10 Healthy Pancakes and Crepes Recipes

HEALTHY PANCAKES AND CREPES FOR BREAKFAST

It’s hard to resist a stack of warm, buttery and comforting pancakes for breakfast, or a thin, delicate, sweet and buttery crepe rolled around our favorite fruits and cream. The good news is that we don’t have to resist. We only have to rethink how we serve them, and opt for healthy pancakes instead of calorie bombs.

Think “comfort and nutrition” instead of “pancakes are dessert” by adding nutritious grains and fruits, and avoiding mounds of sweetened cream, syrups, candied toppings and the like. Those Unicorn Pancakes, as we call the candied colorful nightmares popular at Pancake Restaurants, quickly convert what is supposed to be a nourishing meal for the beginning of the day, to a chemical and sugar nightmare, often at a cost of 1,000 calories or more — per serving.

Here is our collection of light and fit and healthy pancakes and crepes, recommended by our spa, nutrition, and weight loss partners, which are a warm and tasty way to start the day (or end it!).

AND OUR FAVORITE TIP

While we try all of our recipes before we post, we don’t actually make pancake stacks for our own meals anymore! We make Pancake Bars. Our families are often impatient while we pour that batter and flip, flip, flip, especially if we have multiple people to feed.

Instead, we use a large, heavy cookie sheet with a lip edge (a deep one) and we spray that thoroughly, and heat it up in the oven (about 350 degrees) for a few minutes. When the pan is HOT, we pour in the entire contents of our batter, sprinkle on berries, and spread it around edge to edge. We then bake it for 20-25 minutes. There is no flipping of course, but we like the fluffy bar it creates. You can broil the pan for a minute or two if you’d like brown spots on top. Use an 8×8 baking dish for thicker bars or an 8×12 baking sheet or dish for thinner bars.

Skyterra Wellness Simple Fruit Crepes

This crepe batter recipe will yield a soft and tender Simple Fruit Crepe. Skyterra’s tip: it is tempting to try and mix your batter until it is completely smooth, but you’ll get a better result if you take the extra step to strain out the large lumps, then...

Low Fat Protein Power Pancakes

Low Fat, High Protein, and Easy! Golden Brown Protein Pancakes for a great morning start.

Pear Coconut Pancakes

Here’s a coconut pancakes recipe which is dressed with a sweet pureed pear. It was a guest favorite at the former Golden Door Health Retreat in Australia (now Elysia Wellness Retreat), which shared this recipe, as well as a gluten-free option.

Banana Blueberry Oatmeal Pancakes

Here’s a simple and tasty Banana Blueberry Oatmeal Pancake gluten-free and dairy-free recipe which you can dress them up any way you want!

Russian Cheese Pancakes – Baked Syrniki

These rustic cheese pancakes are called Syrniki (seer-nee-kee) in Russia and Ukraine. Made with Farmer’s Cheese (or quark) and pancake ingredients, these are very light, airy and tender.

Pritikin Blueberry Sweet Potato Pancakes Recipe

From the chefs at the Pritikin Longevity Center: Sweet Potato Pancakes served with a side of fresh blueberries atop pureed blueberries and Pritikin Creamy Vanilla Sauce.

Egg White Berry Crepes

These simple egg white crepes are low calorie, high protein, gluten-free, and the perfect vehicle for fruit.

Canyon Ranch OJ Crepes with Fruit

Crepes are a terrific alternative when you have a craving for pancakes. The batter is thinner and lighter than pancake and waffle batter, and makes a delicate wrapper for fillings, which can include fruit, ricotta cheese, or even cottage cheese.

Biggest Loser Raspberry Jelly Rolls

These pickup-able sweet treats at only 85 calories a serving are perfect for kids and grown-ups alike.

Lemon Cottage Cheese Pancakes

Lemon Cottage Cheese Pancakes are light and perfect for a summer breakfast. Kid and Family Approved.

Canyon Ranch Whole Wheat Pancakes

Canyon Ranch Corporate Chef Scott Uehlein and his guest assistant — his daughter — show you a fun, kid-friendly recipe for Whole Wheat Pancakes with Fruit.

Biggest Loser Better Blueberry Pancakes

Biggest Loser Resort participants requested this blueberry pancakes recipe so frequently, it was included in the Biggest Loser earliest cookbooks. It’s a winner for your breakfast table.

Low Fat Dutch Baby Pancake

This recipe couldn’t be easier, and it all goes into the pan at once. It’s not supposed to be evenly brown, it’s to be bumpy and puffy and irregular and delicious looking.