Carrot Cake Protein Pancake Bowl
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This Carrot Cake Protein Pancake Bowl is easy to make, has 40 grams of protein, and is packed with scrumptious carrot cake flavors! It’s also meal prep friendly, high in fiber, and has the perfect fluffy pancake texture!
About This Recipe
If you love pancakes but don’t always have time to make a tall stack of fluffy pancakes on weekday mornings, this meal prep friendly baked Carrot Cake Protein Pancake Bowl is for you!
After sharing my Baked Pumpkin Protein Pancake Bowl last fall, I knew I wanted to come up with more flavors to enjoy. This spring edition features grated carrots, warm spices, cinnamon, and gets a protein boost from vanilla protein powder and blended cottage cheese! It’s easy to make with simple ingredients and the perfect breakfast for spring or even when it’s not!
Plus, it has 40 grams of protein and is high in fiber, making it a nutritious breakfast to start your day and fuel a busy morning!
I love adding fresh fruit to my breakfast so topped with some raspberries as well as chopped walnuts before baking. But you can add any of your favorite toppings, either before or after baking.
Why I Love this Protein Pancake Bowl
- Quick and easy to make. Just mix everything, add toppings and bake!
- High protein and high fiber. Thanks to using oat flour, protein powder and cottage cheese, this healthy breakfast has 40 grams of protein and the fiber in the oats keeps me full and energized throughout the morning!
- Meal prep friendly. Make one big pancake for the day or meal prep several for an easy reheatable breakfast during the week!
- Customizable. Add any nuts, seeds, and fresh or dried fruit that you like!
- Best spring flavors! With grated carrots, a hint of vanilla, warming spices and cinnamon, this healthy breakfast is full of carrot cake vibes! It’s perfect for Easter weekend or anytime of the year!
Table of contents
Ingredient Notes and Substitutes
- Blended Old Fashioned Rolled Oats: Use gluten-free oats or oat flour if needed. Either homemade or store-bought oat flour will work. You can also swap the oat flour for whole wheat flour, white whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour. I prefer oat flour since it’s higher in fiber and protein.
- Vanilla Protein Powder: I used PEScience Gourmet Vanilla Select Protein, which is a whey-casein protein powder blend. Either a whey-casein, casein, pure whey or plant-based protein powder will work. However, whey-casein and vegan protein powders are typically best for baking. They will result in soft and fluffy pancakes. Using pure whey protein may result in a dry pancake if baked for too long. If you’re using a plant-based vegan protein powder, add 1-2 tablespoons more milk as it will absorb more liquid than other types of protein powders.
- Baking Powder: Will help the pancake rise.
- Spices: Ground cinnamon and apple pie spice gives the pancake delicious carrot cake flavors! I used a store-bought apple pie spice which is made with cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, and cloves. If you don’t have it on hand, use more ground cinnamon and add a dash of nutmeg, allspice or cloves. Pumpkin pie spice would also work here.
- Unsweetened Apple Sauce: Naturally sweetens the pancake and adds moisture.
- Blended Low-Fat Cottage Cheese: A great source of protein and also adds moisture to make the pancake fluffy. I used low-fat cottage cheese (2%) here but 4% whole milk cottage cheese works too. In my Pumpkin Protein Pancake Bowl, I didn’t blend the cottage cheese but I did here. You can skip blending to save time as the texture is not too discernible if using small curd cottage cheese. For a smoother texture, use blended cottage cheese.
- Egg: Helps bind everything together and adds healthy fats. Substitute with liquid egg whites if desired.
- Unsweetened Almond Milk: I like unsweetened vanilla almond milk here but you can use any plant-based or regular milk of choice.
- Grated Carrots: Finely shredded or grated carrots.
- Toppings (optional): I love topping this carrot cake protein pancake with fresh raspberries and walnuts. You can add any fresh or frozen berries, raisins, or nuts and/or seeds you love. I prefer to bake the toppings with the pancake but you could also add them on top of the pancake after baking.
