Coconut Macaroon Pancakes Recipe
A uniquely delicious pancake recipe. If you can imagine coconut macaroons in pancake form - moist, golden, coconut-packed, with just a hint of sweetness - that's what you'll get.
If you can imagine coconut macaroons in pancake form, you'll understand where I'm headed. Moist, golden, coconut-packed, with just a hint of sweetness - these are decadent and delicious. I'll start by telling you, this recipe was a total accident - but an accident in the best way imaginable. I was working on a coconut cookie recipe and had a bit of leftover batter. I looked at the batter, looked at my favorite skillet, and thought to myself - I bet this would make an unbelievable pancake. Just eight ingredients and about ten minutes separate you from a stack of these.
With my head in the clouds, I somehow managed to forget to add the sweetener to my coconut cookie experiment. I meant to, but as the cookies were baking in the oven, and as pancake numero uno was closing out the last of the dough/batter, there it was, the sweet stuff, still hanging out on my counter top. My heart sank a bit, because I knew the cookies would suffer, but then realized all would be fine in pancake land. No one wants a too-sweet pancake. That being said, I knew they would need a touch of sweetness to set off the coconut flavor, so I sprinkled sugar onto the batter once it was in the pan. A quick flip, and the sugar was kissing the hot pan giving each pancake a crusty, caramelized, coconutty exterior. Almost perfect. I added a shot of honey to the batter of the second batch I made which seemed to bring everything into balance.
You can make the batter the night before and store it in a pitcher. Give it a stir in the morning and you're ready to go. Also, if coconut isn't your thing or if you're looking for other pancake ideas, here are two of my favorites from the archives: Whole-Grain Pancake Recipe with Blueberry Maple Syrup and Poppy Seed Pancakes.
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Coconut Macaroon Pancake Recipe
Look for shredded coconut where each thread is thin and at least 1/2-inch long. Not dusty or fleck-like. If you make the batter the night before, the batter will thicken up quite a bit. Give it a stir, but dont worry about it beyond that. Drop little scoops onto the griddle - they will flatten out when they come into contact with the heat. They go from golden to burnt in a flash, so stay attentive. I prefer to use whole wheat pastry flour for this recipe but you can substitute whatever you have on hand - all-purpose flour, or regular pastry flour. Lemon zest might be a great addition, as would ginger, and/or toasted, chopped macadamia nuts.
1 14-ounce can of coconut milk
2 tablespoons honey (or agave nectar)
1 /4 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or all-purpose or regular pastry flour)
3 cups unsweetened dried shredded coconut
scant 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 large eggs. whisked in a medium bowl
1/4 cup natural cane sugar or brown sugar
In a small saucepan heat the coconut milk and honey, bring barely to a simmer.
In a separate large bowl combine the flour, coconut, salt and baking powder. Stir the coconut milk into the flour mixture.
Whisk about 1/3 cup of the coconut mixture into the eggs. Now quickly mix the eggs back into the large bowl of coconut batter. Stir until well combined. You can do this the night before if you like.
Heat your favorite non-stick (or very well-seasoned) skillet, pan, or griddle to medium-hot and brush it with a bit of butter. Test for the right temperature. If a drop of water dropped onto the pan starts to dance, you are in the ballpark. Drop a heaping tablespoon into the skillet, sprinkle the top with a bit of brown sugar. Wait until the pancake bottom is deep golden in color, then flip with a spatula and cook the other side until golden and cooked through. Repeat with the remaining batter.
Makes dozens of silver dollar sized pancakes, or a dozen or so larger ones.
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Comments
I WANNA EAT…
Hi Heidi! I’ve recently bought Super Natural Cooking, it’s really nice and the pictures are amazing! My husband and I have been to the States many times but never tried pancakes, I think this is the right time to have some homemade ones! I’ll make them!
Bye Sabrina
I like your accident!
Found out that coconut milk substituted for heavy cream in just about anything sweet-ish bends light waves to the stomach.
