Chocolate Chip Zucchini Pancakes for Fall Brunch (VG) (GF)

Hello everyone! Welcome back to the blog. I’m so excited to be sharing this week’s blog (or shall I say, creation) but before we get there, let’s take a look back on fall in OTO thus far. For the past month, we have shared OTO fall workshops, events, and celebrations, Tea Leaf Cottage’s Fall Open House, all the pumpkin flavored treats you can find in OTO and of course – with Halloween just about 3 weeks away – you have to check out our orange-inspired Halloween costume guide. 

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Now that is a lot of reading. But this week, I have a blog that is going to make your mouth water and leave you craving more fall treats. I wanted to share another recipe with you. You remember my past recipes like autumn tomato soup, avocado chickpea pesto salad sandwiches, garlic & kale mashed potatoes, and summer pesto zucchini noodles, right?! I’ve done a lot of cookin’ but one thing I have not made is a breakfast or brunch recipe. So that is why this week I decided to make Chocolate Chip Zucchini Pancakes with peanut butter maple glaze and all of the toppings you could imagine. Doesn’t this recipe sound incredible? I’ll walk you through how I got to perfecting this recipe and my recommendations for testing it out for brunch with family and friends this fall.

I found the basis for my recipe in one of the cookbooks I have at home, But I Could Never Go Vegan by Kristy Turner. I honestly got this book because the food photography is so amazing; you’ll just have to check it out. I took the “Buckwheat Banana Bread Pancakes with Peanut Butter Syrup” recipe and gave it an I Heart OTO twist.

For starters, this recipe is vegan and gluten free, but could always be made with your favorite pancake recipe at home. Second, I decided to add freshly grated zucchini from Orange Home Grown Farmers and Artisans Market to the batter before cooking the pancakes. Zucchini is so fresh, and reminds me of fall! Lastly, I added a bunch of toppings to the pancakes that are not in the original recipe. But hey, that’s what makes pancakes so great: you can add any and all the toppings you like. Go crazy!

To start, I made an original recipe, which I’ll call “Pumpkin Pie Pumpkin Seeds.” I mixed ½ tablespoon of olive oil with one teaspoon of cinnamon and teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice with one cup of unsalted organic pumpkin seeds. I then spread them out on a baking sheet and baked them for 6 minutes at 350 degrees F. These pumpkin seeds got toasty, tasted like warm pumpkin pie, and made for the perfect topping for my pancakes (and fit perfectly in the theme of pumpkin this month).

 

Then, I made the peanut butter maple glaze. This is easily done by warming and mixing ½ cup of peanut butter (almond butter would work, too) and ¾ cup of maple syrup until it forms a thick, creamy sauce that is so sweet and delicious for these fall pancakes.

I then shredded the zucchini which I folded into my batter right before cooking the pancakes (along with some chocolate chips).

Zucchini from Orange Home Grown

After frying up the pancakes, I topped them with bananas, the pumpkin pie pumpkin seeds, and the peanut butter maple glaze.

Let me just say, these were soooo good! I absolutely loved them and I cannot wait to make them again this weekend. If you want to try out this recipe and do not have But I Could Never Go Vegan, make your favorite pancakes at home and just use the toppings mentioned above for the same effect. And again, these do not need to be made vegan or gluten free at all. However, if you are vegan and end up loving these pancakes, you can view more plant-based options in OTO by signing up for our Vegan Menu!

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Thank you to Kristy Turner for inspiring this dish, Orange Home Grown for the zucchini, and you for reading! We can’t wait to bring you more and more content as the Holidays near in OTO. Have a great weekend and we will see you around towne!

Last Updated on May 24, 2023 by Pattie Cordova