These gluten free pumpkin pancakes are tender and light inside, with crisp, deep brown edges. No one can resist that deep auburn color, and all those fall flavors and spices!
Why you'll love these gluten free pumpkin pancakes
These pumpkin pancakes will make your whole house smell like fall. And they don't just smell good. You can get that warm, cozy fall smell from a fancy candle. These pumpkin pancakes are all about the taste!
They'll make your mouth positively tingle with all the flavors of pumpkin spice. You can make the recipe with pumpkin puree, but will you consider buying a jar of the flavor explosion that is pumpkin butter.
You can also make our recipe for homemade pumpkin butter with just a few ingredients (pumpkin puree, maple syrup, spices, and some apple juice or cider). It has so much intense flavor, and it stays fresh for weeks in the refrigerator.
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The best flour blends for gluten free pumpkin pancakes
My preferred gf flour blend for gf pancakes
Gluten free pancakes in general, should not be made with Better Batter, Cup4Cup, or any of our regular “all purpose gluten free flour blends.” Those blends contain too much xanthan gum, which leads to a gummy, tough pancake.
To make light and fluffy pancakes, I recommend using my gum-free gluten free flour blend, which is made with 3 ingredients in these proportions:
- 66% superfine white rice flour (Authentic Foods brand is best; Vitacost.com is good, too)
- 22% potato starch
- 12% tapioca starch/flour
Can you make gluten free pumpkin pancakes with gluten free oats/oat flour?
This recipe can't be made by using oat flour in place of the gum-free gluten free flour blend. But you can make pumpkin pancakes with oat flour.
Oats are safe to eat on a gluten free diet. If you're not otherwise sensitive to them, you can try making pumpkin pancakes by replacing the mashed bananas in our recipe for gluten free banana pancakes with pumpkin puree or pumpkin butter. See more below.
Making your own pumpkin pie spice for GF pumpkin pancakes
Pumpkin pie spice is just a blend of warm fall spices. You can buy it already mixed under the label “pumpkin pie spice,” made by McCormick and other blends (check labels!), or make it yourself with the components.
To make your own pumpkin pie spice blend, combine the following ingredients in these proportions:
- 1 part ground cinnamon
- 1/2 part ground ginger
- 1/4 part ground allspice
- 1/4 part ground cloves
- 1/8 part ground nutmeg
So to make about 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice, you would combine 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger + 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves + 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg.
You can make this blend in larger quantities by using a larger unit of measurement than the teaspoon, or by multiplying each ingredient by the same amount, like x2, x3 or even x10.
Tips for making gluten free pumpkin pancakes
Check all ingredients for gluten (including the syrup!)
This gf pancake batter is so easy to whisk together, but you have to check your ingredient labels carefully. Your gluten free flour blend must be safely gluten free, of course.
Be sure to check your other ingredients, too, though. Even any syrup you may like for serving your pancakes. Maple syrup with additives may have gluten-containing ingredients.
Measure your gluten free flour by weight
To make great gf pancakes, and really any great gf recipe, and get it right every single time, you need to measure all of your dry ingredients—especially your gf flour—by weight, not volume.
I often get asked to translate the gram measurements for the 3-ingredient gluten free flour blend into cups and teaspoons. But there's no way to make a flour blend without using a simple digital kitchen scale.
They're only about $15, unless you get fancy, and they'll make your life so much easier. You'll even have fewer dirty dishes!
Grease your pan for easily flipping
You can make pancakes on a nonstick surface without greasing it, but you should grease it lightly for two reasons.
First, pancake batter sometimes sticks to even nonstick surfaces in spots where it's not hot enough or where the nonstick has begun to wear away. Your pancake will tear when you try to flip it.
Second, those beautiful brown edges you see on the best pancakes, these gf pumpkin pancakes included, are from those edges frying in the oil on the skillet. They look beautiful, and taste amazing!
FAQs
No! Canned pumpkin puree has one ingredient: pure packed pumpkin (although it's often different types of squash, but it all looks and tastes the same).
