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Gluten-Free Sourdough Pancakes with Cardamom & Orange Zest

These gluten-free sourdough pancakes are soft, fluffy and warmly spiced with cardamom and orange zest. Made with an easy 2-flour blend and tangy discard — the coziest way to start your fall morning.
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A thick and tall stack of gluten-free sourdough discard pancakes on a pale blue plate. Maple syrup is poured from above, flowing off the sides and pooling at the bottom.
Prep Time:5 minutes
Cook Time:10 minutes
Resting Time:5 minutes
Total Time:20 minutes
Equipment
  • wire whisk - I love a silicone balloon whisk that doesn't scratch my bowls
  • frying pan or griddle - nonstick or cast iron
  • ¼-cup measure - for scooping batter into the pan
  • spatula - for flipping pancakes neatly
Ingredients

Wet Ingredients

  • 80 g sugar - (5 tbsp) I use raw cane sugar
  • zest of 1 organic orange
  • 30 g butter - (2 tbsp) melted and cooled
  • 240 ml whole milk - (1 cup)
  • 2 large eggs
  • 280 g gluten-free sourdough starter - (1 cup) either active starter or discard

Dry Ingredients

  • 130 g sweet glutinous rice flour - (¾ cup) cup also know as sweet white rice flour or sweet rice flour
  • 90 g gluten-free oat flour - (¾ cup)
  • 3 tsp gluten-free baking powder
  • 1 tsp ground cardamom
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Other Ingredients

  • butter - for greasing the pan
Instructions

Mix Wet Ingredients

  • In a small bowl, combine sugar and orange zest, and rub them together with your fingers until fragrant.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together melted butter, milk, egg and sourdough discard. Add the orange sugar and whisk to combine.

Mix Dry Ingredients

  • In a small bowl, combine oat flour, sweet rice flour, salt, baking powder and cardamom. Stir to combine.

Mix The Batter

  • Add the dry ingredients into the wet. Stir only until there are no streaks of flour remaining. The batter should be thick and a little lumpy.
  • Rest the batter for 5 minutes while you preheat your pan or griddle.

Cook the Pancakes

  • Heat a large nonstick frying pan or griddle over medium-low heat and lightly grease with butter or coconut oil.
  • Use a ¼-cup measure to scoop the thickened batter into the hot, greased skillet. Don’t scrape it out, or you’ll deflate the bubbles and risk flat pancakes.
  • Cook until small bubbles break through the surface and the edges start to set, around 2 minutes. Carefully flip with a spatula and cook the other side for another minute or until browned and cooked through.
  • Stack the finished pancakes on a small plate as they finish cooking, until you’ve used up all the batter.

Serve and Store

  • Serve with maple syrup. Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Notes
  1. Sweet glutinous rice flour can be found in most Asian supermarkets or in some health food stores.
  2. Milk, discard and egg should be at room temperature, or the butter might firm up again. If you didn't set the ingredients out in time, gently heat butter and milk until just warm enough to dissolve the butter, then add the cold discard and egg.
  3. Resting the batter really makes a difference in the final texture, so don’t skip it — it’s only 5 minutes!
  4. Once the pan is preheated, turn the heat down to low, or your pancakes might burn quickly.
  5. Gently shake the batter out of the ½-cup measure, don't scrape it out. Popping the bubbles may leads to flatter pancakes.
  6. For dairy-free pancakes, use vegan block butter or refined coconut oil instead of butter. Replace whole milk with a gluten free oat milk or your favorite gluten free plant milk.
  7. You can use 1 cup of a good quality 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour if you don’t have oat or sweet rice flour at home.
  8. Serve with maple syrup, bacon, fresh berries, compote or whipped cream.
Servings: 4
Calories: 539kcal
Author: Sarah | Grains & Greens Kitchen