Green Machine Spinach Pancakes
If you are looking for a healthy start to your day, these Green Machine Pancakes are perfect. They are packed with spinach and kid-approved! Make a large batch and freeze them to have an easy and healthy breakfast all ready to go.
When my boys were babies, I would make them pancakes with rice cereal and a veggie/fruit puree. They would gobble them up like they were going out of style. As they got older, I finally decided that it seemed weird that I was still buying rice cereal to make these pancakes for my 3 year old. So, I created these Green Machine Pancakes!
I substituted oatmeal for the rice cereal and used spinach and applesauce for the veggie/fruit puree. My kids ask for these pancakes alllll the time (they even came up with the name “Green Machine Pancakes”)! They like to eat them for breakfast, or have them as a snack. Jack will even request that I pack them for his lunch.
Have a Hard Time Eating Vegetables?
If you have a hard time getting your kids to eat vegetables (or YOU don’t eat enough vegetables), this is a great recipe for you!! These pancakes are packed with spinach but you can’t taste the spinach.
They are only sweetened by orange juice (no additional sugar is added besides what is found in the orange juice), so you won’t be giving them a sugar bomb for breakfast.
Every time I make these, I always double or triple the batch (I freeze what we don’t eat) because my kids SCARF them up. The last time I made these, Jack literally ate 20 in one sitting (no joke – I actually counted)!
Looking for More Delicious Breakfast Recipes?
Try some of these, you will love them!
- Raspberry Streusel Muffins
- Cottage Cheese & Veggie Egg Bake
- Healthy Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
- Ham & Swiss Egg Bites
In addition, if you already have a ton of dirty dishes, you may as well fill them up with batter now so you don’t have to make more dishes later! Then, you can just pop them in the microwave when the kids are hungry or bring them on-the-go frozen and they will keep for several hours on their own. These Green Machine Pancakes will fill your kids up and you will feel happy knowing they already got veggies for breakfast!
Is it a Good Idea to “Hide” Vegetables?
As parents, you want your kiddos to eat a well-balanced diet. This can be tricky, especially if your kid doesn’t want to eat a spinach salad for lunch every day. But, with that being said, I don’t think it’s a great idea to “hide their vegetables”. Instead, talk about all the positive things vegetables do for our bodies and involve them in making these pancakes.
If you would like to read more about how to help picky eaters, I highly recommend checking out Kids Eat in Color. Jennifer, the woman behind Kids Eat in Color, is a registered dietician and a mom to 2. She is such an incredible resource with so many tips!
Let’s Cook Pancakes!
While you can just as easily cook these pancakes on the stovetop, I highly recommend using an electric griddle. Not only will they evenly cook the pancakes for you, you will also be able to cook a large batch of pancakes quickly.
Since these pancakes make such a large batch, you can cook them faster. The griddle helps to more evenly cook these pancakes, so it’s a win-win. Consider getting one if you don’t already have one!
Green Machine Spinach Pancakes
Ingredients
- 10 oz box of frozen spinach thawed
- 1 cup orange juice
- 1 cup of unsweetened applesauce
- 1 egg
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Add the spinach, orange juice and applesauce to a blender and blend until smooth (or as close as you can get)!10 oz box of frozen spinach, 1 cup of unsweetened applesauce, 1 cup orange juice
- Add the remaining ingredients and blend to mix.1 egg, 1 cup flour, 1 cup old fashioned oats, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Heat an electric griddle to medium heat and scoop 1/4 cup portions of batter onto the griddle.
- Once the outer edges of the pancakes no longer look wet and the middle starts to bubble, flip the pancakes over.
- Cook until you have browned both sides.
- Freeze any remaining pancakes and reheat as needed.
This is awesome Jenna, I am anxious to try some of your recipes. Good luck. Nancy
Thank you so much Nancy!! It has been so much fun and the boys (and I) have been loving it!