The first day of school is special. It is the first official send off for your child or children to school, and quite possibly the return of normalcy for you. In my house we celebrate this occasion with a hot breakfast. It calms nervous tummies to be able to sit down, relax and enjoy a meal together as we go over what we’re excited and/or nervous about. All my kids are Nervous Nellies, so I have found this tradition first started by my mom, and later my sister, to be very useful. As wild and crazy as my kiddos are in the morning, they will agree to sit down to eat for 15 minutes and just talk.
My favorite breakfast to serve on this day is pancakes. Of course we all have our favorite pancake recipe and I have two that I love. This year I made my personal favorite pancake; Dairy, Egg and Nut Free Heart Healthy Oatmeal Pancakes. Served alongside warm maple syrup, dairy free margarine, fresh fruit, turkey sausage and orange juice (sorry, this is in the big plastic jug and NOT fresh squeezed…remember I only 15 minutes to eat and four kids to get out the door! 
This is also a fabulous recipe with farmer’s market blueberries sprinkles on top of the freshly poured batter. The result: warm, slightly popped blueberries that burst with fresh berry flavor in every bite. My husband and I have been been known to battle it out over the last Blueberry Oatmeal Pancake…
This is also a whole grain version that happens to be irresistibly delicious. I never would have thought I’d prefer whole grain over my good old all purpose flour but in this case I do. It is truly special, and takes no more than five minutes to whip together. They also freeze really well. Enjoy and hope everyone had a great first day of school!
Heart-Healthy Oatmeal Pancakes
Yield: About 20 pancakes
1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal
1 cup whole-wheat flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
6 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons water
11/2 cups soy or rice milk
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
Preheat a cast-iron griddle pan on medium heat until hot, and preheat oven to 200ºF.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine oatmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt with a wire whisk. In a large liquid measuring cup, combine water, oil, and soy milk. Pour water mixture into the dry ingredients, and mix with a wire whisk until just combined. Do not over mix; a few lumps are fine.
Spray griddle liberally with dairy-free cooking spray (repeat this process each time you put down a new pool of batter). Pour about 1/4 cup of batter onto the heated griddle, and cook until small bubbles start to form on top. Flip and cook other side until light brown. Transfer pancakes to warmed oven, and repeat.
Tip: Freeze extras by placing pancakes in a resealable freezer bag, with a sheet of parchment or wax paper placed between each layer. Label with name and date, and freeze for up to 2 months.
Yum! I’ve been wishing for a healthier pancake for my family. We have been known to have pancakes for dinner and this recipe would make that occasion less of a guilty pleasure . . . Thank you!
I love pancakes- I can’t wait to try these on my family! Hope that your school year is off to a great start- that was such encouraging news that the second grade teachers are going birthday treat free!! HOORAY!
sounds good, we had eggs, because they don’t have any wheat, and they are our locally raised chicken eggs which just warms my heart.
colette
Can I substitute soy or rice flour for wheat flour? We are wheat/dairy/egg free. Thanks
You make THE best pancakes! That is why Devin wants to go to Northwestern so that he can stop on by for your awesome cooking.
These look delish! Going to give them a test run in our house tomorrow (Sunday) and if they are a hit, will do a repeat on Wednesday morning, first day back to school for us! Thanks Kelly!
Hi Kelly, just wanted to let you know that my son Jack was asking to make pancakes this morning after seeing a tv program where they made pancakes. I have tried so many pancake recipes without egg and they have all been bland and dissapointing.
My husband (who doesn’t cook!) was watching the boys this morning while I was at work, and I directed him to your site for a pancake recipe to try with Jack. My husband was skeptical about how they would come out but he gave it a try for Jack. The report I got was that these were delicious and a big hit for breakfast. This recipes wins for great taste and for ease of preparing since even my husband could do it! Thanks again for another great recipe to add to our favorites.
Thanks Andrea for your comment. I love that story and am so excited your family loved them (and was even approved by your husband!) I go back and forth between this recipe and the traditional pancake recipe which is also listed in my recipe section. But the Heart Healthy ones are my personal favorite. Thanks again!
Kelly,
Thank you for writing your blog. Your writing is heartfelt and relevant. When I read about the nurse calling you from school I started crying and then thanking God for the safety of your son. I, myself, have multiple food sensitivities, thankfully, none anaphalactic. I want to respond to Rebecca who, in her comment, asked if she could use soy or rice flour for your pancake recipe. She also said she is wheat, dairy and egg free. I wanted to say I have the same allergies and have developed a gluten free sourdough technique that is dairy and egg free. Rebecca can see my pancake and starter recipe at the link below.
http://glutenfreesourdough.blogspot.com/2009_06_01_archive.html
Looking forward to more of your posts. Keep writing!
Thanks so much for the wonderful resource Sharon! I will pass it along to all the readers, and Rebecca let us know how the starter works out for you!
If you freeze these can you pop them in a toaster to re-heat???
Thanks for the great info. I’ll let everyone know just as soon as I make them! These site are such a blessing to me as I am new at the allergy and cooking thing-lol!
