Green Veggie Pancakes
When you’ve got two kids running around the kitchen and you’re trying to focus on too many things at once, mistakes happen (I guess welcome to motherhood, right?). The other night, I had tossed zucchini, broccoli and cauliflower into the food processor to make Crock Pot Lasagna and accidentally left it running while I ran to answer the phone. The next thing I knew, the veggies that were supposed to be roughly chopped were now chopped so fine that they wouldn’t work in the dish. Argh. As you know, nothing bugs me more than wasting food, so I stashed the overworked veggies in the fridge and chopped up a new batch for the lasagna. The next day those finely chopped veggies were staring me in the face when I opened the fridge and I swear I heard them say, “well?”
Whenever you have leftover vegetables (or flat out botch a recipe like I did), the addition of an egg, flour and some herbs can turn a mistake into one of the most delicious and happiest of accidents. Case in point are these Green Veggie Patties. They work great as a side dish or even on their own for lunch or a snack. Add any one of a variety of dips or sauces and things get even more fun. They are easy to make, fun to eat and perfect for the whole family….whether you intend to make them or not!
Green Veggie Pancakes (Serves 4)
1 Cup Zucchini, Broccoli, and/or Cauliflower
1/4 Cup Flour
1/2 Tsp Kosher Salt
1 Large Egg
1 Tsp Dried Basil
1/4 Tsp Garlic Powder
Canola or Vegetable Oil
Accompaniments: Marinara sauce, Ketchup, or Mustard
1. Place the vegetables in a food processor and pulse to chop fine.
2. Add the chopped vegetables into a bowl along with the flour, salt, egg, basil and garlic powder. Mix to combine.
3. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat and place 1 tbsp of the batter into the pan for each pancake.
4. Cook for 1-2 minutes on each side.
5. Serve with marinara sauce or dip of your choice.
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What a fantastic easy healthy idea!! Love it!! and I am sure my almost 1 year old daughter Quinn will dig into it with a big smile. Going to try it tonight!!
Big thanks from Amsterdam, the Netherlands
You just made a chinese pancakes without the green onions!
Love the veggie recipes, keep them coming please!
I want to make these, so that I will eat more veggies (lol!) I’m a wuss when it comes to trying new things… so if I eat them, my 2yo probably will. Thanks for the great idea!
Do not steam the veggies prior to mixing in with everything else?
I am going to try this with my egg free version. I think it will be a go to for me. I am always looking for new savory breakfast ideas. Maybe I will put a little terriaki sauce on it… Thanks!
Nope. You do not need to steam the veggies!
@Diane
What is your egg free version? We have egg allergy in my house. Thx. These sound delish!!!
You can just use Ener G Egg Replacer found at places like Whole Foods.
This is just like yachaejeon, Korean veggie pancake.
Bought a zucchini yesterday with no plans for it – this is perfect! My son ADORES the broccoli, cheese and potato pancakes so I know he’ll love these too! The toothless toddlers of America and their nutrition-concious mothers thank you.
I serve my kids a recipe like this but I add quinoa.
Yummy! Going to try these this week. Thanks!
how do you add quinoa? I never know what to do with it?
You could just add leftover cooked quinoa, but I like to grind up dry quinoa in a clean coffee grinder, and use the quinoa powder as a substitute for some of the flour!
Catherine, Is that a total of 3 cups veggies, or 1 cup total?
I doubt my picky one will try these, but they sound awesome to me!
1 Cup total!
I’ve made these before and everyone loved ‘em including my 19 month old twins and picky husband. It’s become a staple in our house!
I think my anti-veggie 7 year old will actually go for these – THANK YOU !!
My family loves pumpkin quinoa. I add 1 c. Of pureed pumpkin with 1 tsp vanilla, 1/2 tsp cinnamon 2 tbs grade b maple syrup to 1 1/2 c. Quinoa while cooking in the last 3 min.
I can’t believe myself! I posted the wrong picture today. Losing my mommy mind. The correct pic is up! So sorry
Since my DD was a wee one, I have made veggie pancakes for her. One of her friends whi will absolutely not eat veggies LOVES them! (I do call them veggie pancakes, so I don’t think it’s sneaky!) I use a mixture of ground grains to make 1 cup of flour, 1 cup or so of milk and add cheese (b/c we love it!) and a bit of baking powder. I love recipes like this b/c you can switch it up to use whatever veggies you have in the fridge.
What a happy accident for you!
Can I use spinach instead??
You could try spinach! It will be a different texture than the veggies I used. Make sure to use fresh spinach because frozen would be too wet. Happy experimenting!
OMG! The spinach worked!! They were so green looking, I didn’t think my 3 yr old would even try them, he just gobbled the 2 I put on his plate, I was like ‘What just happened??’ Will double recipe next time, they were so so good.
Yay I’m glad they were such a hit! Go you!
I made this for my 17 month old and she loved them! Great way to get veggies in:)
Just working on a post for veggie pancakes, yummy! Love this
Alwayshealthymom.com
[...] pasta and vegetable patties: I found the recipe on weelicious – we make different versions of this with broccoli or squash only, but this one was a great [...]