Keep on it.
you? are a genius. a short stack, please.
michelle @ TNS
Those look amazing – great idea!
how can i make these pancakes into waffles
Heidi, super amazing. If I substitute chick pea flour for the whole wheat flour, I’m thinking they’ll be perfectly kosher for Pesach. Thanks.
Just when you think you’ve thought of everything 🙂 Now THAT is a pancake!
These look fantastic – and your description made my mouth water a little bit. I know what next Sunday’s breakfast holds in store, thanks!
These sound like a great brunch food for our Saturdays. Thanks for the recipe!!!
These pancakes looks fantastic, by the way it’s my favorite food! I just find this blog through tastingmenu.com, what a stumble..I’l try the recepie asap!!! Thanks!
these were so tasty and unexpected, i am arranging for a little “breakfast for dinner” party, where these will be the star. . .
I love coconut macaroons so this will be a great recipe to try out. I love brunch and we usually go out for brunch but this is a good excuse to stay in!
These are my new favorite breakfast! I didn’t realize at first that they would be mostly coconut, but since I love coconut macaroons that was perfect! I accidentally made a lower-fat version because I only had skim milk & egg whites…still terrific! I ate about 4 regular sized ones. 🙂
Making these tomorrow morning.
wow! these look so amazing! i’ll definetely be trying them soon!
These sound amazing. I like it when random ideas turn into brilliant results. I bet they would be wonderful with a bit on lime syrup drizzled over the top.
To bitchincamero and naomi snyder– coconut flour is the sub I thought of as well. You can buy it from Bob’s Mill if you don’t have time/feel like making it yourself! Yum!
This recipe alone was enough to get me on the e-mail list!
Hm, unfortunately this recipe wasn’t a hit for us! Sprinkling brown sugar on the pancakes make a bit of a mess in the pan, so after a while we just mixed it in the batter. Plus the pancakes are super coconutty, obviously, which made us eat only a few before we didn’t want to eat them anymore.
I am a totall break fast lover!! I will try this pankakes for sunday brunch!!!
i’m exited!!
Sounds great! I will have to try this recipe. My favorite source for coconut flakes, is wildernessfamilynaturals(.com). Their coconut flakes are dehydrated, and all of the flavorful moisture isn’t stripped from the coconut before hand (like other coconut flakes), leaving a naturally sweet coconut flake that is such a special treat!
Thanks for always being so creative! It’s an inspiration!
mmm….coconut and pancakes…what could be better?
Formidable! Sometimes the best results come from experiments. If I wanted to make the coconut macaroons, what oven temperature should I do? Thanks.
I just got literally excited about the prospect of maing these! Thanks for the recipe, I can’t wait until Sunday breakfast.
Those look like the best pancakes in history. I think I will make them in the morning.
I am thinking this would be delicious with raspberry coulis, or a tart lemon-based sauce! A fortunate accident , for sure1
I live on an island where almost every cookie, pie or cake has coconut as an ingredient….great to finally have a coconut pancake! I’m with Nick though, about a 1/4 c. ground almonds, tsp of almond extract & 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips & you have ALMOND JOY pancakes!
Hey Nick leave the choco. chips to the cookies pls.
Thank you for all the suggestions! I have everything I need, so I’ll be making some pancakes tomorrow morning!
These look so amazingly delicious I want to lick the screen. Making them for breakfast tomorrow!
Anyone tried these with GF flour or care to comment from their experience as to whether they think GF would work?
Jessica–
oh– I bought agave nectar and everybody likes it. So happy!!
Heidi,
Wow, you’ve done it again! I just made these, and nearly ruined them trying to cut the recipe in half (in my head) b/c I only had 1.5 c of coconut. I was doing good until I forgot and put the full amount of baking powder and eggs in…. luckily, as usual your recipes are very forgiving. I just added another couple tablespoons of ww pastry flour, and another pinch of salt and squirt of agave syrup, and voila! delicious!
btw, I used the type of coconut you said not to use b/c its all I had on hand and I like the texture better. It worked beautifully. Also tried using maple sugar sprinkled on them instead of brown sugar and it was also a winner (although the maple sugar seems to want to burn much faster than the brown, so if you try it, beware).