Oooooh, these pancakes are DELICIOUS! So much healthier than the ones I usually make and my kids LOVED them!
Thanks Sharon! I’m so glad you and yoru family loved them as much as I do!!
Thanks Rebecca! Can’t wait to hear!
Mommy X, these pancakes are PERFECT for reheating. Frozen pancakes can be warmed in the toaster oven or microwave, or even in an oven (300 degrees for several minutes). I personally zap my frozen pancakes in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds.
I tried making these using a gluten-free all purpose flour mix. Unfortunately they didn’t turn out quite right.
Sorry they didn’t work for you Maleah…none of my recipes are tested using gluten free flours so there would be no way for me to know if they would work or not. I recommend you look to some gluten free websites, and see if they have some recipes that you might enjoy.
Kelly these were so good – they were met w/skeptical looks initially but based on the fact that there were only 4 left by the time breakfast was over I would say they were a hit! AND I feel like I snuck some nutrition in there too!
These were sooo good! Even my picky 1 and 2 yr olds loved them! Definitely my new favorite pancakes, even better than regular pancakes. Thanks!!
SOOO happy to hear that Lauren! I love these pancakes too…and I also love them more than the regular version!
I have now made these countless times using various wheat/gluten-free flours. They turn out awesome every time. When using alternative flours, the key is to let the batter rest for 5-10 minutes before actually cooking the pancakes. Otherwise they will be really flat and fall apart. I have used oat flour, Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten-Free blend, and a sorghum/millet combo. Thanks so much! My son just about lives on these!
Thanks SO MUCH Becky about your advice regarding the wheat/gluten free flours. Your tips will be VERY helpful to others. Thank YOU!!!
These pancakes are da bomb! I was a little nervous about how these healthy pancakes would measure up with the kids versus the traditional (so I through in a few mini chocolate chips!) – they loved them and kept asking for more! YUM! Thanks for all your wonderful recipes.
Kelly, I am in amazed EVERY time I try another of your recipes!! I have never had anything turn out bad. Perfect, perfect, perfect! I will never go anywhere else for my food allergic son. These pancakes are crazy good!
I just received your book and decided to dive right in with this pancake recipe and they didn’t turn out.
I used “quick oats” without evening noticing that the recipe calls for “quick cooking oatmeal.” Is that just instant oatmeal? I feel like I should know this!! BTW – LOVE YOUR BOOK!!!!! I have your summer berry crisp in the oven right now!! 
It smells YUMMY!
Good question Jenni…I was going to make these tonight using “quick oats” but I’m glad I saw your post. I have trouble finding good sources of whole grains for my son and these looked perfect to make. I’m not sure what “quick cooking oatmeal” is either.
Quick cooking is the regular oatmeal you’ll find in a container in the oatmeal section, NOT the instant packets. And to be honest, either Quick Cooking or Old Fashioned will do just fine, the texture will just be slightly different. I highly recommend this pancake sprinkled with fresh blueberries on top of freshly poured batter. SOOO good!
Just discovered your website. Thanks for this recipe. I made these pancakes this morning for my family (my daughter was recently diagnosed with multiple food allergies and I have been researching food options). Your recipes sound perfect and these pancakes were absolutely delicious. I substituted the whole wheat flour with Bob’s Red Mill all purpose flour, and buckwheat flour, and they were a big hit with my daughter and husband !!! I really appreciate learning from your wisdom and ideas as I was initiallly overwhelmed with my daughter’s diagnosis, and your website is a godsend. THANKS AGAIN!
Hi Kelly,
I’ve been trying out all your recipes for a few months now and I just have to say THANK YOU! I have a little girl who will be turning 3 very soon and she can finally enjoy “normal” food. And to make things even better the hubbster, who has always maintained that the allergen free recipes I’ve tried before were okay by themselves but not comparable to the real thing, cannot get enough of YOUR allergen free recipes…AND says he cannot tell the difference. To say we are very thrilled and grateful would be an understatement!
My daughter is allergic to nuts/peanuts, dairy, eggs and soy. You mention sausages in this post. I haven’t been able to find sausages that are free of any of those allergens. Would you mind sharing the name of the company that makes them?
I’ll be buying your first cookbook this week and we would love to try your dinner/lunch recipes too! Again, thank you so much for all the work you put in to make these wonderful recipes. Looking after your family and finding time to make perfect these recipes- you are a super mom!
Hi Kelly, I just wanted to tell you that I made these pancakes this past weekend and they were delicious! My younger son, who is allergic to milk, soy, egg, and peanut/tree nuts, is not a fan of pancakes, but he and his brother ate these up (me too)! I can’t thank you enough for the great (and healthy) recipe.
Kelly,
I’m a big fan of your recipes and I always check your website first when I need to make something for a party of event. I’ve made these pancakes several times and LOVE the flavor and the fact that they’re healthier than using standard white flour. However, I always have a problem with the texture. They crumble and fall apart so easily. Do you eperience this? Any tips or suggestions as to why this is happening? I follow your recipe to the letter and use rice milk. I’d love to find a way to solve this problem because it’s the only reason I don’t make them more often. Thanks!