- To Serve: A drizzle of maple syrup (I like using Walden Farms Sugar-Free Pancake Syrup) or honey, and my spiced homemade pecan butter are my favorites to go with this pancake bowl! But regular butter, a naturally sweetened maple cream cheese frosting like on my Carrot Cake Muffins, regular butter or any nut butter you love will taste great!
Carrot Cake Protein Pancake Bowl
This Carrot Cake Protein Pancake Bowl is easy to make, has 40 grams of protein, and is packed with scrumptious carrot cake flavors! It’s also meal prep friendly, high in fiber, and has the perfect fluffy pancake texture!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 28
- Total Time: 38 minutes
- Yield: 1 1x
- Category: Breakfast and Brunch
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten-Free
Ingredients
- Cooking Oil Spray, to grease the baking dish
- ½ cup / 40 grams blended Old Fashioned Rolled Oats (use gluten-free if needed)
- ¼ cup / 25 grams Vanilla Protein Powder (I used PEScience Select Protein, a whey-casein protein blend)
- ½ TSP Baking Powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Apple Pie Spice (substitute ¼ TSP more cinnamon and ⅛ TSP ground nutmeg)
- 3 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon / 50 grams Unsweetened Apple Sauce
- ¼ heaped cup / 50 grams blended Low-Fat Cottage Cheese (or use 4% Whole Milk cottage cheese – note 1)
- 1 large Egg (or 3 tablespoons / 50ml liquid egg whites)
- 50ml / 1.7 fluid ounces Unsweetened Almond Milk (I like unsweetened vanilla almond milk, or use any other plant-based or regular milk of choice)
- ⅓ cup / 30-35 grams peeled and grated Carrot
- To Serve: Maple syrup (sugar-free or regular), honey, pancake syrup, homemade pecan butter, regular butter, etc.
Toppings (optional – add before baking or after):
- ⅓ cup / 36 grams fresh or frozen Raspberries (or other berries)
- 2–3 pieces / 5 grams raw unsalted Walnuts – chopped
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F / 180°C / Gas Mark 4. Lightly spray a small baking dish with 2-3 cups capacity with cooking oil spray.
- Combine the dry ingredients: Mix together the blended oats, vanilla protein powder, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and apple pie spice in a medium bowl.
- Add the wet ingredients: Stir in the unsweetened apple sauce, blended cottage cheese, egg, and unsweetened almond milk until combined well. The batter will be a little thick.
- Stir in the carrots: Stir in the grated carrots until combined.
- Assemble: Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish. Top with frozen or fresh raspberries and chopped walnuts if using. (Or you can add these on top when eating if preferred.)
- Bake: Bake for 30-32 minutes or until the pancake has risen and the edges have pulled away from the sides. Transfer to a wire rack and cool for 5 minutes.
- Serve: Drizzle with maple syrup, homemade pecan butter or other toppings of choice and enjoy!
Notes
- Blended Cottage Cheese. I used low-fat cottage cheese (2%) but whole milk cottage cheese (4%) will work too. You can use small curd cottage cheese without blending too like I did in my Pumpkin Protein Pancake Bowl. The texture is not very discernible in your mouth but some of the small curds may be visible.
- Nutrition information does not include maple syrup and pecan butter for serving.
- Check out the full article for tips on customizing this recipe, storage, freezing, meal prep tips, and more!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving (whole recipe)
- Calories: 461
- Sugar: 11.3g
- Sodium: 853.7mg
- Fat: 14.5g
- Saturated Fat: 3.6g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10.9g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 43.6g
- Fiber: 11.2g
- Protein: 39.2g
- Cholesterol: 226.7mg
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For more carrot cake inspired high protein breakfast recipes, try my Carrot Cake Baked Oats, Carrot Cake Granola, or Carrot Cake Overnight Oats next!
Cook’s Tips and Variations
- Squeeze the grated carrots dry. If your grated carrots are excessively watery, you can squeeze them dry in a clean towel or kitchen paper towels to get rid of the excess moisture and liquid. This will make sure that the pancake doesn’t take too long to cook on the inside or is gooey in the center once baked.
