This recipe for cottage cheese pancakes is high in protein and naturally gluten free. The pancakes are deliciously light and fluffy, and work well for both sweet and savoury toppings. They are an ideal healthy breakfast, which will keep you feeling full for hours.
Quick and easy protein pancakes
This recipe has just 3 ingredients, and takes 10 minutes from start to finish. It's easy to make cottage cheese pancakes for one, or scale up for as many people as you like. Each serving has one whole egg, and there's no need to separate the yolks and the whites. There's 15g of protein per serving, more if you enjoy them with nut butter or yogurt.
What makes these cottage cheese pancakes healthy?
There are just three key ingredients, and they are all high in nutrients:
- Cottage cheese is super healthy and nutritious. It's low in fat, and high in protein. It's also a great source of B vitamins, calcium and a number of other vital minerals. If you're put off by the lumpy texture of cottage cheese, don't worry. As the mixture is blitzed to make these pancakes, you really won't notice it. And cottage cheese is very mild tasting, so kids will love them. They are a great way to sneak in extra protein to keep you feeling full. (See here for more information about the health benefits of cottage cheese)
Tip: if you've got leftover cottage cheese, you can use it up in this blended cottage cheese smoothie. - Eggs are a powerhouse of nutrition. After all, they have enough sustenance to transform a single cell into a baby chicken! They are high in protein, antioxidants and an essential nutrient called choline.
- Oats are another great source of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. They are also rich in a particular type of fibre called beta glucan. Beta glucan is good for heart health, and can help to regulate blood sugar levels. The fibre in oats is also great for gut health and will help to keep you full. Oats are naturally gluten free, but are sometimes processed alongside other grains which contain gluten. You'll need to buy specifically labelled gluten free oats if you want to ensure your protein pancakes are gluten free.
Ingredients
Optional ingredients for sweet cottage cheese pancakes
Add a dash of vanilla extract or ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon to complement your toppings.
Serving suggestions
These light and fluffy cottage cheese pancakes can be served as a sweet or savoury option. For sweet pancakes, try serving them with yogurt and fruit. These stewed plums with honey go really well. Nut butter also makes a great topping, and of course you can never go wrong with maple syrup. This low sugar berry jam works well at breakfast too. If you want a more indulgent treat to serve as dessert, drizzle over some chocolate sauce and chopped walnuts.
For savoury protein pancakes, try serving them with cream cheese and smoked salmon, or a poached egg.
Recipe tips
Making the mixture for cottage cheese and oat pancakes is so easy. You simply need to blitz the ingredients together until the mixture is smooth. If you have an immersion blender, it's easiest to blitz the mixture in a tall jug (which can go in the dishwasher!). Otherwise, you could use either a blender or a food processor. If you plan on making the pancake mixture by hand, you will get a smoother texture if you start with oat flour rather than whole oats. Then simply whisk all the ingredients together.
Pancakes made with cottage cheese are best cooked in a non stick pan. Heat the pan, add the olive oil, and add a tablespoon of mixture for each pancake. Leave enough space so that you can turn the pancakes - you may need to cook them in more than one batch. Each pancake should be about 5mm thick, so if necessary spread the mixture slightly with the back of a spoon. Cook for 2 minutes, then turn carefully, and cook for a further 2 minutes. They should be slightly browned.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can make it a few hours ahead and store it in the fridge. It may thicken more, so if necessary add a splash of milk and give it a stir.
I think these cottage cheese pancakes are at their best when they are freshly cooked. But, if you need to, you can make them in advance. Store in the fridge, and warm through for a couple of minutes in a pan.
As above - these pancakes are nicest freshly cooked. But you can freeze them and then briefly heat them through.
Other healthy pancake recipes
You can also use a similar mixture with cottage cheese to make these protein waffles. Or try these quick and easy oat flour pancakes. If you want a thin pancake that you can fold, use this oat flour crepe recipe.
If you've got some leftover cottage cheese, you might also like to try this cottage cheese quiche, or light lemon cheesecake.
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Recipe
Cottage Cheese Pancakes
Ingredients
- 100 g cottage cheese ½ cup
- 40 g oats ½ cup
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon olive oil for frying
Instructions
- Place the cottage cheese, oats and egg in a blender or food processor and blitz until smooth.
- Place a non stick frying pan on a medium heat. Add the olive oil and swirl to coat the pan. Add tablespoons of the pancake mixture - they should be around ½cm thick, so if necessary spread the mixture slightly with the back of a spoon. Cook for 2 minutes
- Flip the pancakes with a flat spatula and cook on the remaining side for a further 2 minutes
Notes
Nutrition
Please note nutritional information is for guidance only.
Eilidh says
A winner for a quick, healthy breakfast! I can see me batch making these at the start of the week and reheating with different toppings. Lovely!
Wendy Faulkner says
Thank you. That's a great idea to batch cook these!
Rosie says
Tried this once, it was amazing, tried it a second time and I didn't have any eggs. Sometimes banana can be used as an egg substitute. I can tell you in this that it definitely can't!
Wendy Faulkner says
Hi, thank you for letting me know, that's most helpful. This cottage cheese pancake recipe was developed with eggs to increase the protein, but if you've run out, it's worth experimenting. Sorry it didn't work though...another time it might be worth trying a flax or chia egg replacer, but I haven't tried that myself yet so can't guarantee success!
Louise says
Really light and fluffy. These are going on our regular breakfast menu:)