Gluten-free Banana Malpua (Cardamom Spiced Banana Pancake)

If it looks like a pancake, smells like a pancake and tastes like a pancake, then it probably is a pancake malpua.

Say whaat?

Yep, you heard me right. I said Malpua. Pronounced: maal-poo-ahh.

So what the heck is that? It’s a sweet Indian pancake!

I really thought about calling this a “cardamom spiced banana pancake” BUT I love learning about cuisines and I figure you do too, right? Even though this is basically a cardamom spiced banana pankcake, it’s also a “banana malpua” – a popular north Indian dessert.

And if you think you don’t like Indian food… this banana pancake, I mean, banana malpua, will be your gateway into loving Indian cuisine.

Not only is this recipe a great way to use up ripe bananas (why is it that I always seem to have them?), it’s also gluten-free, sugar-free, dairy-free and nut-free (unless you top them with crushed nuts, obvi). One thing you should know is that these are made with rice flour. If you’re a regular here then you know I normally don’t use rice flour. In fact, this is only the second recipe that calls for the ingredient (here’s the first). The truth is, I’ve been using rice flour a little more lately. Why? It’s an inexpensive gluten-free grain that’s pretty allergy friendly. I know there are many of you who can’t tolerate grains but I want to offer recipe options for everyone suffering from allergies, so if I can come up with a good recipe using rice flour or another gluten-free grain, then I’ll share from time to time. I hope that’s okay. And I hope that if you’re strict paleo, you won’t hate me forever. But um, if you’re looking up a post about how to make gluten-free pancakes, then you’re probably not as strict paleo as you think you are… just sayin’ 😉

But if you are looking for a paleo pancake recipe – then you must try my Perfect Paleo Pancakes.

Onto the important stuff. What’s the difference between a regular banana pancake and a banana malpua? A banana pancake is soft and fluffy. A banana malpua is soft and fluffy in the center BUT it also has crispy edges. Oh, and a banana malpua is spiced with my favorite spice of them all: cardamom.

Just look at them… thin, soft, fluffy, crisp… and drizzled with maple syrup… ::swoooon::.

The ONLY downside to this recipe? Each banana pancake takes 4 minutes total to cook (2 minutes per side). UGH. That’s like a minute longer than a “normal” pancake.

Wow. That was such a stereotypical millennial thing to say… sorry… I will say that the time it takes to make these is 100 percent worth it.

You can top these banana malpuas with whatever you want – maple syrup, whipped cream, butter, ghee, jam, crushed nuts. I love the combination of banana and walnuts – I just think they pair SO well together. But I bet pistachios would be great on top of these too. Or cashews. You basically can’t go wrong.

You can make these bigger than mine – just spread the batter out and they should cook in the same amount of time. I just like making them small because they’re cuter that way. You might be like, “really, Ash? you care about your pancakes being cute?” Um, yes I totally do. Even though we should judge food by how it tastes and not by how it looks… that doesn’t really fly in the food blogging world. Because as a blogger, I absolutely need to make food look as good as it tastes, which is um a pretty hard thing to do, especially when you’re not a profesh photographer. I have no idea why I’m telling you all of this BUT… tell me, doesn’t this next picture just make you want to take a big BITE?

Say yes? Unless your answer is “No… I want to take SEVERAL big bites” in which case, I love you even more.

Gluten-free Banana Malpua (Cardamom Banana Pancake)

Gluten-free Banana Malpua (Cardamom Banana Pancake)

4.8 from 5 reviews

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Servings 10 -12

Ingredients

 

Banana Malpua Pancake:

• ▢ 1 cup mashed banana approx. 2 bananas
• ▢ 1 cup rice flour
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon cardamom
• ▢ 1 cup coconut milk canned and full-fat
• ▢ Coconut oil see directions

Optional Toppings:

• ▢ Crushed Walnuts or another type of nut
• ▢ Maple syrup

Instructions

 

• Combine the banana malpua ingredients together in a blender or food processor or in a bowl using an electronic mixer.
• Add 1 teaspoon of coconut oil to a non-stick crepe pan (like this one) over medium heat.
• Pour ¼ cup of the batter onto the pan.
• Spread out the batter a bit to form a circular shape. Then rotate the pan to make sure the coconut oil gets on all sides of the pancake.
• Cook for 2 minutes, flip, then cook for another 2 minutes.
• Repeat by adding 1 teaspoon of coconut oil before making each pancake.
• Serve with optional toppings, if desired.

Notes

If you want to make your pancakes larger, just be sure to add more coconut oil so that the sides of the pancake get nice and crisp.

Did you make this recipe?Tag @myheartbeets on Instagram and hashtag it #myheartbeets!

Want to try more Indian desserts? Then be sure to check out my Paleo Indian eCookbook: South Asian Persuasion! It has 100+ Paleo Indian Recipes (gulab jamun, anyone?)