Keep this high protein pancakes mix on hand and you’ll only be a couple steps away from a filling nourishing breakfast!
I might be breaking ALL the recipe creation rules with this one.
There’s the “list all ingredients in order of use” rule…. I ALWAYS follow that one. It’s a big pet peeve of mine when I’m making someone else’s recipe and I’m scrambling to find how much to add of the ingredient that comes next. Making a recipe isn’t some kind of treasure hunt. Just give it to me straight!
Then there’s the “list ingredients added at the same time in descending order” rule. I love this one! It makes recipes look so neat and tidy!
Oh no, I follow all the organizational type of recipe rules. But with this one (ssshhh, don’t tell anyone!) I actually made a copycat recipe for a food I’ve never even tasted!
So to all those people who called me a goodie two shoes in elementary school: ha! There you have it; I do have a rebel streak in me!
High Protein Pancakes Craze
I kept seeing all these Dietitians posting about Kodiak Power Cakes in their #costcofinds Instagram photos. A million Dietitians couldn’t be wrong so I picked up a box the next time I was at Costco. One reason everyone was raving about this pancake mix was that it was made with simple, whole food ingredients. I flipped the box over to read the ingredient list and the first thing I thought was “I have all these ingredients at home; I could just make this myself!” Then I put the box down and went home with a mission to re-create it.
Being a nutrition nerd and proud of it, I used the nutrition facts to guide my recipe creation. My first attempt was nearly right on the money! Ka-ching! A few tweaks and I had a recipe that lined up with the nutritional breakdown of the boxed stuff.
Boxed | DIY | |
Calories | 190 | 195 |
Fat (g) | 2 | 1.5 |
Sodium (mg) | 400 | 375 |
Carbs (g) | 30 | 31 |
Fibre (g) | 5 | 4 |
Sugar (g) | 3 | 3 |
Protein (g) | 14 |
14 |
The power cakes instructions say you can make the pancakes one of three ways:
- Just add water (left in photo)
- Just add milk (middle)
- Add milk and an egg (right)
For these photos I added 3/4 liquid for each cup of dry mix. As you can see in the photo the egg clearly made a “runnier” thinner pancake. I thought I would like the thicker ones but they weren’t as fluffy as I had expected. The milk and egg version proved to be a clear winner in our family.
Why These High Protein Pancakes are a Smart Choice
Compared to a regular box of pancake mix, this high protein pancake mix has
- more than DOUBLE the protein
- 1/3 the sugar
- nearly THREE times the fibre!
So what does that mean for you? Protein and fibre are two very important, key nutrients at breakfast. They pack a mean punch in keeping hunger at bay. When you start your day with a meal high in protein and fibre, you are going to feel full for hours. No need for a morning pick-me-up!
I have a free e-book that will teach you all about optimizing protein, fibre, and so much more for the BEST breakfast that will fuel you all morning long. Sign up here:
This recipe uses whey protein isolate. I prefer this choice for a protein powder because that’s all that’s in it: no sweeteners or flavours or other fillers or sketchy performance enhancers. It’s also much more versatile; you can add it to anything because it has a very mild flavour on its own.
Don’t know where to get it? I order mine online. Check out this one from Amazon (affiliate link):
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment, rate it, or snap a photo and tag it with #smartnutritionrecipes on Instagram! I’d love to see your creations!
high protein pancakes: DIY power cakes mix
Ingredients
For the dry mix:
- 1 cup oats
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 75 g 1 cup whey protein isolate (NOT concentrate)
- 4 1/2 tsp buttermilk powder optional
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
For making the pancakes:
- milk
- eggs
Instructions
To make the dry mix:
- In a blender or food processor, pulse the oats until you get a rough flour texture.
- Whisk together the oat flour with the rest of the dry ingredients.
To make the pancakes:
- Whisk together 1 cup of dry mix with 1/2 cup of milk and 1 egg.
- To use ALL the dry mix, add 3 eggs and 1 3/4 cups milk.
Nutrition info for 1/2 cup dry mix.
