Vegan Zucchini Pancakes

This zucchini pancakes recipe creates tender pancakes that are crispy on the outside. Pancakes are perfect for breakfast, especially when topped with maple syrup and vegan butter.

A stack of zucchini pancakes has syrup drizzling over the top of it. A bowl of syrup and a zucchini sits behind it.

Zucchini pancakes can take your weekend from good to great in a matter of minutes. Pancakes on the weekends are perfect because you can reheat the leftovers for a quick breakfast throughout the week.

In fact, sometimes we’ll make a double batch so we can enjoy them throughout the week as well.

What Makes This Recipe Shine?

  • Pressing shredded zucchini removes its excess liquids, allowing the flavor and texture of the zucchini to shine through in crispy (rather than mushy) pancakes
  • A flax egg is a great binder for these pancakes
  • Cinnamon adds delicious flavor to every pancakes!
Three zucchinis sit side-by-side on a white table.

What Zucchinis are Best?

Select zucchinis that have smooth skin that’s thin. To tell if the skin is thin enough, scrape a little bit with your fingernail. It should come off easily. Zucchinis with pitted skin are older and not as fresh. Select smaller zucchini, around 6 inches in size. Large zucchini may look nice, but they can be bitter and watery.

What You Need

You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.

Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe, including substitution ideas:

  • Zucchini — You’ll need one fresh zucchini for this recipe.
  • Flax egg — We’ll use a flax egg or substitute a chia egg.
  • Vegan butter — any dairy-free butter or margarine will work or make your own vegan butter. You can substitute coconut oil.
  • Agave nectar — Or substitute maple syrup or sugar.
  • Vanilla extract — Adding vanilla
  • Flour — I use whole wheat pastry flour (different from whole wheat flour) or you can use all-purpose flour.
  • Baking powder
  • Ground cinnamon — I like adding some spices to these pancakes. Cinnamon works great but so does this pumpkin pie spice.
  • Salt
  • Plant-based milk — You can use your favorite plant-based milk, such as soy, almond, cashew, and more.

Marly’s Tips

You can make savory zucchini pancakes by leaving out the vanilla and the sugar. For example, this savory zucchini bread is a hit!

A stack of pancakes has melted butter on top. A bowl behind it holds maple syrup. A zucchini sits behind it too.

How to Make Zucchini Pancakes

  1. Prepare Zucchinis: Cut off the ends of the Zucchini and shred it (including the peel), until you have 1 1/2 cups of shreds. Place the shredded zucchini in 2 to 3 paper towel pieces and then wring it out over the sink, to remove excess fluid.
  2. Mix Wet Ingredients: In a mixing bowl, combine the shredded and pressed zucchini, water, ground flaxseed, melted vegan butter, agave nectar, and vanilla. Stir to combine. Move contents over to one side of the bowl.
  3. Combine Dry Ingredients: On the other side of the bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir to combine. Stir to combine the dry ingredients. Then slowly incorporate the shredded zucchini mixture.
  4. Add Milk: Pour one-half cup of the plant-based milk in with the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine. Then add the remaining milk and stir until just combined.

Cook the Pancakes

  1. Place a skillet over medium to medium-high heat and spray with vegetable cooking spray or use a half teaspoon of vegan butter to coat the pan. 
  2. Pour the pancake batter (using 2 tablespoons of batter per pancake) into the heated skillet.
  3. Cook until bubbles form on the top side of the pancakes, then use a spatula to flip the pancakes and cook on the other side until golden brown.
  4. Keep cooked pancakes warm by placing them in a toaster oven or oven heated to 200F while you repeat the cooking process with the remaining batter.

Serving Suggestions

Serve zucchini pancakes warm with vegan butter, maple syrup, some berry chia jam, or fresh fruit. Here are even more ways to top your pancakes:

Storage Tips

Store pancakes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 7 days. They can be frozen in freezer safe containers or storage bags for up to 2 months.

Reader Reviews

★★★★★
A winner! Oh my goodness, so good. My zucchini plant is producing like crazy and I was about to despair but now I’m tapping my foot waiting for the next zucchini because these are a huge hit at our house. I searched for zucchini bread pancakes and am glad this site came up. Looking forward to trying more recipes here! 🙂

Mycala

Healthy Vegan Zucchini Pancakes

Healthy Zucchini Pancakes breakfast treats are not like any ol’ pancakes. They’re like zucchini bread, served in pancake form. You can’t go wrong with that!

Also, zucchinis are healthy. There are some important nutrients to take note of. For example, zucchinis offer the following:

  • Vitamin A
  • Magnesium
  • Folate
  • Omega-3 Fatty Acids
  • Protein
  • Calcium

You want me to go on? I could! That’s the thing I love about veggies — they’re packed with all the nutrients we need.

