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Chocolate hidden vegetable pancakes taste like rich, fudgy, chocolate pancakes, and are made with spinach, carrots, and apples. Judging by the taste, you would never guess how healthy they are!
You guys, this is not my type of recipe. Like, so not my type of recipe. I mean, hidden vegetable pancakes?! Why would you do that? And they couldn’t possibly taste good, right?
Wrong.
I used to always think like the above, and it never even occurred to me to try to hide vegetables in pancakes. Or any other baked goods. Or chocolate cakes. I kept my savory foods savory, and my baked goods sweet, and never the twain shall meet.
But one day, I was searching on Google (that’s how all interesting things start nowadays, isn’t it?) for a healthier pancake recipe. I previously mentioned my 5-year-old, who would eat pancakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper, if I would let him.
I didn’t really want to let him, though. I mean, pancakes are delicious, but aren’t all that healthy, and I didn’t feel so comfortable feeding him pancakes as full meals so often. Hence the Google search for healthy pancake recipes.
This chocolate hidden vegetable pancake recipe came up, and some strange impulse came over me, and I clicked on it.
So I was scrolling through the reviews, and I noticed that everyone was saying how delicious and amazing this recipe is.
And I thought, what the heck, let me try this.
So I tried it.
And the reviews are correct. It is delicious. My five-year-old agrees.
Are you ready? Off we go!
Chocolate Hidden Vegetable Pancakes Recipe
Adapted from Food Network
Chocolate Hidden Vegetable Pancakes Ingredients
1/2 cup carrots, peeled and chopped into large chunks
1/2 cup frozen spinach
1 apple, peeled and chopped into large chunks
6 oz plain yogurt
1/2 cup oats
1/4 cup cocoa
1/4 cup milk
3 tablespoons honey (or more, if desired)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup chocolate chips (or more, if desired)
oil, for frying
Chocolate Hidden Vegetable Pancakes Method
1. Place carrots, spinach, apple, yogurt, oats, cocoa, milk, honey, and vanilla into a high-powered blender. (You really do need a strong blender for this, like Magimix or Bosch with the blender attachment. The blender I currently have sucks and takes FOREVER to blend anything). Blend until mixture is smooth and liquidy, with no chunks of unblended veggies floating around.
2. Put eggs in blender and blend for a few seconds to mix them in.
3. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the blender. Use your finger or a small spoon to quickly mix the baking powder, soda, and salt into the flour, then turn on the blender and blend until all the flour is fully incorporated.
4. Heat oil in a large frying pan. When oil is hot, pour out pancake-sized amounts of batter from the blender into the frying pan (or use a spoon, if you’d rather.) Sprinkle chocolate chips onto the pancakes. They are ready to be flipped when bubbles form on the surface of the pancakes and the edges turn darker brown.
5. Flip the pancakes, and fry for another minute or so until the bottom is darker brown. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate to soak up some oil.
6. Serve with some sliced carrots to get even more veggies into the kids’ systems!
And that’s it! What do you think about hiding vegetables in food? Are you a fan or not so much? Let me know in the comments!
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Caramel cheesecake
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Whole wheat tahini cookies
Double peanut butter sandwich cookies
Homemade cinnamon buns
Or some marvelous mains!
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No vodka vodka sauce
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Chocolate Hidden Vegetable Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup carrots peeled and chopped into large chunks
- 1/2 cup frozen spinach
- 1 apple peeled and chopped into large chunks
- 6 oz plain yogurt
- 1/2 cup oats
- 1/4 cup cocoa
- 1/4 cup milk
- 3 tablespoons honey or more, if desired
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup chocolate chips or more, if desired
- oil for frying
Instructions
- Place carrots, spinach, apple, yogurt, oats, cocoa, milk, honey, and vanilla into a high-powered blender. (You really do need a strong blender for this, like Magimix or Bosch with the blender attachment). Blend until mixture is smooth and liquidy, with no chunks of unblended veggies floating around.
