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Tired of the same diet breakfast? Try these fluffy Low Calorie Pancakes! With under 200 calories for the whole stack, they are the perfect breakfast to lose weight. Easy one bowl recipe.
If you think that pancakes are just a weekend treat, it’s time to change your mind. With this recipe you’ll be able to whip up a stack of fluffy pancakes to enjoy whenever your cravings hit. Yes, also if you are on a diet! Because they are healthy and low calorie. Less than a smoothie bowl!
Recipe highlights
I know it may sound like a bold statement but no…When I say that these are the BEST pancakes for weight loss, I mean it. My recipe brings together taste and nutrition to give you the satisfying breakfast you deserve. Not convinced yet? Here are five simple reasons to love these soft babies.
- Diet friendly: Clocking at calories per stack, these are the weight loss pancakes of your dreams.
- Healthy: Made with oats and yogurt, they are high in dietary fibers, nutrients and protein. No sugar!
- Quick and simple: You only need a handful of basic ingredients, one bowl, a pan and 10 minutes to make a stack of skinny pancakes.
- Fluffy and tasty: Low calorie doesn’t mean boring. Despite its simplicity, these pancakes are infallibly fluffy and delicious.
- Versatile and customizable: Add some extras or change the toppings and you’ll come up with a completely different breakfast. One recipe, endless possibilities!
What’s in diet pancakes?
A simple low calorie pancakes recipe – that is what is all about here. No banana, no protein powder (you can still use it), no oil and no butter. You only need a handful of common household ingredients to whip up a delicious breakfast for weight loss. Don’t worry if something is missing, down below this list you’ll find all the replacement options.
- Oat flour: This is my go-to choice for cooking and baking because oat flour is a healthier alternative to refined flours. You can also use rolled oats or quick oats, but you’ll need to prepare the batter in a blender (more on this later, keep on reading).
- Calorie-free sweetener: I like using powdered erythritol, it substitutes sugar 1:1 without weird aftertastes. But you can also use any other calorie-free sweetener, such as xylitol or allulose.
- Egg: The egg helps bind the batter and enriches the taste of skinny pancakes; I do not recommend replacing with egg whites only.
- Greek yogurt: In this weight loss breakfast recipe, the yogurt serves two purposes. First, it adds moisture and softness without the need for banana or fats. Second, it provides a great source of protein. For lighter pancakes I used 0% Greek yogurt.
- Milk of choice: You can use any type of milk, either dairy or dairy-free. For the lowest calories, the best options are unsweetened almond milk, skimmed or semi-skimmed milk and sugar-free soy milk.
- Baking powder: The baking powder works as a leaving agent and makes your low cal pancakes fluffy and soft.
- Vanilla extract: The vanilla extract gives pancakes a delicious flavor without extra calories.
Substitutes
- Oat flour: If you prefer, use rolled oats (read further for more details). Or substitute with the flour of your choice, such as wholewheat flour, spelt flour or all purpose flour. For keto pancakes, use almond flour.
- Calorie-free sweetener: You can replace erythritol or similar diet sweeteners with coconut sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup or honey. In this case, the calorie content of your pancakes will increase slightly.
- Egg: For a vegan breakfast, replace with one flaxseed egg or 1/2 ripe banana, mashed. Do not replace with just egg whites, or your pancakes won’t get as soft.
- Greek yogurt: Dairy Greek yogurt can be replaced with any type of yogurt you like, dairy or nondairy. My recommendation is to look for a yogurt that has a thick texture similar to the original.
- Baking powder: Feel free to leave this out, but your pancakes won’t be as fluffy.
- Milk of choice: Use any milk you like, I don’t recommend swapping it out for water.
Weight loss pancakes with oatmeal
No oat flour? No problem! You can easily make this recipe with rolled oats or quick oats. It’s so quick and simple, just add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and mix until you get a smooth batter. Ready to cook, top and enjoy!
Pancakes with protein powder
Working out? Try making low calorie pancakes with protein powder. It’s so simple, all you have to do is replacing half the amount of flour with a protein powder of your choice. You can use any type you want, but my recommendation is vegan protein powder or casein. I’ve come to realize that those options give better pancakes because they do not dry when heated. Speaking of flavor, I recommend vanilla, chocolate or unflavored protein powder. These are simple flavors that won’t make your pancakes taste too artificial.
