These vegan coconut-carrot pancakes are moist, naturally sweetened and spiced with aromatics like cardamom, cinnamon and nutmeg. They are topped with a tart coconut-maple syrup cream. This recipe is grounding, vata-balancing and full of Vitamin A.

It was a rainy Saturday morning in Los Angeles and I was craving something sweet healthy and nourishing. When I opened by fridge, I saw a pound of carrots, lots of lemon and some coconut milk. I thought about making a traditional Indian desert called Gajal ka Halva for breakfast, but my body needed something more hearty and balanced. I was planning a Leg workout and wanted an optimal plant-based fuel to power me through a Leg day (squats, lunges, kettle bell, kickbacks). It ended up being a perfect pre-workout meal.
This is an ayurvedically inspired recipe like most of the food I cook. The digestive spices are key ingredients when cooking with creamy fats, because it's heavy-kapha nature can hamper digestive function without the right digestive (Agni-increasing) spices. But, you won't feel heavy or bloated after eating these delicious pancakes because half the ingredients are carrots and the addition spices like cardamom and ginger boosts your metabolic function.
This recipe is also great for keeping your skin soft, glowing and clear. Carrots are loaded with carotenoids (precursors to vitamin A) which necessary for healthy skin. Carotenoids are the building blocks to vitamin A, an essential nutrient for the growth and maintenance of tissues lining the body. For example, Vitamin A helps keep the skin, the lungs, the digestive and urinary tract well lubricated and flexible. Not enough vitamin A can dry and harden these tissue linings and make you more susceptible to infections.
I used plenty of healthy fat in the form of coconut cream, because Vitamin A is fat soluble, and best absorbed into the body when attached to fat. Coconuts are a great brain food and source of energy.
This recipe turned out so delicious. I will be making it again. Enjoy! And let me know what you think!
Ingredients
Coconut Maple Avocado Cream Topping
1 cup organic coconut milk
3 tsp. maple syrup
2 tsp. lemon juice
1 small-medium avocado
½ tsp cardamom
a pinch of salt
Coconut-Carrot Cake Pancakes
1 cup organic all-purpose flour or coconut flour as substitute
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tbsp. ground flax seeds
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground cardamom
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups finely shredded carrots about 6-8 carrots
1/4 cup chopped cashews or walnuts
ghee or coconut oil for the skillet
Instructions
Coconut Maple Avocado Cream Topping
Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth or you reach your desired consistency. Garnish with cardamom.
Coconut-Carrot Cake Pancakes
Stir together flour, ground flaxseeds, chopped cashews/walnuts, cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together coconut milk, maple syrup and vanilla extract. Combine and blends together both mixtures. Fold in grated carrots.
Coat a medium skillet with coconut oil (or ghee if you're vegetarian) and place over medium heat. Drop 1 tbsp of batter onto skillet. Flatten out gently and mold into circular shape with spatula (or whatever shape you want it to be). Cook for about 5 minutes on a low-medium heat. Flip and cook another few minutes on opposite side until it browns.
Serve with a dollop of coconut maple avocado cream.
Coconut Maple Avocado Cream Topping (pic)

Coconut-Carrot Cake Pancakes (pic)
