Carrot Cake Pancakes with Maple Candied Walnuts and Bacon

“This post has been sponsored by Tyson Foods, Inc. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

These nutrition-packed Carrot Cake Pancakes are topped with Vegan Coconut Maple Cashew “Cream Cheese” Syrup and Maple Candied Bacon and Walnuts.  They are gluten, dairy and refined sugar-free, yet you’d never guess! Perfect for Easter brunch or any special weekend treat.

Sometimes, I like to eat breakfast that tastes like dessert.

Who am I kidding??

Read: ALL OF THE TIME.

Now, I do love eating healthy, but I also love rich, decadent flavors—and these pancakes are a PRIME example of nutrition meets decadence.

These babies are packed with whole grain rolled oats, shredded carrots, coconut and all sorts of yummy warm spices like cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. They are the kind of pancakes that provide long-lasting energy all day long. No massive sugar crashes a few hours after eating starchy pancakes here, my friends!

Maple Candied Walnuts and Bacon

The star of the show on these beauties is most definitely the maple candied bacon and walnuts. I partnered with Wright® Brand Hickory Smoked Bacon for this recipe, and let me tell you—I was not disappointed.

Any fellow bacon lovers here today??

I definitely could eat bacon with every meal, however, I’m a huge (although not always happy about it) believer in all things in moderation. So for me, it’s a special treat sort of deal. Like these Carrot Cake Pancakes with Maple Candied Walnuts and Bacon that I’m making for our Easter brunch!

Which is why if I’m going to eat bacon, it’s going to be high-quality bacon. I’m talking thick-sliced, hand-trimmed and made with the best cuts of premium meat. Wright® Brand Bacon is just that.

Masterfully crafted by experts since 1922, Wright® Brand Bacon naturally smokes their meat with wood chips—creating the deliciously rich flavor we all love in our bacon. They currently have five different varieties: Hickory Smoked, Applewood, Brown Sugar, Double-Smoked and Maple Flavored. I used Wright® Brand Hickory Smoked Bacon today for my recipe, and it is seriously the tastiest bacon I’ve ever put in my mouth.

Purchase Wright Brand Bacon today at your local Albertsons and look for an on-pack redeemable coupon for $1.50 off at participating Albertsons stores. (coupon starting 4/1/2019)

The Best Carrot Cake Pancakes

We LOVE Easter and all of the delicious food that comes along with it. These Carrot Cake Pancakes are definitely at the top of my favorite Easter holiday brunches because they are:

• nutritious and filling (gluten, dairy and refined sugar-free)
• taste like dessert for breakfast
• and pancakes are my favorite food group

Also, these Carrot Cake Pancakes are a recipe the whole family will love! I mean, come on, who doesn’t love cake and bacon for breakfast? Plus, Easter isn’t complete without carrots after all.

As for the ingredients, they are all straightforward—though I admit I used quite a few. All in the name of flavor and texture, of course! Using a blend of flours is key for texture when it comes to gluten-free baking. I’ve found that the oat flour plus a little gluten-free flour mix (or you can use regular flour if you do not need to make them gluten free) is the best combo for these pancakes.

I use gluten-free old fashioned oats and blend them up in my blender until they are “mostly” processed into oat flour. You do not need a fancy blender for this recipe. Most blenders will work to process the oats since you don’t need (or want) the flour to be completely smooth. I MUCH prefer this method to using store-bought oat flour because I can control how much I blend the oats. I like to leave the flour not completely smooth so that the pancakes have some texture. The results are worth it, trust me.

As you probably know, I love shopping for my ingredients at Albertsons because they are always so helpful with finding exactly what I need. Plus, I can use coupons through the Albertsons app on my phone to save money when shopping. High five! I love this because I am definitely not a coupon clipping girl. I can never remember to bring them with me, so having them on my phone is perfect!

Coconut Maple Cashew “Cream Cheese” Syrup

As for the maple cashew “cream cheese” syrup – I’m obsessed with this stuff. Now while this syrup is still a rich treat, it’s definitely on the healthier side of things as far as homemade syrup goes.

It’s a delicious blend of soaked cashews, coconut cream, lemon juice, vanilla, salt and, of course, maple syrup. And to be fair, the pancakes are so dang healthy they are just screaming for a little sinful decadence to go on top to make up for it—right?

