These gingerbread pancakes are full of warm spices, packed with protein and are naturally gluten free.

During a recent snowstorm my husband was working from home so I decided to surprise him with a warm and yummy pancake lunch. With Christmas right around the corner, we are officially in hermit cookie season which is where I got the inspiration for this dish.

If you’ve never had a hermit bar before, they are a chewy, ginger-molasses spice cookie that my husband bakes every year during the holidays. They originated in New England where my husband was raised as a nutrient-packed cookie for sailors to bring on long trips across the ocean.

While I’d love to subsist on cookies for nourishment, I rarely go more than 3 hours without a meal so I decided to create a healthy pancake recipe that hits all of the gingerbread notes we love without any of the guilt. In fact, these pancakes are packed with protein and fiber to give you long lasting energy all morning long. After all, you probably have cookies to bake and gifts to wrap.
Your fork is waiting.

Gingerbread Protein Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2 cups oats
- 2 scoops protein powder
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 ripe banana (mashed)
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup skim milk
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- maple syrup and butter (to serve optional)
Instructions
- Place oats in a food processor or blender and pulse until flour forms. It doesn’t have to be perfectly smooth.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together oat flour, protein powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger, baking powder, salt and ground cloves.
- In a small bowl, combine wet ingredients: mashed banana, egg, milk, molasses and vanilla. Slowly add wet ingredients to the dry and mix until just combined.
- Heat griddle over medium heat and spray with cooking spray. Working 1/4 cup at a time, pour batter onto heated griddle. Cook first side until bubbles begin to form, about 2 minutes. Flip pancakes and cook additional 2 minutes or until other side is lightly browned.
- Serve with maple syrup and butter if you wish.
These look sooo yummy!! Can I substitute almond milk for skim milk?
Absolutely!!
I have some protein powder but there is no scoop. Ho do I determine how much to use? I would love to make these pancakes.
Oh good point! Two tablespoons! :)
Oh yum! These sound great. I am alllll about the gingerbread right now.
You and me both! Tis the season!
these look fab! and now i want a slab of good ol’ butter too! LOL! gingerbread pancakes are great but add in gluten free and protein and you’ve got DINNER, right? ;-)
Exactly girl! I like the way you think!
Can you sub the Egg for anything!? Brilliant recipe
You could always try a flax egg! Google it for easy directions but I believe it’s a tablespoon of flax seed with water. Good luck!!
Ooooh…these look so airy and fluffy! I love gingerbread. I’ve never done a gingerbread pancake! I’m pinning now to make over the holidays. My kids will love them!
Let me know if you try it!! They were one of my best batches of pancakes lately!! :)
I could really use these pancakes today! And, about 5,000 batches of those hermit bars.
LOL I want to have a hermit with you!! xxoxo
I would love a big stack of these!
They were so dang good!! Thanks Gaby!
Wow! I would have never considered gingerbread to be used in pancakes. What a wonderful idea!
I hope you like them!!
Yup, totally making these!
You must – they were so freaking good!
these pancakes look incredible, liz! i am all about gingerbread flavored recipes right now :)
Thanks friend – they were so good!! I need to remember to use molasses more often!
Wow, Liz! You’ve really come up with something here that sounds wonderful. We enjoy pancakes, but I rarely find a recipe for them that I really want to make. I’m definitely going to put this on my list of must-try recipes.
Thank you so much Susan! I hope you enjoy!
Your hubby was so lucky to be treated to these delicious pancakes for lunch! I could go for them any time of day. They look SO delicious, and I love the gingerbread flavor. Thanks for sharing, Liz! Happy holidays to you and your new family of four! ;)
I always want pancakes too – any time of the day!! :) Happy Holidays to you as well friend!
I already have some oatmeal flour. How much should I use in the recipe? Thanks!
It’s a 1:1 ratio so one cup of oat flour! Enjoy!!
Thanks! Going to try these tomorrow morning:)
Oh good I hope you enjoy them!!
These sound perfect. I seriously love when you can feel good about eating pancakes.
Ps…forwarding hermit bar recipe to Larry :)