Sheet Pan Chickpea Pancakes – Gluten-Free & Vegan
This version is made with zucchini, mushrooms, scallions, parsley and dill. Topped with vegan butter and avocado.
I love savory breakfasts. While I also enjoy sweets in the morning, they always feel a little indulgent, like I am eating my dessert before my meal. Savory breakfasts also tend to fill me up better and keep me from getting hungry until lunch. These chickpea pancakes are a fantastic savory breakfast serving up protein, fiber and as many vegetables as you want to cram into them! With two options to cook these, chickpea pancakes are great for weekly meal prep or to make on demand for a delicious meal (breakfast or otherwise).
I was inspired by this recipe, but since I actually can eat eggs (and these don’t really taste like an omelet to me), I modified the recipe to make them more of a savory pancake. There are two ways I make these chickpea pancakes – sheet pan baked in the oven (they taste more like a heavy waffle this way), or fried in a skillet with a splash of oil (this variation tastes more like a potato latke).
Batter all mixed up
Baked or fried
For a long time I mixed up a batch of the dry ingredients and then each morning I would mix up ½ cup of the dry mix, prep my veggies and fry up a few of these chickpea pancakes. Not only was this time consuming, but although I only used a splash of olive oil, it was enough to make me smell like a fry cook all day.
After trying a sheet pan pancake recipe for sweet blueberry pancakes, I decided to see what would happen if I tried to bake my chickpea pancakes. While the texture is very different from the fried option, I love the convenience of having these ready to go each morning and not smelling like fried food is awesome!
While I will still fry up a batch if cooking them as a special meal for friends or family, when it is just for my breakfast, I am a sheet pan convert!
Batter with all the veggies and herbs mixed in.
A few recipe notes
Chickpea flour does not taste good raw – these must be cooked through in order to be delicious. Also, do not lick the bowl or spoon with the raw batter, no matter how good it smells – you will be rewarded with a very bitter aftertaste.
If you are baking the chickpea pancakes, you can dice your veggies a little bigger than if frying, they cook longer and have more of a chance to cook through. If you want to have larger vegetable pieces and you are going the fried route, I suggest sauteing them first – it is never fun to accidentally end up with a mouthful of raw onion.
When mixing up the batter, you want to use the same measuring spoon for the flour and the water – ½ cup in a liquid measuring cup and ½ cup in a solid measuring spoon are two different amounts. If you use a liquid measuring cup for your water, your batter will be too thin. If this happens, just add a tablespoon or two of mix (or chickpea flour if you are making the full recipe), stir and let your batter thicken up.
Zucchini, mushroom, scallion and herbs ready to chop for the chickpea pancakes.
Picking your veggies and herbs
This is a great way to use up the half an onion leftover from last night’s dinner, or the handful of herbs left in the clamshell pack. I love experimenting with different combinations of vegetables and herbs in these pancakes. You can use fresh or frozen vegetables (if you use frozen, let them defrost before mixing in).
Some of my favorites combos include:
- frozen spinach and loads of fresh dill and basil,
- zucchini, mushrooms and scallions,
- Frozen corn, zucchini, red bell peppers and cilantro
- Summer squash, parsley and onions
The possibilities are endless – when gathering you mix-ins, if you would like those vegetables and herb sauteed and served with pasta or rice, then they will probably work in these chickpea pancakes!
You can also use dried herbs and spices to add extra flavor if you want.
Chickpea pancakes – baked but not yet cut.
Toppings
I love topping these with something a little creamy and fatty. I usually use some vegan butter. Then I get creative, slices of avocado, vegan cream cheese or sour cream, chevre (I can digest goat and sheep milk cheeses although not cow’s milk), anything soft, fatty and creamy goes great on these!
If you want to get really fancy, you could save a little of any fresh herbs you used in these pancakes to sprinkle on top once they are finished. Thinly sliced scallions would also be delicious.
I hope this recipe brings a delicious start to your mornings (or brunches, lunches and dinners)!
Sheet Pan Chickpea Pancakes
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1½ cups chickpea flour (also labeled besam or garbanzo bean flour)
- 3 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 3 Tbsp ground flax seeds (or flax meal)
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Additional Ingredients
- 1½ cups water (measured using the same measuring spoon you used for the chickpea flour)
- 2-4 cups veggies and fresh herbs, finely diced
- Toppings of your choice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Mix together the dry ingredients. Add water to the dry ingredients and stir well. Leave to sit - the flax seeds will help thicken the batter over a few minutes while you prep your vegetables.
- Chop all vegetables and herbs into a fine dice and add to the batter. Mix well.
- Line a 10”x15” rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread the batter on the parchment lined baking sheet using a rubber spatula to achieve an even layer (you want to avoid high and low pockets for even cooking).
- Bake for 20-25 minutes (based on the water content in your veggies you may need to add or remove baking time - wetter veggies = longer cook time).
- At the end of the cook time, immediately transfer the parchment paper and chickpea pancakes to a cooling rack. This is an important step, there will be a lot of moisture trapped on the bottom of your parchment paper, and you want to avoid that soaking back into the bottom of your pancakes.
- After cooling for a few minutes (the bottom should be relatively dry to the touch). Transfer back to the baking sheet or another flat surface to cut your pancakes. I cut these into 10 even pieces - one cut down the middle on the long side, and four evenly spaced cuts down the short side. I have two pieces for breakfast each morning.