Enter: Maple Cashew “Cream Cheese” Syrup AND Maple Candied Bacon and Walnuts

Tips For Making the Best Carrot Cake Pancakes

• It’s important that the carrots are finely grated (either using a food processor or box grater) so that they can cook quickly and aren’t crunchy in the pancakes.
• This pancake batter will be thick. Resist adding more milk, as that will create thinner pancakes. For light and fluffy pancakes, you need a thick batter!
• I’ve found that ¼ cup batter per pancake is the perfect amount.
• Make sure to use parchment paper (NOT WAX) to cool the candied walnuts and bacon on for easy removal.
• If the maple cashew “cream cheese” syrup starts to separate or have clumps, it’s due to the coconut cream. Simply microwave the syrup briefly before serving (10-15 seconds) and stir. All of the ingredients blend back together perfectly and you have deliciously warm VEGAN maple cashew “cream cheese” syrup!

I hope you give these Carrot Cake Pancakes a shot and let me know if your family loves them as much as we do!

Looking for other delicious and nutritious pancake recipes? Check out these Easy Quinoa Blender Pancakes; they’re one of my all-time favorites!

Carrot Cake Pancakes with Maple Candied Walnuts and Bacon

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These nutrition-packed Carrot Cake Pancakes are topped with Vegan Coconut Maple Cashew “Cream Cheese” Syrup and Maple Candied Bacon and Walnuts.  They are gluten, dairy and refined sugar-free, yet you’d never guess! Perfect for Easter brunch or any special weekend treat.

• Author: Chelsey - The Saucy Fig
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 12-16 pancakes 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Maple Candied Walnuts and Bacon

• 6-8 slices Wright® Brand Hickory Smoked Bacon, cooked and cut into small pieces
• 1 1/2 cups roughly chopped walnuts
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• dash of salt

Coconut Maple Cashew “Cream Cheese” Syrup

• 1 cup cashews, soaked
• 1/3 cup coconut cream
• 3/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch of fine sea salt

Carrot Cake Pancakes

• 1 cup oat flour (old fashioned oats ground up in blender till mostly smooth and resembles flour)
• 1 cup gluten-free baking flour (or flour of choice)
• 1/4 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 1 cup finely shredded carrots
• 1 1/2 cups cashew milk (or milk/dairy-free milk of choice)
• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

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Instructions

1. For the Maple Candied Walnuts and Bacon: cook the bacon (I like to use the stovetop if I’m just cooking a few slices) until nice and crispy. Remove from pan and set aside on paper towels. Wipe all excess grease from pan. Cut the bacon into small pieces and return it to the pan along with the rest of the ingredients for the Maple Candied Walnuts and Bacon. Cooking over medium heat, stir all ingredients to coat well. Cook until bubbling, stirring regularly. Syrup will begin to thicken and caramelize after about 5-6 minutes. When syrup is sticking to the nuts and there is not much liquid left, remove from heat. Spread the nuts and bacon onto a parchment lined cookie sheet to cool.
2. For the Coconut Maple Cashew “Cream Cheese” Syrup: blend the soaked cashew in a food processor until a thick paste forms. Add in the rest of the ingredients (coconut cream, maple syrup, lemon juice, vanilla and salt) and process until smooth. If the syrup starts to separate, it is because of the coconut cream. This normal and all you need to do is, right before serving, microwave it in a microwave-safe bowl for 10-15 seconds. The syrup will blend together smoothly (because the coconut cream will melt) and you will have beautiful, delicious, vegan Coconut Maple Cashew “Cream Cheese” Syrup.
3. For the Carrot Cake Pancakes: add the dry ingredients into a medium bowl and stir till combined. In a large bowl, add all liquid ingredients except the coconut oil. Add the dry ingredients to the liquid ingredients and stir to combine. Add in the coconut oil and continue to mix until all ingredients are fully incorporated. The pancake batter should be thick. Scoop 1/4 cupfuls onto a hot griddle and cook until bubbles form. Flip and cook for another minute or two. Serve topped with the Coconut Maple Cashew “Cream Cheese” Syrup and Maple Candied Walnuts and Bacon.

You can find all the necessary ingredients for the Carrot Cake Pancakes at your local Albertsons. Plus, right now you can save $1.50 on Wright Brand Bacon – look for an on-pack redeemable coupon at participating Albertsons stores.

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