Four tasty waste-free pancake recipes

Shrove Tuesday, AKA Pancake Day, was traditionally a solution to reduce food waste that was caused when abstaining from high-fat foods like eggs and butter during Lent. 

In keeping with tradition, we want to share four of our tasty recipes that help you use up your cupboard and fridge ingredients. 

Thanks to our two-ingredient recipe, you can enjoy delicious last-minute pancakes without worrying if you have any flour or milk. 

Ingredients 

• 1 banana 
• 2 medium eggs 

Method (Serves 1) 

1. Peel and chop your banana 
2. Mash banana  
3. Add eggs, lightly beaten 
4. Combine mixture using a fork or hand blender 
5. Drop roughly 2 tablespoons of batter per pancake into a greased frying pan on medium heat 
6. Cook until golden brown on one side (about 1 minute) then gently flip pancakes using a spatula  
7. Transfer to a plate and cover with topping of your choice 

When Pancake Day comes around, we often find ourselves running to the shops to pick up a new bag of flour. But did you know you can enjoy pancakes whilst using up your leftover oats?

Ingredients 

• 2 eggs 
• ½ cup of milk 
• 1 ½ cup of rolled oats 
• ½ tablespoon of baking powder 
• ½ tablespoon of salt 

Method (Serves 1) 

1. Blend all of your ingredients together in an electronic blender 
2. Ladle the batter into a greased frying pan 
3. Cook until golden brown on both sides 
4. Add toppings of your choice 

For all the coffee lovers out there, this recipe is for you! If a cosy cuppa isn’t enough in the morning, then try incorporating your caffeine fix into a delicious breakfast and put your used coffee grounds to good use too. 

Ingredients 

• 200g oats 
• 2 heaped tbsp used coffee grounds 
• 1tsp bicarbonate of soda 
• 2tsp cinnamon 
• Pinch of salt 
• 300ml of your favourite milk 

Method (Serves 2) 

1. Grind oats in blender until they reach a flour consistency and add to mixing bowl 
2. Mix in coffee grounds, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon and salt and mix 
3. Add milk and combine until you have a medium thick batter 
4. Add 2tbsp oil to a pan and heat, then add a ladle full of batter  
5. When bubbles appear on the top of the pancake, flip it and cook for another minute or two 
6. Repeat until all batter is used and serve with your favourite toppings 

Sometimes the simplest recipe can be the tastiest too! You don’t have to reinvent the wheel to use up your leftovers. 

Ingredients 

• 100g plain flour 
• 2 large eggs 
• 300ml milk 
• 1 tbsp oil, plus a little extra for frying 

Method (Serves 2) 

• Add 100g plain flour, 2 large eggs, 300ml milk, 1 tbsp sunflower or vegetable oil and a pinch of salt into a bowl and whisk to a smooth batter 
• If you have time, set your batter to the side to rest for 30 minutes (or start cooking straight away if you'd rather) 
• Oil your pan and set it over a medium heat 
• Pour in enough batter to cover the full base of the pan and cook for one minute, then flip and cook the other side for a minute more 
• Repeat until batter is finished, and serve with your favourite toppings 

Let’s be a little more sustainable this Pancake Day and use what we have at home before we rush off to the shops to buy new ingredients. There’s no better way to celebrate an anti-food-waste holiday than practising what it preaches. 

We would love to see your take on our recipes so if you give them a go, be sure to tag us on social media (@howtowasteless).