Frequently-Asked Questions

Do pancakes freeze well?

Pancakes are perfect for meal-prepping because they freeze well. Simply place the pancakes on a platter and place in the freezer. Once the pancakes have frozen, transfer to a freezer bag and return to the freezer where they’ll keep up to 3 months.

What is the best way to reheat pancakes?

Place frozen pancakes in a toaster or toaster oven to reheat. This helps recreate the crispy crust from when they were first made. Toast until cooked through and then serve with your favorite toppings.

A stack of pancakes has melted butter on top and a bowl of syrup behind it.

More Zucchini Recipes

That’s it for these zucchini pancakes. Enjoy!

A stack of zucchini pancakes has maple syrup being drizzled over the top. More maple syrup and a zucchini is in the background.

Vegan Zucchini Pancakes

Crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, these vegan zucchini pancakes topped with maple syrup will start your day out right, time after time.
5 from 3 votes
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
Servings: 5
Calories: 177kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 small zucchini
  • 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • 1 tablespoon vegan butter , melted
  • 2 tablespoons agave nectar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 ¼ cup whole wheat pastry flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 ¼ cup plant based milk , vanilla

Instructions

  • Cut off the ends of the Zucchini and shred it (including the peel), until you have 1 ½ cups of shreds. Place the shredded zucchini in 2 to 3 paper towel pieces and then wring it out over the sink, to remove excess fluid.
  • In a mixing bowl, combine the shredded and pressed zucchini, water, ground flaxseed, melted vegan butter, agave nectar, and vanilla. Stir to combine. Move contents over to one side of the bowl.
  • In the other side of the bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Stir to combine. Stir to combine the dry ingredients. Then slowly incorporate the shredded zucchini mixture.
  • Pour one-half cup of the plant-based milk in with the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine. Then add the remaining milk and stir until just combined.
  • Heat a skillet over medium to medium-high heat. You can either spray the pan with vegetable cooking spray or use a half teaspoon of vegan butter to coat the pan. 
  • Once the skillet is hot, pour the pancake batter (using 2 tablespoons of batter per pancake) into the prepared skillet. Cook until bubbles form on the top side of the pancakes. Use a spatula to flip the pancakes and cook on the other side until golden brown. Place cooked pancakes on a plate and repeat this process with the remaining batter.
  • Serve warm with vegan butter, maple syrup, fruit jam, and or fresh fruit. 

(The products above contain sponsored links to products we use and recommend)

Calories: 177kcal

The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

This post was originally published in 2017 and was updated to include new photos, new text, and an updated recipe in 2021.

10 Responses to Vegan Zucchini Pancakes

  1. Avatar thumbnail image for MarlyMycala Reply

    5 stars
    A winner! Oh my goodness, so good. My zucchini plant is producing like crazy and I was about to despair but now I’m tapping my foot waiting for the next zucchini because these are a huge hit at our house. I searched for zucchini bread pancakes and am glad this site came up. Looking forward to trying more recipes here! 🙂

  2. Avatar thumbnail image for MarlyElaine Lee Reply

    Need to lessen the Baking Soda. I can taste it in each bite. Not sure what to put in its place though. Other than that they are good and hold up when flipping. 🙂

    • Avatar thumbnail image for MarlyMarly

      Hi Elaine. You can try using baking powder instead. Or add a teaspoon of lemon juice to cut the flavor of the baking soda. Hope this helps!

  3. Avatar thumbnail image for MarlyAdee Reply

    5 stars
    Zucchini in everything! Love it!

  4. Avatar thumbnail image for Marlysam Reply

    5 stars
    Hey Marly…! i love your recipe but i don’ t understand described your step 6. well your vegan zucchini bread pancakes looks so yummy & delicious. Thanks for sharing…!

    • Avatar thumbnail image for MarlyMarly

      Hi Sam! Thanks for your comment. These are really good pancakes! 🙂 Step #6 has been fixed. Thanks!

  5. Avatar thumbnail image for MarlyInes Reply

    Zucchini bread pancakes sound interesting but Step 6 doesn’t make any sense. It seems that it goes to something else – you could remove that step to make the directions flow smoothly. I think that step goes to making zucchini bread itself with a few extra words in there.

    • Avatar thumbnail image for MarlyMarly

      Egads! I don’t know what happened there, Ines, but thanks for letting me know about it. It is fixed now. Sometimes…it takes a village.

  6. Avatar thumbnail image for MarlyJackie Reply

    Regarding Step #6: Huh?

    • Avatar thumbnail image for MarlyMarly

      Ha ha, Jackie! Just checking to make sure you’re reading. 🙂 Sorry about the confusion…it’s fixed now.

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