5 ways to make skinny pancakes
What I love about this recipe is that it’s insanely versatile. Some days it may be cinnamon, some days it may blueberries. You can easily add some extra ingredients or change up the toppings and there you have have a new breakfast to satisfy your cravings! Looking for inspirations? Here are five different ways to make low calorie pancakes at home.
- Blueberry lemon: Add a handful of blueberries and 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice. This will add just about 35 calories, but LOTS of taste!
- Chocolate chip: One teaspoon of chocolate chips has about 25 calories, not that much if we consider the delicious result!
- Peanut butter: Make delicious pancakes with an addition of a teaspoon of peanut butter. Just keep in mind that this will add about 30 calories.
- Tiramisù: Replace the cinnamon with about 1/2 teaspoon of instant coffee powder. After cooking, assemble your stack by alternating layers of pancakes and layers of yogurt. Sprinkle with cocoa powder and buon appetito!
How to make low calorie pancakes
In a bowl, combine all the dry ingredients: flour, calorie-free sweetener and baking powder. Quickly stir together, then add the egg, the Greek yogurt and the vanilla extract. Whisk, while adding the milk one tablespoon at the time, until the batter is smooth. Do not overmix.
Spray a griddle or pan with cooking spray and place over medium heat. Once hot, pour one scoop of batter into the pan. Cook your pancakes over medium heat until the underside is golden and bubbles begin to appear on the surface, then flip with a spatula and cook until golden. Serve with your favorite toppings and enjoy.
Storage instructions
If you make them ahead or end up with leftovers, keep on reading. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge or in the freezer.
- Fridge: Let cool, then place the pancakes into an airtight food container and refrigerate for a maximum of 4 days. Before eating, microwave for about 30 seconds or reheat in a skillet.
- Freezer: Let cool completely, then line the pancakes over a baking tray and freeze for about 2 hours. After two hours, place in a zipper bag and freeze for up to 2 months. Freezing in two batches ensures that your skinny pancakes won’t stick together in the bag. Before eating, reheat in the microwave or toaster until they’re soft and fluffy once again.
More low calorie breakfasts and desserts
- Skinny oatmeal
- Low calorie chocolate chip cookies
- Low calorie banana bread
- 69 calorie protein brownies
- Low cal brownies
- Weight loss chocolate cake
- Low calorie cookie dough
- Rice cake tiramisu
- Greek yogurt protein cookies
- Low calorie cheesecake
- 100 calorie chocolate mug cake
Low Calorie Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 egg
- 30 grams (2 tbsp) Greek yogurt, nonfat
- 30 grams (⅓ cup) oat flour, or preferred flour/ or 15 grams (2 tbsp) flour plus 15 grams (2 tbsp) protein powder
- ½ to 1 tbsp calorie-free sweetener, to taste, I used erythritol
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ⅓ tsp vanilla extract
- 30 ml (2 tbsp) milk of choice
Instructions
- In a bowl, combine all the dry ingredients: flour, calorie-free sweetener, baking powder. Quickly stir together, then add the egg, the Greek yogurt and the vanilla extract. Whisk, while adding the milk one tablespoon at the time, until the batter is smooth. Do not overmix.
- Spray a griddle or pan with cooking spray and place over medium heat. Once hot, pour one scoop of batter into the pan. Cook your pancakes over medium heat until the underside is golden and bubbles begin to appear on the surface, then flip with a spatula and cook until golden.
- Serve with your favorite toppings and enjoy.
Sooo good!! Topped with sugar free syrup and some berries and they were perfect!
Hey dear Kathryn,
thank you very much for your feedback. I am incredibly happy to hear that you liked my low calorie pancake recipe. It is definitely one of my favorite as well!
All the best,
Matteo
Can you use coconut flour
Hey dear Hayley,
I haven’t tested out this recipe with coconut flour yet, but I guess it may work. The only thing to keep in mind is that you will need a lesser amount of coconut flour than oat flour. The reason is that coconut flour absorbs plenty of liquid.
Have a great day,
Matteo
I didn’t have oat flour, instead i went with self raising flour and they were PERFECT..โค๏ธโค๏ธ
Hey dear Nina,
I am sooo happy to hear that you liked these low calorie pancakes!
Have a great day,
Matteo
I used half oat half almond flour, very nice u r talented
Hey dear Christopher,
thank you very much for your nice comment. I am incredibly happy to hear that you liked this recipe (with protein powder these pancakes are utterly amazing, I agree!).
Once again, many thanks ๐
Have a great weekend,
Matteo
Perfect!!!
Thank you so much?