sliced banana
- strawberry sauce – make it from scratch using a recipe like this one
The possibilities for pancake toppings are endless really. I do have to confess something though: I photographed them with banana and chocolate syrup, somehow forgetting that of course, something with chocolate in isn’t lactose-free!
What equipment do I need to make these pancakes?
First of all, you’ll need a mixing bowl. After all, you can’t whisk the batter if it’s all over your kitchen counter!
A measuring jug is important for measuring out your milk accurately (no, guesswork won’t cut it this time!), and some kitchen scales are handy for the flour. They’re more precise than cups, and the ratio of ingredients is very important in this recipe – messing it up could result in your pancakes being dry or chewy.
For your flour, you’ll also want a simple mesh sieve in order to make sure your pancakes are light and fluffy. Otherwise, you’ll end up with rather gross lumps of flour left after whisking the batter. And nobody wants that.
You’ll also need a whisk – just a basic balloon whisk, nothing fancy. Then, just a simple ladle (or my favourite snazzy ladle) to gently scoop the batter into the pan.
The pan should ideally be a simple 10-inch nonstick frying pan. Most people probably already own a similar one, and if yours is smaller then don’t worry – you’ll just end up with more slightly-smaller pancakes!
UK Equipment Recommendations
4-Ingredient Lactose-Free Almond Milk Pancakes
These lactose-free pancakes are dairy-free and super quick and easy to make! They only need 4 common ingredients and make a perfect weekend breakfast or brunch.
Ingredients
- 100 grams (generous 1/2 cup) plain flour, sifted
- 2 large eggs
- 300 ml (1 1/4 cup) almond milk, unsweetened
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil, or sunflower oil
- any desired toppings such as fresh berries, maple syrup etc.
Instructions
- Add flour to a bowl and make a well in the middle.
- Crack the eggs into the well, whisking and gradually pulling in the flour from the outside. Gradually add the milk and vanilla, whisking until all of it has been added and there are no lumps.
- Put a non-stick pan over medium-high heat with 1 tbsp oil. Once very hot, add 1 ladle-full of batter and tilt the pan to spread the mix evenly around the bottom of the pan.
- Gently shake the pan to ensure that it doesn't stick while cooking. When you can slide a spatula underneath, flip it. Keep gently shaking the pan.
- Once cooked through and lightly golden on both sides, transfer to a plate and serve. You may need to flip it several times. Repeat until all the batter is used.
Notes
- The milk: you can use regular cow's milk instead of almond milk, but omit the vanilla. In theory, you can use other lactose-free milks such as coconut and oat milk, but I have not tested this.
- If it tears: add a little more batter to cover the crack and continue cooking.
- Type of pan: always use a non-stick pan. A relatively large one is best.
- Toppings: see post for lactose-free topping ideas.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 290Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 93mgSodium: 37mgCarbohydrates: 20gFiber: 1gSugar: 0gProtein: 6g
All nutrition values are an estimate and may vary.
If you’re looking for more breakfast or brunch recipes, try my mini quiche lorraines! They’re super easy and delicious for any time of day! They aren’t lactose-free though, unlike my smoked sausage & bacon breakfast potatoes, which really are a quick and easy one-pan treat!
Post linked to #CookBlogShare Week 13
Yum! I’m a big almond milk fan so will be trying these.
I’m glad you like the look of them! I’ve never bothered much with almond milk as I’m not lactose-intolerant myself, but I’ll definitely be using it more often from now on – it’s such a great ingredient!
I love pancakes! I could eat them every day if I could, these look delicious.
I’m glad you like the look of them! And hey, they’re so easy that I won’t tell if you make them every day!
They’re very lacking in flour. We added another cup to make them thicker so we’ll be able to reheat them in the toaster. Also added baking soda 1 tsp.
Are you sure you’re not mixing them up with American pancakes? These are British-style, so are intended to be very thin and crepe-like – too fragile to heat up in a toaster like American pancakes can be, but this is intentional. I did discuss this in the post, but do you think I need to add more warnings of the different styles?
we use almond milk a lot. although im not a big fan of the crepe style im going to give this a try
I’m glad you’ll give it a try, after all there’s always a chance that you could really enjoy them!