Calories: 195 | Fat: 1.5g | Carbs: 31g | Fibre: 4g | Sugar: 3g | Protein: 14g
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Rosemary says
These were amazing! I did use muscle milk vanilla flavored because that is the only protein powder I have at the moment. I normally use a different protein powder but financially this one made sense as I use one scoop (instead of two) in my morning smoothie of oat milk, banana, tumeric, ginger, cinnamon, Cacao powder and maca root powder. I used swerve brown sugar. I also added a little granola to the batter. Soooo good. I love using oat flour! Thank you for the recipe!
Jessica Penner says
Glad you enjoy the recipe!
Rachel says
This ARE amazing!
Jessica Penner says
Glad you enjoy them!
Dahlia says
Hi! Are these nutrition facts for just the mix or for the pancakes made with the milk and egg?
Also, I made them for breakfast this morning. Delicious! Even my husband (who does not like “health food” and usually would rather just have the real thing) enjoyed these!
Dahlia says
Oh, I just saw that you already put the nutrition facts are for 1/2 cup of dry mix, never mind! Thank you!
Jessica Penner says
You’re welcome! So glad you and your husband enjoyed them!
Jessica Penner, RD says
oh… I believe the nutrition info is for just the mix and water!
Ree says
What is a good brand of whey protein isolate to use?
Aso, What alternatives can I use instead of whey?
Jessica Penner, RD says
Anything that’s unsweetened!
Sam says
The Kodiak Cakes box has a variation for making muffins with their mix by adding mashed bananas, eggs, milk, and butter/oil to their mix. Could the same be done with your recipe? Anything you would change to do muffins – i.e. maybe omit the buttermilk?
Jessica Penner, RD says
Hmm, muffins sound like a great idea! You could omit the buttermilk but the kodiak mix does have it in so it should still work for muffins if they have a recipe for it 🙂
Elisa says
I LOVE these pancakes! We just made box mix par cakes and then I mixed a double batch of these and these win! So fluffy! And hearty. Thank you!!
Jessica Penner says
So glad they were a hit!
Rosario says
I would like this recipe but without the sugar using yeast instead of baking powder. I don’t know how to go about substituting the yeast for the baking powder but I will certainly make 2 variations:
1. your recipe, as is
2. less sugar, I’m looking for a like bread flavor
3. figure out how to use yeast instead of baking powder (maybe)
Thanks so much !!
Jessica Penner, RD says
I’ve never made pancakes with yeast before. Maybe look for a belgian waffle recipe?
Diana says
Can you make this vegan with a plant based protein powder? Would it work the same?
Jessica Penner says
I am sure that would work just fine, though I haven’t tested it. Let us know how it goes!
Lorelei says
I followed the recipe but exchanged a coconut/pea protein powder blend for the whey. I’m going to need to tweak this recipe a bit and try again. Plowing the recipe I used the 1+3/4 c oat milk and 3 eggs for the whole batch and it was way too dry. The mix ended up being 4 c total so I added an extra egg and about 4 cups total of milk (well over twice what the recipe recommends) and the mixture was still very thick. Perhaps this is because of the bulk of coconut/pea protein compared to whey. Once I thinned it out further we finally achieved a less mealy pancake. Will be trying this again with further tweaks.
Jessica Penner, RD says
Coconut flour is VERY thirsty so I’m guessing coconut protein powder might be acting in the same way!
Anita says
You mentioned that your recipe is sweetened with dates. How many and how/when are they added to the recipe?
Jessica Penner, RD says
I think I made a mistake when responding to a previous comment. I thought the comment had been about my chocolate peanut butter protein bars: http://smartnutrition.ca/recipes/no-bake-chocolate-peanut-butter-protein-bars/
Danae says
I’m so excited to make this! I love Kodiak cakes, but want to have a mix in hand when I need it and pay less! I am curious before I make it though, once all mixed together how long can I keep the mix? I am not sure if packaged mixes have something added to keep them good, so I just thought I’d ask! Thank you!!
Jessica Penner says
Hi Danae, good question! If you keep the mix in the fridge or freezer, it will last for several months.
cesar says
Will this recipe work with the following ingredients (how much is needed for 3 four inch cakes):
– Ardent Mills whole wheat flour
– Quaker Oats old fashioned oatmeal(grinded into flour)
– ON Gold Standard 100% Whey Vanilla
– Alta Dena Lowfat Cultured Buttermilk
– Cage Free 100% Liquid Egg Whites
– Double acting baking powder
– Splenda No Calorie Sweetener, 1 packet
Working to determine if this is more cost efficient vs buying the 4.5lbs box at my local Costco for 11.49
Thank you
Jessica Penner says
The protein powder mentioned will probably have some additional sweetness to it, which would alter the end result.
