It’s never the wrong time to make sweet potato pancakes for someone you love. So make them this weekend. Or you could file these pancakes away for Valentines Day. Or, better yet, make them the next three weekends in a row to perfect your technique, THEN make them for Valentines Day. If you’re cutesy like that, you can shape your pancakes into a heart using a cookie cutter or pancake mold, or you can use a squeeze bottle of batter to bake a heart-outline shape. If you’re not cutesy like that, these are still great pancakes to make for the ones you love because they’re healthy for the ol’ ticker, full of beta carotene and whole grain goodness. And they have “sweet” in the name.
Anyway, my kids found MY heart-shaped pancake mold (where did THAT come from?) in a bag of Valentine-making supplies a few days ago. They have been requesting heart-shaped pancakes for breakfast every morning since. But anyone who knows me knows that I don’t roll that way. Instead, like this writer, I stay up way too late and come morning it’s all I can do to roll out of bed in time to (drink a pot of coffee and) get the kids out the door. So the idea of pancakes on a weekday, unless J makes them during his cheery morning revelries with the children, is a no-go.
Enter Breakfast For Dinner. I told you how we mostly just ate scrambled eggs for a while there, so pancakes for dinner shouldn’t be such a big deal, but the kiddos were gleeful. That’s always nice.
To make these Sweet Potato Pancakes, first peel, dice, steam and then mash or puree one large sweet potato. That sounds like a big deal, but it’s not. Just get it started while you mix the rest of your ingredients. In a large bowl, mix 1 c. all-purpose flour, 1 c. whole wheat flour (pastry if you have it), 4 tsp. baking powder, 1 ½ tsp. cinnamon and a big pinch of salt. In a separate bowl, whisk 2 eggs with 2 c. milk, 4 tsp. canola oil, 2 Tbsp. brown sugar and 1 tsp. of vanilla. Whisk in that sweet potato puree, then mix into your dry ingredients until blended. Bake on a buttered griddle for a buttery crispy crust.
Serve with your favorite pancake fixings. Mine–with these pancakes, at least–are vanilla yogurt, toasted pecans and a drizzle of maple syrup. Yours?
p.s. Did you know you can replace the butter/oil in lots of baked goods with sweet potato puree?
p.p.s. Save some pancake batter in the fridge. You might want to make these again for dinner.
Emmy Cooks 
Sounds tasty. And I didn’t know you could replace the fat in a recipe with sweet potato, though I’ve often done that with applesauce and even tried it with beets. (Don’t laugh, beet brownies are really good.)
I can imagine–I made a delicious beet chocolate cake once! But usually I use butter. :)
This post appeals on every level. LOVE it. I’m going to try it tonight when our little guys come over for a sleepover and will reblog your post on Valentive’s day. I’ve got a couple of recipes where I’ve replaced half the fat with mashed prunes. Prunes pair really well with chocolate.
Thanks! Hope everyone enjoys the pancakes!
These pancakes are so good…
I never tried it with sweet potato, but a couple of time did it with carrots, and they turned in fabulous, the kids really like them, yours are very healthy and delicious, thanks for sharing.
Mmm, “carrot cake” pancakes…
This is such a wonderful idea! I`ve been experimenting a lot with whole wheat pancakes and crepes lately… I will definitely try some with sweet potatoes the next time I get my hands on them!
These look divine! Sweet potatoes and pancakes in one delicious dish…yes please!
Looks so good! I love your suggestion of replacing butter/oil with sweet potato puree. I usually use applesauce as a substitute, but I’m excited to try sweet potatoes too!
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These look delicious! I will have to try this recipe sometime =)
I’m with you, I’m a fan of breakfast for dinner! As a fellow pancake lover, this recipe is now definitely on my list of things to try :)
I saw you liked my post… Thanks! Then I clicked the ‘read this!’ WOW!! I have a giant bag of organic sweet potatoes sitting in my kitchen and have wondered what else I could do with them. And since I know I will never make a real breakfast for the man (who wakes at 4am daily… including weekends) I can totally do a breakfast dinner… maybe I’ll toss in some homemade venison breakfast sausage…. Thanks girl! I’ll let you know how it is!
Right on, enjoy! I do definitely think breakfast for dinner is the way to go if you’re not getting to share breakfast at breakfast time–it’s too good to miss! :)
How did you make a pancake into a heart shape? I’ve always wanted to make creative shaped pancakes but, I can never figure out how.
I actually have a heart-shaped mold just for the purpose of making heart-shaped pancakes and eggs–a little ridiculous, I know, and I don’t know where I got it. But you could also just make pancakes and cut out a heart shape with a cookie cutter, or use a squeeze bottle to paint your batter into a heart shape on your pan.
Thanx!