The intense flavors from ginger and orange (peel) and the soft texture make these gluten-free ginger orange pancakes the ultimate healthy breakfast. (Vegan)
How has your spring been so far? Ours? We had a late spring here in Michigan but tulips were blooming beautifully last week. We even visited Holland, Michigan to enjoy the peak blooming of those gorgeous flowers.
As you know, we are a gluten-free family. Although staying gluten-free when eating out is easier than it was 10 years ago, I still like to bring some homemade food along. For us, it’s more convenient than driving to a gluten-free restaurant.
Take a look at these homemade, gluten-free ginger orange pancakes. After warming them up in a microwave oven, they’re just as tasty as fresh out of the pan. A cup of coffee and a few pieces of these homemade pancakes with syrup or peanut butter, and we are ready to head out to the tulips.
In general, most of orange pancake recipes out there use orange juice to give the orange flavor. That’s what you would expect, right? I have found that just using the zest, or the entire peel, actually enhances the flavor much better. In this recipe, I used the mandarin orange peels I had saved. It’s thin and has less pith (the white part of orange peels).
To make them vegan, I used flax seeds instead of eggs. After blending flax seeds, mandarin peels, fresh ginger roots, and water in a high-speed blender until smooth, the mixture of wet ingredients is ready to be added to the dry ingredients. The orange color is natural. No worries.
Pass around these awesome vegan, gluten-free ginger orange pancakes and watch them disappear!

- 2 medium size mandarin peels
- 8 slices fresh ginger roots
- ½ teaspoon pure stevia extract powder
- 1 tablespoon flax seeds
- 2¼ cups + 2 tablespoons water
- 2 cups 300 grams Joyce’s all-purpose gluten-free flour (See note)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 15 grams pea protein powder
- 1 teaspoon 5 grams psyllium husk powder
- 2 teaspoons or more canola oil
- Rinse and clean off any dirt on mandarins when saving the peels. Add all wet ingredients in a high-speed blender (I used vitamix blender) and blend until smooth. Let the mixture set for at least 5 minutes so the flax seeds can swell and become sticky.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the mixing bowl. Mix well with a rubber spatula. You don’t have to be concerned about over mixing this gluten free pancake batter like you would with wheat pancakes. Let the pancake batter rest for 10 minutes so the flour becomes well moistened.
- Heat a cast-iron skillet over high heat until hot. Reduce the heat to medium. Lightly brush the skillet with canola oil. Drop approximately 1 ice cream scoop or ¼ cup of pancake batter into the skillet. Use the back of the scoop to gently spread the batter into a 3½ - 4” diameter disk. Flip over when the center of the batter is bubbly and the edges are dry. Approximately 2 minutes. Cook the other side for another 2 minutes or until both sides are golden brown.
- Repeat to finish all batter. Brush more oil as needed.
- These pancakes can be garnished with mandarin and served with homemade syrup, jam, or peanut butter.
- Joyce's all-purpose gluten-free flour mix
- Any store-bought gluten-free all-purpose flour may work for this recipe. You may need to adjust the amount of water if you use a different all-purpose gluten-free flour mix.