Kk says
I making waffles with the Kodak mix – there’s instructions on the box for conversion to waffle mix. Have you tried making waffles with this mix yet?
Jessica Penner says
You know, I haven’t actually tried waffles with this mix yet! But if you follow the instructions on the box, it should work out with this mix as well. I tried my best to make a really authentic replication!
Kristin says
Has anyone experimented with a non Whey protein? I am lactose intolerant and I love Kodiak Cakes, but they don’t love me. I’d love to know if anyone has had success with substituting another protein. Thanks!
Bethanie says
I’ve made them with orgain vanilla plant based protein and it works really well. My husband and kids love them with a banana smashed and some vanilla (both added when ready to cook)
Danielle says
Looking forward to trying this! Thank you. Are you able to put the cups measurements in to weight measurements next time you do these?
Thanks,
Danielle
Jessica Penner says
Thank you for the suggestion! I’ll try to add that info in 🙂
Rachel Martin says
Do you know how it would work to sub an egg white powder for the whey? One of my kiddos is allergic to dairy protein so we can’t buy the Costco box anymore. But he loves pancakes and I’d love to have a good mix on hand!
Jessica Penner says
Hmm, I”m not sure! I’ve never actually worked with egg white powder. I looked into buying it once but got scared off by the price!
Kim says
Rachel – did you try this? I have Jay Robb Egg White Protein powder and wondering if you tried it yet with your children’s allergy.
Kaelah says
Thank you for crafting a protein pancake recipe I can actually eat (can’t have the original Kodiak cakes due to a nut allergy) can’t wait to try it
Jessica Penner says
Oh, it’s tough with food allergies when you have to make most things from scratch!
Seth says
HI! Thanks SO much for this recipe! I typically use the Dark Chocolate flavored Kodiak Cakes mix. Could I simply use a chocolate whey isolate and maybe some cocoa powder for that flavor?
Jessica Penner says
For sure! Just be aware that your chocolate protein powder MAY have added sweetener to it. So taste your pancakes before adding a sweet topping!
Amanda Stout says
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!! I love being able to recreate something at home that saves some dough. I have all these ingredients as well and you did all the work of putting in the nutrition information. That takes some time and I appreciate that very much.
Jessica Penner says
And thank YOU for your feedback! You’re too kind. Glad you’re happy with the recipe!
Amanda Jacobs says
Hi. I just made yogurt in my instant pot and have whey protein in a jar. Can I use that in this mix as a substitute for the whey protein isolate? How/when would I add it?
Jessica Penner says
Oh that’s a good idea for using the whey protein! I would use it in place of the milk then. If you try it out, please let me know how it tastes!
Katrina Farmer says
By the time you have purchased the ingredients including $25 for whey protien isolate are you really saving any money making this pancake mix yourself?
Jessica Penner says
Good question! If you’re going to make them a lot then the whey protein will pay for itself. I’d recommend going to a bulk food store and buying a small amount of the whey protein isolate to try the recipe out first. Then you’ll know if you want to “invest” in the whole container of whey protein isolate!
Sara says
How many 1/2 c servings does the batch of dry mixture make?
Jessica Penner says
I’m sorry, I should have recorded the full amount! I’ll need to make the recipe again and measure it out.
Debi says
What protein powder did you use? I’m looking to buy some and am finding sweetened mixes, not straight isolate.
Ideas?
Thanks!
Jessica Penner says
Are you in Canada? I know you can get whey protein isolate from Bulk Barn. If not, Amazon is a great source!
Maxine Kaufman-Lacusta says
Looks intriguing, but I have 2 questions. Would HempPro work for those of us who are allergic to whey protein? Also, when you say “oats” do you mean whole or steelcut or rolled oats?
Thanks”
Maxine in Canada
Jessica Penner says
Rolled oats! As for the HempPro, is it sweetened? This recipe is sweetened with dates so if your protein powder is already sweet the bars might end up being TOO sweet!