- Add eggs to blender and blend for a few seconds to mix them in.
- Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the blender. Use your finger or a small spoon to quickly mix the baking powder, soda, and salt into the flour, then turn on the blender and blend until all the flour is fully incorporated.
- Heat oil in a large frying pan. When oil is hot, pour out pancake-sized amounts of batter from the blender into the frying pan (or use a spoon, if you'd rather.) Sprinkle chocolate chips onto the pancakes. They are ready to be flipped when bubbles form on the surface of the pancakes and the edges turn darker brown.
- Flip the pancakes, and fry for another minute or so until the bottom is darker brown. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate to soak up some oil.
- Serve with some sliced carrots to get even more veggies into the kids' systems!
Cool recipe
Great recipe. I’ve never had chocolate vegetable pancake before. Will surely try it out. Thank you for being so generous and sharing the recipe.
You’re welcome! Enjoy!
So yummy! I can’t wait to give this recipe a try! It left me drooling..!!
I hope you enjoy them!
I should make these for my kids. It’s nice to find some ways to sneak veggies into their food, and spinach seems to be an easy veggie to hide.
Yeah, this is a great way to get kids to eat spinach (although my 8-year-old recently asked if instead of meat hand pies I can make them with spinach. So I guess I don’t need to worry that much about getting him to eat his veggies…)
What an awesome way to sneak in vegetables. Using cocoa to mask the taste of vegetables is so clever!
xoxo
Annie
The cocoa also masks the color 😉
This might work for some vegetable adverse children—adults even. Interesting concept for pancakes.
Well, it works to get me to eat vegetables, so I guess that means it works on adults too…
omg, I never knew you could put veggies into pancakes! I have to try these soon. Thanks so much for sharing. I’ll try to reply when I’ve tried them.
I never knew you could put veggies in pancakes either until I tried these! Let me know how they come out for you!
I will definitely try this. =)
Great! I hope you enjoy!
These would be great for winter break when my daughters are home and we aren’t rushing to get out the door every morning. But I’ll probably make them without them helping in the kitchen so they don’t see the magical veggie ingredients. 🙂
Yup, I always make sure to make these when my kids aren’t around so they’ll actually eat them 🙂
I love pancakes and I always have trouble trying to make them healthier! this is definitely a recipe that I will try! thanks for sharing 🙂
You’re very welcome!
Wow.. nice idea and looks amazing.. can’t wait to try them
What a clever way to get some veggies into something as delicious as pancakes! Will try!
Yup, isn’t it great?
I hope you enjoy them!
I have the hardest time trying to get my grandkids to eat veggies. Their parents loved them as kids but they don’t. This would be a great way to make sure they were getting the nutrients they need.
Yes, this is a great way to get kids to eat veggies. That’s why I love the recipe so much.
Wow that’s a wonderful recipe. This recipe looks like a lot of fun I am going to give it a shot. Thanks for sharing
You’re very welcome! Enjoy!
What?! This is insane!! I love this idea. Sometimes we don’t find how to have our vegetables in a fun way. We tend to get tired of having always the same. This seems like a solution. Love it!
XO
Candace
http://www.thebeautybeau.com
Glad you like the recipe!
I am a chocolate lover so these sound so perfect! Thank you for sharing this recipe! 🙂
My recent post: https://lifeofellabella.blogspot.com/2018/12/a-festive-day-in-london.html
You’re welcome! Enjoy!
I’ve hidden chia seeds in pancakes, but never vegetables. I wonder if I could get away with this. Hmmm….
It definitely doesn’t hurt to try 🙂
What a great way to sneak the veggies in. I would have to see if my boys would eat them
Well, all my boys love them, so hopefully yours will too.
This looks sooooo delicious and very easy to prepare! I am gonna try to make it for sure. Thanks a lot for the recipe.
Chad
http://www.mosaicslab.com
You’re very welcome! Enjoy!
Do you think this will work with whole wheat flour?
I’ve never tried it, but I don’t see why not.