Thanks to their light and fluffy texture and low-carb appeal, even those who don't care for cottage cheese adore Kathleen's Cottage Pancakes! Save

Thanks to their light and fluffy texture and low-carb appeal, even those who don’t care for cottage cheese adore Kathleen’s Cottage Pancakes! 

 

 

High protein and low carb are typically not the words I associate with pancakes, but this recipe shakes things up a bit!  

A friend of The Fountain Avenue Kitchen passed this novel pancake recipe along to me, saying that it is something she makes for her husband almost every morning.

The ingredients are quirky–for pancakes, anyway–but so very healthy.  I simply could not pass this recipe by.

The cottage cheese lends a lightness to the batter while the eggs provide exceptional protein and flavor.  I loved the underlying egg flavor.

Note, there’s not a speck of sugar in this recipe–and just a small amount of flour.  I think next time I will try whole wheat flour, or perhaps my gluten-free blend.  My dad would like these.

By the way, my sons both declared this a “make-again” recipe.  My picky eater did not so much as notice there was a “funny” ingredient in there: )

Thanks to their light and fluffy texture and low-carb appeal, even those who don't care for cottage cheese adore Kathleen's Cottage Pancakes! Save

Note:  I have been asked several times if I have tried these pancakes with my gluten-free flour blend, and I wanted to provide an update. In addition to making them with that blend, I have also tried them with oats, as one friend shared that she had successfully done. That time, I used quick oats and added 1/2 teaspoon each baking soda and baking powder in lieu of the 1/4 teaspoon baking soda called for in the original recipe.  

While they tasted fine, the resulting pancakes lacked the fluffiness present in the original recipe.  The gluten-free blend fares very well, resulting in an end result similar to the original version.  I use the 1/2 teaspoon each of baking soda and powder here, too.  Both times, I polled my husband and kids and they gave both versions their stamp of approval although did notice a difference with the oat version, mainly because those pancakes appeared flatter than usual.

Update 4/4/18: Recently, I’ve had several readers ask about making these with almond flour.  Although I have not yet tried it, my suspicion is that it would work but that the pancakes would be somewhat flatter. If you try, please feel free to comment!

Thanks to their light and fluffy texture and low-carb appeal, even those who don't care for cottage cheese adore Kathleen's Cottage Pancakes! Save

Thanks to their light and fluffy texture and low-carb appeal, even those who don't care for cottage cheese adore Kathleen's Cottage Pancakes! Save

Kathleen’s Cottage Pancakes

5 from 5 votes
Thanks to their light and fluffy texture and low-carb appeal, even those who don't care for cottage cheese adore Kathleen's Cottage Pancakes! 

Ingredients

  • 6 eggs
  • cups cottage cheese
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher or sea salt*
  • ½ cup flour (see comments above regarding gluten-free options)
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda

Instructions

  1. Beat eggs until light. Mash cottage cheese (Kathleen uses a food processor, I used my mini chopper to really get it smooth). Add to eggs along with the remaining ingredients. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto a lightly-greased griddle (I like to use my cast iron skillet) and cook over medium heat until browned on both sides and cooked through. Top with maple syrup or fresh fruit, as desired.
  2. Makes about 2 dozen small pancakes. I made mine a bit bigger and got 17 or 18.

Notes

*If using regular table salt, you may wish to start with ⅛ teaspoon. Also, sodium contents vary among cottage cheese brands. If your brand contains a high level of sodium, I recommend using less (or even skipping it) when making these pancakes for the first time.
For a healthy, aromatic option with a high smoke point, try cooking the pancakes in coconut oil.
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Recipe Rating




385 responses to “Kathleen’s Low-Carb Cottage Pancakes”

  1. Ricotta cheese sub for the cottage cheese. Much smoother. Can’t wait to try. Very late in finding this.

    1. Ricotta would be a great substitution. Thanks for the comment and hope you enjoy them, Lisa!

  2. Sheree Avatar
    Sheree

    I found another trick. If you add a tad bit, and I mean a very small amount, of xanthan gum to the batter, it will thicken the batter. I’d say start with 1/8 teaspoon.. It will take a few minutes for the batter to thicken. The pancakes retain their light airy texture.

    1. Hi Sheree,
      Do you use this trick when you are making the gluten-free version? I find the regular version to be plenty thick, so I wanted to make sure. