I grew up eating Swedish Pancakes. My grandmother would pick wild blueberries in northern Minnesota every summer. She’d freeze several bags and serve them to her grandchildren throughout the year with her famous Swedish pancakes. These pancakes were so commonplace in my childhood that I thought fluffy pancakes were a novelty.
When we switched to a gluten-free diet, it was easy to replace regular flour in most recipes with all-purpose gluten-free flour. However, the challenge came when I discovered I was sensitive to dairy and eggs. No matter how many vegan crêpe recipes I tried, I just couldn’t replicate my grandmother’s recipe. I became convinced that Swedish Pancakes required eggs, and I eventually gave up on ever enjoying this tradition again.
I was aware that Indian cuisine offered something very similar to a crêpe, called a dosa, but recipes often called for ingredients that I didn’t have on hand. Later, I stumbled across a YouTube video for making homemade tortillas. This savory vegan recipe uses red lentils and quinoa as the main ingredients. I decided to make these tortillas in lieu of Swedish Pancakes. The result was a winner! I finally had a gluten-free, vegan version of a childhood favorite that I could pass on to my own children!
The trick with this flatbread recipe is soaking the quinoa and lentils overnight. Start by rinsing them in a fine-mesh strainer. Both quinoa and lentils create quite a bit of bubbles and foam. I usually rinse them until most of these bubbles have disappeared and the water runs clear.
You can rinse the quinoa and lentils separately, but soak them in the same large bowl. Fill the bowl with filtered water and soak overnight.
The next day, strain and rinse the mixture thoroughly. It’s basically a three-step process: rinse, soak overnight, rinse again.
Next, add the mixture to a blender with salt and 3 cups of water. Blend until smooth, transferring batter to a large bowl. The batter will be pretty runny.
Finally, it’s time to cook the pancakes. Traditionally, my grandmother would use a non-stick skillet, but I use my round cast-iron griddle with a Dexter stainless steel turner. Either way is fine. It just takes some practice to get the batter to spread evenly around the pan. Once you get the hang of it, it gets easier. I use lard to grease the pan, but you can use any cooking oil.
Once the batter is evenly spread over the pan, wait for bubbles to form. Carefully use a turner to go around the edges before flipping. Sometimes the first doesn’t turn out perfectly.
It’s time to roll them up and enjoy!
We usually serve them with coconut oil (instead of butter), blueberries or strawberries, and yogurt or whipped cream. I love that these pancakes are healthy and full of protein!
Let me know if you try them or have a crepe recipe that you enjoy!
Swedish Pancakes (Gluten-free, vegan)
Ingredients
Method
- Rinse quinoa and lentils separately until water runs clear.
- Soak quinoa and lentils overnight in a large bowl with enough filtered water to fill the bowl.
- Drain mixture the next day and place in blender with water and salt.
- Blend until smooth.
- Preheat skillets on medium heat with oil or cooking fat.
- Use a ladle to pour batter into the skillet, rotating and tilting the pan as soon as possible to spread out the batter as it cooks.
- Once enough bubbles have formed on the pancake, carefully use a turner to loosen the edges of the pancake and flip, cooking for another minute.
- Serve with butter, syrup, and berries. Enjoy!