This recipe for cottage cheese pancakes is naturally high in protein and gluten-free. Healthy protein pancakes made with cottage cheese (no protein powder!) are deliciously light and fluffy, and are an ideal healthy breakfast that will keep you feeling full for hours.
I personally make these healthy high-protein cottage cheese pancakes at least once a week. Although I sometimes have them for breakfast, I more often have them for lunch after a bowl of soup or a salad. Served with some Greek yogurt and berries, they provide plenty of protein and fibre to keep me full for the afternoon.
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What you'll love about the recipe
- Healthy high protein cottage cheese pancakes have just 3 ingredients and take 10 minutes from start to finish
- There's 15g of protein per serving, more if you serve them with nut butter or Greek yogurt. The protein comes naturally from cottage cheese and a whole egg, with no protein powder needed
- Made with wholegrain oats (no flour). Oats add extra protein and also healthy fibre
- It's easy to make the recipe for one, or scale up for as many people as you like. They can be served with sweet or savoury toppings
Ingredients
There are just three ingredients in this healthy cottage cheese breakfast recipe
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.
See here for more information about the health benefits of cottage cheese
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.
Tip: if you've got leftover cottage cheese, you can use it up in this blended cottage cheese smoothie or cottage cheese chocolate mousse.
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.
Oats 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 cottage cheese protein pancakes are gluten-free.
Optional ingredients
Add a dash of vanilla extract or ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon to complement your toppings.
How to make cottage cheese pancakes
Making the batter for cottage cheese and oat pancakes is very quick and 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.
Protein pancakes made with cottage cheese are best cooked in a non-stick pan.
Heat the pan, add a tiny drizzle of olive oil, and add a tablespoon of the batter 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.
Recipe tips
If you plan on making these protein pancakes with a hand whisk rather than a blender, you will get a smoother texture if you start with oat flour rather than whole oats.
Add all of the ingredients to a bowl, and whisk well until you have a smooth batter.
You can cook cottage cheese pancakes with butter rather than oil, but I personally prefer oil as it is less likely to burn.
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 Greek yogurt and fruit.
These stewed plums with honey go 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 cottage cheese pancakes, serve with cream cheese and smoked salmon, or a poached egg.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can make cottage cheese pancake batter a few hours ahead and store it in the fridge. It may thicken more, so if necessary, add a splash of milk and stir well.
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 batter with cottage cheese to make these protein waffles. Or try these quick and easy oat flour pancakes. For 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 (High Protein)
Ingredients
- 100 g cottage cheese
- 40 g oats
- 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.100 g cottage cheese, 2 eggs, 40 g oats
- Place a non-stick frying pan on a medium heat. Add a tiny drizzle of 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 minutes1 teaspoon olive oil
- 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:)