Pumpkin pie mix has added sugar and spices, but in amounts you can't control. Pumpkin puree is what you want for baking, since it's the most versatile.
Yes! These pancakes freeze and reheat really well.
I like to let them cool completely, stack them in groups of 2 pancakes, and wrap them tightly in freezer-safe wrap. I place them in the freezer and they make a great last-minute breakfast.
Defrost them in the microwave for a few seconds to defrost them, then toast them on “light” in the toaster oven until they're warm and fresh. Good as new!
Begin to heat your oven to 200°F before you begin making the pancake batter. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or nonstick foil. As the pancakes are finished cooking, place them in a single layer on the baking sheet. Put the baking sheet in the 200°F oven, taking it out only to add your next batch of pancakes.
You can try using this same batter to make waffles by first separating the eggs. Whisk the yolks into the other wet ingredients and proceed with the recipe as directed. Whip the egg whites until they form soft peaks, and fold them into the rest of the batter. Then, follow the rest of the instructions for making gluten free waffles.
Suggested gluten free pumpkin pancake toppings
Make these pancakes even more flavorful by adding some toppings to the pancakes as they cook. Try sprinkling soft nut pieces (pecans and walnuts are perfect), chocolate chips, or even some gluten free chocolate sprinkles.
Pour the pancake batter into portions on the hot griddle and when they're nearly ready to flip, sprinkle on some of your favorite toppings.
GF pumpkin pancakes: ingredients and substitutions
Gluten free dairy free pumpkin pancakes
The dairy in these pancakes comes from butter, and milk. Both can be replaced easily.
Just use vegan butter in place of melted dairy butter (Melt and Miyoko's Kitchen brand are best). You can even get away with using Earth Balance buttery sticks, if you have it.
In place of cow's milk, use your favorite unsweetened unflavored nondairy milk. I like almond milk.
Egg free gluten free pumpkin pancakes
There are two eggs in this recipe, and that usually means they can be replaced by one “chia egg” each. It's definitely worth trying.
To make each chia egg, place 1 tablespoon ground white chia seeds and 1 tablespoon lukewarm water in a small bowl. Mix, and allow to gel before adding to the batter.
Vegan gluten free pumpkin pancakes
If you replace the dairy and the eggs in this recipe, you've got vegan gluten free pumpkin pancakes!
Can you make this recipe with pumpkin puree instead of pumpkin butter?
Yes! You can make this recipe as described, but replace the pumpkin butter with pumpkin puree. There are instructions in the recipe below for how to do just that.
But your pancakes won't taste much like pumpkin, even with all that pumpkin pie spice in the batter. My children said they tasted like “regular pancakes.”
Good, just not what we intended. I really encourage you to try making our homemade pumpkin butter by cooking down pumpkin puree, maple syrup, juice and warm fall spices.
You can also buy pumpkin butter to use in baking. Just read labels, so you're sure it's safely gluten free!
My local Trader Joe's makes a great pumpkin butter that they sell in the fall. It's perfect for all our fall baking, and is even delicious on a piece of gluten free bread.
Gluten free pumpkin oatmeal pancakes
To make gluten free pumpkin oatmeal pancakes, try replacing the mashed banana in our recipe for gluten free banana pancakes with pumpkin butter. You can use pumpkin puree, but it won't taste much like pumpkin, even if you add pumpkin pie spice!
How to make gf pumpkin pancakes, step by step
Gluten Free Pumpkin Pancakes Recipe
Ingredients
- 5 ounces pumpkin butter at room temperature (See Recipe Notes for alternative)
- 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter melted and cooled
- ¾ cup (6 fluid ounces) milk, at room temperature
- 2 (100 g (weighed out of shell)) eggs at room temperature, beaten
- 3 tablespoons (41 g) packed light brown sugar
- 1 ¼ cups (175 g) gum-free gluten free flour blend
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 ½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice blend See Recipe Notes
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Neutral oil or butter for the griddle or pan
Instructions
- Heat a griddle or lightly greased nonstick or cast iron skillet over medium heat. If using a griddle, heat it to 350°F.