They look sinfully delicious ! 🙂 Try shredding the coconut in a wet grinder or even a regular mixer-grinder. I do that for making coconut chutney or to sprinkle shredded coconut on other Indian dishes.
What a fabulous accident! These look so good, I’d be tempted to run home and make them now, if I didn’t have a cake gig this weekend. However, I’ve got a coconut loving best friend who needs to try these, and I think a girlfriend brunch will soon be in order!
To bitchincamero, I’ve been fooling around with trying (unsuccessfully) to make my own coconut flour. The gist of this is, you might try grinding the coconut in a mini-grinder or blender and I’ll bet he won’t have so much of a texture problem with this. And if you toast the coconut first, you’ll have a different flavor than with the plain.
I’m like the others, can’t wait to try it tonight. Heidi, you are such a riot. I love your way with words and sense of humor. And, I’m really enjoying your blog!
These look amazing! You’re always so creative;-) I’m definitely going to make them for my son-I’m low carbing, so might try it with coconut flour. That would make it kosher, wouldn’t it? One thing I’d love to hear more of (the way you do in your book) is the nutritional value of your recipes.
gosh! these look spectacular. will try them for sunday breakfast. and thanks for allowing a substitute for the whole wheat pastry flour!!
can barely wait for what you have in store next 🙂
What an interesting idea….. 🙂
What about leaving out the sugar and having them instead of rice with curry or satay?
This looks and sounds quite yummy!
I wonder if a kosher for Passover version of these would be possible. Passover macaroons are very often more like meringues than macaroons, though, so I suppose some experimenting will be necessary. Thanks for the idea!
Well after trying out the poppyseed pancakes, and absolutely LOVING them, I am quite quite inclined to gives these a try too! Excited…
Coconut pancakes do sounds good!
Great idea for a pancake recipe. I bet they’d be really good with some sort of fruity topping like roasted pineapple or maybe a passionfruit syrup. Yum!
I can’t wait to try these out. My kids can’t have dairy or any other “conventional” milk so I love it when you use coconut milk in your recipes. These should be great!
These are just heavenly. Also, I have unsweetened shredded coconut from the regular grocery store (& believe me I cannot find ANYTHING in my town) in the baking aisle, next to the sweetened stuff.
I’m honestly quite upset that I’m not eating these right now! Can’t wait to try.
Interesting recipe, nothing like a good pancake or two or three. Great pictures as always.
I would love to try these, but we recently discovered my son is allergic to eggs. 🙁 He used to help my husband make pancakes on Saturday, too. (He’s only 3 but he loves to cook!) So far haven’t had luck with egg substitutes.
I’m saving this recipe in hopes that he outgrows his allergy. 🙂
Wondering if you can imainge a Passover version of this. No wheat, no leavening agent. Perhaps with Matzoh meal?
Sounds delicious, and healthy too! Some chocolate chips would be great. Chocolate coconut macaroon pancakes sounds like a winner to me!
– The Peanut Butter Boy
I only have 1 day a week that allows me the luxury of making breakfast. It looks like I’m going to be making some pancakes in the future.
Dara, you should be able to get the unsweetened shredded coconut at Whole Foods. Though I would think Rainbow has it somewhere, just not bulk.
These sound amazing! I am a coconut lover and a pancake girl. They just went to the top of my to-do list. Thank you for always sharing such great content.
I can so smell these pancakes and its not helping me at 4 pm!! lovely heidi!! I’d love to try some mangoes with this combination:)
Alishah – thanks! That’s perfect 🙂
wonderful. mouthwatering recipes as usual congrats
These look absolutely delicious!!! I’m going to make them for my mom’s bday brunch this weekend.
On a side note, I am completely addicted to the Garlic Soba Noodles and the Farro Salad w/Citrus Vinaigrette these days. I can’t thank you enough for giving us such great ideas! I even made a certified meat & potatoes boy eat some of the farro salad last night and he said it was incredible. Kudos to you!
I have an Indian grocery that stocks fresh-frozen coconut – could you use that here?
