Chocolate Chip Coconut Pancakes

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
• 1¼ cups buckwheat flour
• ¼ cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut flakes
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• Pinch of sea salt
• 1 cup unsweetened, unflavored plant milk
• ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
• ¼ cup pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup vegan mini chocolate chips
• Sliced bananas, for serving

Instructions

1. Place the flaxseed meal in a small saucepan with ½ cup water. Cook over medium heat until the mixture gets a little sticky and appears stringy when it drips off a spoon, 3 to 4 minutes. Immediately strain the mixture into a glass measuring cup and set aside. Discard the seeds.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the buckwheat flour, oats, coconut flakes, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk, applesauce, maple syrup, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons of the reserved flax water.
4. Add the liquid mixture to the dry mix and stir together to blend; the batter will be thick. Stir in the chocolate chips.
5. Heat a nonstick griddle over medium-low heat. Pour ~1/2 cup batter for each pancake onto the griddle and spread gently. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the pancakes look slightly dry on top, are lightly browned on the bottom, and release easily from the pan. Flip and cook for about 5 minutes on the other side.
6. Repeat for the remaining batter, wiping off the griddle between batches. Serve hot with sliced bananas.