These fluffy vegan sweet potato pancakes are perfect for cool fall mornings. They're so easy to make using classic pancake ingredients, just without the eggs or dairy.
Nothing says fall quite like cozy mornings spent sipping hot coffee and chowing down on vegan sweet potato pancakes. True fall weather won't come to Georgia for a few weeks, but that doesn't stop me from lighting pumpkin-scented candles and sharing cinnamon-laden recipes like dairy-free cinnamon rolls and vegan banana muffins.
I used the template of my popular fluffy vegan waffles and vegan buttermilk pancake recipes to make these vegan sweet potato pancakes, give or take a few modifications.
The result is fluffy, golden pancakes made with no eggs and no dairy, a deliciously spiced flavor, and extra tender texture from baked sweet potato.
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Ingredients
- Sweet potato: Not to be confused with yams, sweet potatoes have orange or red flesh. Choose Jewel or Garnet varieties. One sweet potato typically yields about ½ cup of mashed sweet potato.
- Non-dairy milk: I typically use unsweetened, unflavored soy milk in vegan baking. Oat milk or almond milk also works.
- Brown sugar: Sweetens the pancakes. I don't recommend replacing this with a liquid sweetener like maple syrup because it may affect the texture of the pancakes.
- All-purpose flour: Spoon and level flour into a measuring cup for the most accurate measuring. To do this, spoon flour into the measuring cup until overflowing. Use the back of a knife to wipe off excess flour. Don't shake or pat flour down.
- Apple cider vinegar: This combines with baking powder and leavens the pancakes. If you don't have cider vinegar, an equal amount of white vinegar works.
- Canola oil: Melted vegan butter also works, or an equal amount of olive or avocado oil.
- Cinnamon and nutmeg: Adds warmth.
How to bake a sweet potato
The most important ingredient in these pancakes is (you guessed it!) sweet potatoes! I like to prepare my sweet potatoes in the Instant Pot using the method from my Instant Pot mashed sweet potatoes recipe, but you can easily prepare your sweet potato by roasting it in the oven.
Set the oven to 400F. Clean the sweet potato and carefully poke a few holes into it with a knife. Wrap it in foil and place in a baking dish. This way, the sweet potato juices won't drip all over the oven.
Bake the sweet potato for 45 minutes to an hour, until the center is soft.
Pro tip: Make 3-4 sweet potatoes at a time and freeze them for later use in recipes like these Lentil Stuffed Sweet Potatoes. When ready to eat, let thaw in the fridge for about 24 hours.
Step-by-step instructions
- Start by blending or food processing the wet ingredients together to create a smooth puree: non-dairy milk, pureed sweet potato, oil, apple cider vinegar, vanilla extract.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, salt, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Slowly stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. The batter will be bubbly and fluffy.
- Lightly grease a medium-sized pan or large griddle with vegan butter over medium (I love this countertop griddle just for this reason - it also works well with veggie sausages.)
- Portion out pancakes using a quarter cup. Flip the pancakes when the pan-side of the pancake is golden brown. You can also tell it's ready to flip when the pancake batter has consistently popping bubbles.
FAQ
The pancakes will have multiple bubbles popping and the edges will appear set. If the pancakes are browning too quickly or cooking unevenly, decrease the temperature.
I haven't tested this recipe with gluten-free flour myself but readers have and said it works. I recommend using an all-purpose gluten free flour blend, as it usually works as a 1:1 replacement whereas almond flour, coconut flour etc., require recipe adjustments.
After making this recipe several times I decided the most foolproof method is to blend the wet ingredients together. This makes it so that the sweet potato is completely pureed and mixes cohesively into the batter.
You can whisk them if that's your only option, but note that the pancake batter may be a bit lumpier.
Yes, you can use an equal amount of sweet potato puree from a can. Note that canned sweet potato tends to be wetter. If the batter spreads too much, just add an extra tablespoon of flour at a time until it thickens up.
Storage tips
- Leftovers: Keep leftover sweet potato pancakes refrigerated for 3 to 4 days. I don't recommend making the batter in advance and refrigerating it.
- How to freeze: Vegan pancakes can be frozen for up to three months. To freeze, let the cooked pancakes cool to room temperature before stacking in a freezer-safe container.
- You can make these ahead and keep them warm in the oven. Turn your oven to the lowest heat (usually 180-200 degrees F) and place cooked pancakes on a heat-safe plate. Place in the oven until ready to eat (I usually do this for no more than two hours for best quality).
More sweet potato recipes
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Recipe
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Fluffy Vegan Sweet Potato Pancakes
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups all purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons organic brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups soy milk see note
- ½ cup mashed or pureed sweet potato see note
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- To a blender or food processor add ½ cup mashed sweet potato, non-dairy milk oil, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla extract. Blend until smooth.
- In a medium mixing bowl, stir together all dry ingredients: all-purpose flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon. Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients.
- Stir together the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Stir until just combined. The batter will be relatively thick, it's okay if it's a little lumpy too.
- Lightly grease a medium skillet with vegan butter or nonstick spray. Place on the stove over medium heat. Add ¼ cup pancake mixture at a time, smoothing with a spatula to make thinner circles as needed.
- Flip the pancakes when the tops are bubbling, or when sufficiently browned. Enjoy with maple syrup, walnuts, or coconut cream. Store refrigerated in a closed container for 3-4 days. Reheats best on the stove at medium-low heat.
Notes
- Non-dairy milk: Choose your favorite unsweetened, unflavored non-dairy milk. I use soy milk for its creaminess and flavor, but almond or oat milk will also work.
- How to roast sweet potatoes: Roast a medium sweet potato in a 400F oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour. It will be done when it's sizzling with juices and soft in the middle. Mash the sweet potato then measure out ½ cup.
- Sweet potato puree: After making this recipe several times I decided the most foolproof method is to blend the wet ingredients together. This makes it so that the sweet potato is completely pureed and mixes cohesively into the batter.
- How to freeze pancakes: Vegan pancakes can be frozen for up to three months. To freeze, let the cooked pancakes cool to room temperature before stacking in a freezer-safe container.
Bettina Ho says
If I omit the ACV, will that drastically change the recipe?
Cassidy Reeser, MS, RD says
It will not, but I would replace with an equal amount of water or if you have standard vinegar, that works too. It makes the pancakes fluffier in lieu of eggs.
Connis Aust says
In the ingredients it asks for 3/4 cup sweet potato but in the instructions it asks for only 1/2 to be mixed in. I'm a bit confused.
Cassidy Reeser says
I’m missing where you see the 3/4 cup part? It is 1/2 cup in ingredients and instructions.