- In a large bowl, place the pumpkin butter (See Recipe Notes if using pumpkin puree), melted butter, milk, eggs, and brown sugar, and whisk until very smooth.
- Add the flour blend, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and salt, and whisk until just combined. The pancake batter shouldn’t be especially thick.
- Grease the hot griddle lightly with neutral oil or butter, and pour as many portions of about ¼ cup of batter onto the hot griddle as can fit comfortably, without touching.
- When pouring the batter, don’t swirl it around; pour straight down.
- Allow the pancakes to cook until large bubbles begin to break through the top of the batter in each pancake and the edges are set at least an inch all around (about 2 minutes).
- With a wide, flat spatula, carefully flip over each pancake, and continue to cook until set (about 1 minute more). Remove the cooked pancakes from the skillet, and repeat with the remaining batter.
- Pancakes can be cooled completely, then stacked, wrapped tightly and frozen. Separate the pancakes and defrost in the toaster oven on ‘light’ or ‘low.’
- You can also keep the pancakes warm in a single layer on a lined baking sheet in a 200°F oven, so they’re all ready to serve at the same time.
Notes
You can use store-bought pumpkin butter in this recipe, or my homemade recipe (linked in the recipe). You can also replace the pumpkin butter with 5 ounces canned pumpkin puree; you'll have to process the wet ingredients in a blender first, though. To make your own pumpkin pie spice
To make your own pumpkin pie spice, combine 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon + 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger + 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves + 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg.
Nutrition
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Hi, I’m Nicole. I create gluten free recipes that really work and taste as good as you remember. No more making separate meals when someone is GF, or buying packaged foods that aren’t good enough to justify the price. At Gluten Free on a Shoestring, “good, for gluten free” just isn’t good enough! Come visit my bio!
Leanne says
The best gf pumpkin pancakes! They are fluffy, sweet (but not too much) and delicious. I make them every fall and it’s my favorite pumpkin recipe. 100% worth making!
Kathleen Wade says
I’ve been searching for a good GF pumpkin pancake recipe for over a year, and THIS IS IT!
I’m just delighted with the taste & texture. I have found that this recipe also works well in a waffle iron.
Louise Camilleri says
Is it possible to get measurements to make the different flour blends instead of percentages, as I can’t make anything with only percentages, and to date have not been able to make anything from your site. It would be easier if you did measurements
Nicole Hunn says
I responded to your email with the same question, Louise. You can’t build a flour blend by volume. I explain it all on the page where you found the percentages. Here’s another link if you’d like to take another look: https://glutenfreeonashoestring.com/all-purpose-gluten-free-flour-recipes/
Sara Restivo says
Amazing pancakes! Could the pumpkin butter be replaced with apple butter, and the pumpkin pie spice replaced with apple pie spice, for apple pancakes?
Nicole Hunn says
Yes! I do think you could do exactly that, Sara. I’ve actually considered it myself. As long as the apple butter is thick enough (similar in consistency to the pumpkin butter), I think it would work great.
Alene says
You won’t believe this, but I recently found out that I cannot eat any rice at all anymore! I was poisoned with arsenic. I was having symptoms and got a diagnostic blood test. My blood was loaded with arsenic. After totally freaking out, my doctor and I figured out that it was all the rice I eat that did it. My body, it seems, holds onto heavy metals. He thinks it will take about 3 months for all the arsenic to leave my body. So, we gave to a food pantry all my unopened things containing rice flours, Better Batter, Cup4Cup, etc. I am trying to find blends that work in baking. Better Batter makes one without rice, as does Bob’s R.M. and King Arthur. I’m not thrilled with any of them. A British blogger, The Loopy Whisk, gave me a blend that she says works on all her recipes. I made a pumpkin bread with it, and it was perfect, I thought. I am going to try her blend on your recipes. Do you have any suggestions? I have to figure this out. I have to bake! It’s in my dna! Lol! Thank you for reading this. I thought people might want to know about arsenic in rice too.
Nicole Hunn says
If you like her blend, Alene, then I would use it in her recipes. I’m afraid I really can’t say.