It’s like you read my mind. We’ve been weaning off milk but needed an alternative for when we make pancakes. I was wondering which milk alternative to try first. Thanks for sharing xxx
I’m so glad you like the look of them! We much prefer almond milk to coconut milk as coconut milk can have a slightly odd taste. Either way these pancakes are super delicious!
Oh I do love pancakes … American, crepes – all of them. My favourite topping is sugar and fresh lemon juice
Good choice! For me it’s either the same or a generous serving of nutella.
I love this pancake recipe. It looks very tasty.
I’m glad you like the look of it! It really is delicious – and so simple!
I love British style pancakes and these look gorgeous. My favourite topping is cinnamon and sugar, not very healthy but really yummy!
That’s such a good topping idea! I’d never considered it on pancakes, but it sounds absolutely delicious! I usually stick with lemon and sugar, so not really any healthier! Then again, pancakes are supposed to be delicious not nutritious!
My kids love pancakes, will have to give this a try
I hope they turn out well for you and your kids enjoy them!
I must send this to my sister and nephew. Both avoid dairy but they also love pancakes so you might have just provided them with a happy medium!!
I’m glad to be of service then! They really are so delicious – when my family tried them, they forgot that they weren’t made with regular cows milk – that’s how good they are!
These look so delicious and have made me so hungry!! I’m going to have to make some myself.
They taste as good as they look! I hope they turn out well for you too!
We have a lactose free version of chocolate spread which is very rich so you only need a little bit. These sound great
That sounds like a great pancake topping. Plus, if you don’t need much then it’s a bit healthier too! I’m glad you like the look of them too!
Ooh yum! I love that these have just four ingredients, I think even I could make them!
I’m sure they’d turn out great for you! They really are so easy that they’re almost completely foolproof!
I don’t have an intolerance, but these look super yummy. Might try them for a change!
I don’t have an intolerance either but it makes a nice change and they still taste just as good too! A change is always good!
These do look delicious plus it’s great to have option if you can’t or don’t eat dairy and eggs! For me it’s lemon and sugar but I would happily devour your banana and chocolate syrup ones, yum! 🙂
Absolutely! While I don’t have an egg alternative here, I know that some of them could potentially work very well in this recipe! I agree – while I’m not a fan of banana, the chocolate syrup is just irresistible even though I also generally prefer lemon and sugar!
I like almond milk and sometimes put it in smoothieseven though I can eat regular milk too and these pancakes look delicious! I’ve only ever made pancakes with cows milk.
Oooh I bet it’s great in smoothies! It really does work just as well as regular cow’s milk in pancakes providing you add the vanilla, and I think everyone agrees that regular pancakes are delicious!
Great pancake recipe. My daughter would love it She’s not intolerant to regular milk but she just prefer almond milk over cow’s milk.
From what I’ve heard, that seems to be pretty common – almond milk really is pretty good now that I’ve tried it! The only difference I found was that it’s a little bland, so I added the vanilla extract to the batter to remedy this and they turned out delicious!
Sounds great – i use almond milk. Just wondered how many eggs you use – not listed in ingredients?
2 large eggs! I’m so sorry for that mistake, they appear to have fallen off the ingredients list somehow! Thank you for letting me know!
No problem – thought they must be missing!
I’m pancake obsessed and couldn’t not include this on in my recent roundup of the Best Pancake Recipes!
Thanks for including me! I’m also pancake obsessed – can’t wait to perfect my US-style pancakes so that they’re blog-ready!
Tastes amazing ! I just added a little extra almond milk to make the batter more runny and the pancakes more like crepes 👌🏼
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! I’ll definitely have to try making a thinner batter like that – it sounds like it should be delicious!
Its taste is amazing. I did it over the weekend. Everyone loves it. Thank you for your recipe so easy and effective. Thank you so much.
I’m so glad you all enjoyed these pancakes! I find that the hint of vanilla really helps their flavour whether you serve them as sweet or savoury!