Gluten-Free Vegan Peanut Butter Pancakes with Brown Rice Flour

Happy Friday! Starting today, I will be doing a series of Friday posts devoted to exploring gluten-free flours by way of the pancake (what’s better than pancakes?!). I’ve drastically reduced my intake of gluten over the past year for several reasons, the most prominent being to see how going gluten-free affects my energy levels. I can say that after a few short months, I felt more energetic and much less bloated. I also discovered that there is a wide world of gluten-free flours out there!

For our first Gluten-Free Flour Friday, I’ve whipped up peanut butter pancakes made with brown rice flour. Brown rice flour is high in protein, fiber, iron, and B vitamins. It is also high in magnesium, aiding in the absorption of calcium. Plus, it’s delicious. It has a rich, nutty flavor that is perfect in pancake form and even better when paired with creamy peanut butter and drenched in chocolate sauce (made simply by combining a tablespoon of chocolate powdered peanut butter with a tablespoon of unsweetened almond milk).

A Lovely Side Note: I recommend storing this flour in the freezer, because of its’ high oil content. Freezing helps protect it from going rancid too quickly.

Peanut Butter Pancakes with Brown Rice Flour

serves 4

• 1 cup brown rice flour
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 flax egg (1 tablespoon ground flax + 3 tbsp water, see directions below) or 1 egg
• 1 tbsp peanut butter, room temperature
• 3/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp raw agave syrup (or honey, brown rice syrup)
• 1 overripe banana, mashed
• cooking spray
• Toppings: peanut butter, peanut butter, and more peanut butter!

1. If using flax egg, add 3 tablespoons of water to 1 tablespoon ground flax in a small bowl. Let sit 5 minutes.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl, whisking with a fork to combine.
3. Whisk together unsweetened almond milk, flax egg, peanut butter, vanilla extract, agave, and banana in a medium bowl.
4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, stirring until no visible lumps remain. Do not over mix.
5. Heat skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat.
6. Drop batter (3 tablespoons per pancake) onto heated skillet. Flip once outer edges are firm (about 3-5 minutes per side). If batter sticks to spatula when turning, they are not ready to be flipped.
7. Top with peanut butter and chocolate sauce. Devour.

Have you tried brown rice flour yet? Thoughts?