Pink Beet Pancakes

Antioxidant-rich, healthy, easy to make, and delicious! These beautiful pink pancakes or beet pancakes are a great healthy pancake for adults, kids, baby and toddler. Made with just 4 ingredients and sweetened with banana and beetroot.

Adding beets to pancakes is a great way to get yourself or your child to eat more vegetables. Great as a breakfast or snack recipe.

Why we love this recipe:

• vibrant pink pancakes
• nutritious pancakes
• great for baby-led weaning
• a great beet recipe for baby and toddler
• No-flour pancakes
• Dairy and gluten-free (if you use gluten-free oats)

If you like this you may like other pancake recipes for baby, toddlers and kids such as Banana Spinach Pancakes baby recipe, Sweet Potato Pancakes, Healthy Blueberry Pancakes for baby, Healthy Strawberry Pancakes or 10 Easy Eggless pancake recipes.

Ingredients

• Eggs – an excellent source of protein. They are rich in B2 and B12 (a vitamin only available in animal produce) so if you are like us and don't eat a lot of meat or fish, having a consistent amount of eggs in your child's diet (e.g. one a day) is very beneficial for their growth. Also high in vitamin D, selenium, iodine.
• Banana – primarily made of carbohydrates so they keep your child full and give them lots of energy. Also high in potassium. The riper the banana the sweeter the taste.
• Beets – such a beautifully colored vegetable. We use a raw beet in this recipe and just blend it in. It also has some natural sweetness and is packed full of nutrients. Worth noting that after eating beets, it's totally normal for your child's urine and poop look a bit red!
• Oats – also a carbohydrate, so will give your baby long-lasting energy and keep them full. Rich in fiber, phosphorus, thiamine, magnesium, and zinc.
• Coconut Oil – used for cooking the pancakes on. I have tried olive oil and it doesn't really work as well.

How To Make These Pancakes

1. Peel the beet. You could use some reusable gloves because your hands may get very red from the beets. Once peeled, cut in quarters and pop into a blender (save the other half of the beet for next time).
2. Blend all the ingredients. Place the beets, oats, eggs, and bananas plus 2 tablespoon of water in a blender and blend until smooth. I have used this low-cost blender and have also used this amazing Vitamix which is the best machine ever (especially for batters, smoothies, and soups).
3. Check the consistency, it should be of a loose puree. If it is too loose add more flour, if too dense add a bit more water.
4. Cook. Heat the saucepan on medium heat and add a tablespoon of coconut oil. Once the coconut oil has melted pour about 2 tablespoons of batter to the pan and cook for several minutes, or until small bubbles start appearing on the surface.
5. Flip the pancake over and cook for 1-2 minutes until finished.
6. Serve with some fruit, yogurt and nut butter.

Enjoy!

How to serve to baby and toddler?

Baby-led weaning

• 6-9 month old – cut the pancakes in length and width of your index finger so they can easily grab them
• 9 month+ or pincer grasp – cut into smaller bite size pieces, the size of your pinky fingernail if you prefer
• You can serve these with a thin smear of nut butter (nut butters are choking hazards so be careful to spread it thinly) and fruit mashed or cut up age appropriately

Toddler

• Serve them whole, the same as you would for adults
• Spread peanut butter on them and then fold like a sandwich to make them mess free but delicious

How to make beet pancakes vegan?

However you can still make these pancakes vegan, with no egg by using either a flax egg or chia egg.

For each egg take 1 tablespoon of chia seeds or ground flaxseeds and mix with 3 tablespoons of water and let sit for about 5 - 10 minute to make a chia-egg/flax-egg. And then use that instead of eggs in the recipe.

How to store and reheat?

Storage

• Fridge – place in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
• Freezer – if you think you will be defrosting them individually then place them one on top of the other and then separate them with parchment paper followed by placing them in an airtight container. Once defrosted, use within 24 hours.

Reheating from frozen

• Reheat in the oven at 180°C / 350°F for about 5-10 min.
• Reheat in toaster for 1 min on defrost setting
• Reheat in microwave for about 15 sec on defrost setting (depending on the microwave)

Substitutions

• Eggs - you can use 2 flax or chia eggs (see above how to make flax and chia eggs)
• Cooked beets - I prefer to use raw beets but we have also tried it store bought cooked beets and it tastes fine

Variations

• Add spinach like we have in Spinach Banana Pancakes for more of a veggie boost
• Add seeds for nutritional boost - chia seeds, flaxseeds, hemp seeds
• Add spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg
• Add milk instead of water for more calcium
• Make them vegan by using flax egg or chia egg
• Use wholewheat flour instead of oats