- Make it with flour. Regular all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, and white whole wheat flour will all work. Use ⅓ cup / 40-45 grams. If using whole wheat flour, add more almond milk if the batter is too thick.
- Customize your toppings! Try chopped pecans, chocolate chips, raisins, cranberries, desiccated or shredded coconut, or drained crushed pineapple chunks!
- Top with a lightened-up frosting. Mix together light cream cheese, blended cottage cheese or Greek yogurt with maple syrup, ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract, and a dash of cinnamon to make a lighter simple frosting.
- Meal prep several protein pancake bowls for the week. To make several servings, multiply the amounts of the recipe ingredients by the number of servings you would like to make. Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl then stir in the wet ingredients, followed by the grated carrots. Pour into oven-safe glass meal prep containers and add the toppings. Bake as indicated but note that you may need to adjust the baking time if you are making several servings at once. Or you can measure and mix all the ingredients for each pancake in separate bowls to make sure the volume and macros are the same (if that is important to you).
- Use oven safe glass meal prep containers with covers. If making it for meal prep, use glass meal prep containers with lids so you can simply cover and store in the fridge.
Dietary Modifications
- Gluten-Free: Use blended gluten-free certified oats or store-bought GF oat flour.
- Vegan: Use a flax egg, a vegan protein powder, and lactose free cottage cheese or a plant-based Greek yogurt instead of cottage cheese. You’ll need to use a little more almond milk or other plant-based milk since plant-based protein powders absorb more liquid.
- Nut-free. Omit the chopped walnuts and serve with a nut-free nut butter or regular butter. Replace the almond milk with unsweetened soy milk, low-fat milk or whole milk.
How to Make Carrot Cake Protein Pancake Bowl – Step-by-Step
In a medium bowl, mix together the blended oats, vanilla protein powder, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and apple pie spice (image 1). Stir in the unsweetened apple sauce, blended cottage cheese, egg, and unsweetened almond milk until combined well (image 2). The batter should be a little thick.
Stir in the grated carrots until combined (image 3), then pour the batter into a lightly greased baking dish and add your favorite toppings (image 4). Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F/180°C for 30-32 minutes or until the pancake has risen and the edges have pulled away from the sides (image 5). Allow to cook on a wire rack for a few minutes. Then drizzle with maple syrup, homemade pecan butter or top with other toppings of your choice and enjoy!
Storing and Reheating
- Storing: Once completely cool, cover the dish and store in the fridge for 3-4 days if not eating immediately.
- To freeze: If your baking dish is freezer friendly, you can simply cover the dish with its lid and freeze. If not, wait for the pancake to cool completely, then run a knife along the edges of the baking dish to unmold it from the dish. Wrap the pancake tightly with a small sheet of aluminum foil or cling wrap. Place in a freezer-friendly airtight container or freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
- Reheating: Reheat in the microwave on high for 1 minute or until warmed through. Thaw overnight in the fridge if frozen before reheating the next day.
FAQs
Bob’s Red Mill Classic Pancake & Waffle Mix is a good option. Use ¼ cup/40 grams in place of the oat flour.
Yes! PEScience Buttermilk Pancake & Waffle Mix would work well here. Leave out the protein powder, oat flour, and baking powder. Use ½ cup/63 grams of the buttermilk pancake & waffle mix.
If omitting the protein powder, use ¾ cup/60 grams blended oats and add ¼ to ½ teaspoon vanilla extract and a sweetener of your choice to yield a similar flavor. You could also swap the protein powder out for collagen if desired.
Yes, but add ¼ to ½ teaspoon vanilla extract and a sweetener to taste to yield a similar flavor.
Yes. Use about ¼ cup/ 50-60 grams of either full-fat, low fat, or non-fat Greek yogurt. Regular whole milk Greek yogurt will give you the best fluffy texture.
Yes! Add all of the ingredients to a high-speed blender or food processor and blend until a smooth batter forms. I personally prefer to mix everything as feel too much of the batter gets stuck inside the blender jug and wasted when transferring to the baking dish. I also find cleaning a blender a bit more tedious to clean than a bowl! But you’re welcome to use a blender if that’s your preference.
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