OH I cannot wait to try these!! Wonderful!! You are so darn creative Heidi!! These will be SO easy to make gluten free!!
I love coconut, and especially dishes that highlight the coconut without being overly sweet. These look just wonderful.
I’m a big fan of pancakes and I can’t wait to try these!! Way to make pancakes out of cookies! 🙂
Where in SF does one purchase coconut like you’ve described? I am not sure I’ve ever seen it that way in the bulk bins, such as at Rainbow, where I normally buy it. I’d really like to know! Thanks Heidi!
I just discovered that Wild Oats (and probably other stores with bulk foods) sells organic unsweetened shredded coconut, at $2.19 a pound. It’s much cheaper than the packaged kind, of course, and way better than the sweetened stuff, which is all that most regular groceries carry.
They also carry agave nectar.
I use the coconut to make macaroons (like these), but will definitely give the pancakes a go.
Like vegoftheweek above, I used to not like coconut, but now? YUM.
YUM
I get unsweetened cocunut frozen and dried at our local Indian grocery shop. After years of eating the sweetened kind in the bakery aisle, I forgot how awesome the taste of straight coconut is!
with slices of grilled pineapple perhaps? and agave syrup?
and as much as all those other commenters say and think that they love you and that you are the best…
just know that i TOTALLY love you the most. – in a cyber blogosphere cooking kinda way…
made these for the kids this morning. what a hit! gorgeous pictures as usual. thanks for starting the day so great!
This is totally my kind of recipe: Pancakes ( I love pancakes), coconut (I love coconut). Perfect. I know what Ill be making this weekend….
Ok, this sounds too yummy. Can I leave work and go make them NOW? My guy and I were just talking about how delicious coconut macaroons sounded and now we get to have them for breakfast! Thanks Heidi!
Jen
bitchincamero, try banana’s… they might be lush!
I haven’t made these yet, but when I do, my husband will be a very happy man. Thank you.
ps: I can also suggest, without having made them, that they would go very well with cornmeal in the batter. Maybe partially cook and cool the cornmeal first? But then, it wouldn’t be as easy, would it. 😉
As an island girl, I look for every way I can to put coconut in everything. These look yummy. I’ll try them out for Sunday breakfast. Thanks!
Funny thing is I grew up not liking coconuts. When I got older I tried a coconut curry tofu recipe and found out I had no problem with cocounut milk whatsoever!
I usually use the reduced fat version-I think it taste just as good-when cooking with it. And if anyone wants to make this without eggs, I’ve made pancakes using vegetarian lecithin as egg replacement and they turned out delicious.
These sounds great! My husband’s not too into the shredded coconut thing (he has issues with texture), but he loves coconut milk. I’ll definitely have to give these a try. I wonder what I can sub for the shredded coconut that would go well with the coconut milk…
I’m in so much trouble now that I know about these. Coconut? Macaroons? Pancakes? You’re combined some of my greatest loves into a dish for my favorite meal–breakfast. You’re a goddess! Thank you. 🙂
These look great..if only shredded coconut wasn’t so hard to come by in England…dessicated is no good for anything.
Lisa Rae, I see eggs in the ingredient list…underneath the baking powder unless my eyes are playing tricks!
This sounds so delicious! Can’t wait to try the recipe….
This recipe sounds delicious. I have all the ingredients except the unsweetened coconut. One question though…There are no eggs listed in your list of ingredients but in your instructions you mention eggs. How many eggs does this recipe call for? I would love to try this recipe out this weekend. Thanks!
Do you think the pancakes would work with sweetened flaked coconut as opposed to the unsweetened? That’s all I have on hand…should I omit the brown sugar then?
I love 101 cookbooks!
My father visits every winter and he loves going to a local restaurant for coconut pancakes. I’ve never made them myself but with your recipe I’ll give it a try! I might even throw in a few toasted macadamia nuts 🙂
WOW, these look amazing. I am going to try these, maybe tonight – pancakes for dinner, why not?
I am so intrigued! I have all of the ingredients in my pantry right now, so will definitely be trying these very soon!
What a happy accident!
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