Just made these with cauliflower and they were delicious! Would it be okay to try them next time with whole wheat flour?
You can use whole wheat flour, but it will probably change the consistency. Try using a 1/4 to 1/2 less flour and add more as needed. I hope it works out and I’m glad you liked them!
OMG! These were so amazingly delicious! They remind me of korean pancakes. Made a dipping sauce of soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil…and my toddler just devoured them. I am going to make a ton to freeze, I hope they will be just as good. Thank you, Catherine!
I made these GF by substituting in the Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour and they turned out great!
what is kosher salt?
Kosher salt is a larger salt that has no additives! You can find it along with all the other salts in regular grocery stores.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosher_salt
These were good, but I found there was way too much salt in the recipe. Maybe that’s just me!
I totally hear you! Especially if you have a more sensitive palate. Did you use kosher salt or table salt?
Made this and it was wonderful. Two changes though. I decided to shred the veggies like hash browns and the texture was amazing. Second used a local (healthy) pre-made pancake mix – just enough to cover the veggies in a thick batter. Looks exactly as the photo, which is really good. Served with non- fat sour cream with some spices ( chipotle, currie & wasabi). YUM!!!!
These remind me of Dr. Praegers veggie patties. I have been wanting to try a recipe like this. Thanks!
[...] Green Veggie Pancakes – Made with broccoli, zucchini, and onions; Trader Joe’s Marinara [...]
I made the green veggie pancakes using zucchini and broccoli for my 13 month old grandson. My daughter said he “loved” them. I was wondering if using a combination of carrots and parsnips, or carrots and turnips would work equally well. Would using cauliflower alone be too bland? I’ve made mock mashed potatoes using just cauliflower and they were a big hit. Keep those recipes coming!
The basil and garlic powder add flavor so I don’t think cauliflower alone would be too bland, but I do love the combination of colors and textures! Carrots and parsnips would work, too!
That is the funniest story ever, and sounds like something that would happen to me….but it sound like a Yummy snack…I’m gona try it for my 17mo old…can’t wait…Thank you!
I made them last night for my daughter (almost 1 yr old) and she loved them, although admittedly she eats pretty much anything we put in front of her. I ended up doubling the amount of flour and using two eggs instead of one. Otherwise it seemed like there was too much green stuff and not enough batter to hold it together.
What I really like about it for us is that this exposes her to a different texture instead of just steamed and mashed fruits and vegetables all the time. Plus I can see it being something she will enjoy for a long time to come! Thanks Catherine (p.s. I’m a Loiusvillian too! Go Louisville;-))
Mae these using just broccoli. They were pretty good and mild tasting. My 2 year old actually tried one. He usually will not even taste new foods. I would say they were a success!
I made this today using a combination of zucchini and carrots, also did not have dried basil so I used little bit of dried dill; they were delicious!! Ok my little kids did noy like them they tried them but refused to eat the : ( I’m still trying to get them eat their veggies, so I am not given up, I will definitely do this recipe again, I love it. Thanks Catherine : )
I’ve made this twice and about to make another batch tonight. My 13 months old loves it. Thanks for this great recipe, Catherine. I’ve tried the black bean pancake once but my daughter doesn’t like it. This one is a keeper.
Can these be made, then frozen?
Yes! Make them all the way. Place on a cookie sheet in the freezer until they are completely frozen. Transfer to an airtight container or ziploc baggie.
I didnt read through all the comments so I’m not sure if anyone else tried this but I used this mixture as a breading for chicken nuggets and my kids love them!!! I also used coconut flour instead of regular flour and added 2 extra eggs. Thanks so much for the recipe!!
I just wanted to thank you for this recipe. My LO won’t eat steamed veggies, but she went to town on these. I liked them too. These will definately be a regular in our house. Now I can give LO veggies for snack, and she will actually eat them.
Do I need to boil the vegetables first or use them raw?
Use them raw!
ohhh, these failed for me! they just stuck completely! i even tried olive oil first then canola oil, but they just fell apart. i used frozen broccoli (thawed) and fresh zucchini… wonder if only fresh works:(
well, i got a couple of them to turn out, i think i had too much veggie and not enough egg and flour, i will still try them again
[...] Green Veggie Pancakes- An Easy, Healthy Side Dish | Weelicious ™ – Fast, Easy & Fresh Homemade… Canola or Vegetable Oil Accompaniments: Marinara sauce, Ketchup, or Mustard 1/4 Tsp Garlic Powder 1. Place the vegetables in a food processor and pulse to chop fine. 1 Tsp Dried Basil [...]
Just made these! Mine certainly were not as round and pretty as yours, but that didn’t matter because they were delicious! I substituted almond flour for regular flour. And added Parmesan cheese to the mixture! They were gluten free and absolutely amazing!
oh – also grated the zucchini, since I have yet to discover the wonderful world of food processors. Worked perfectly for me!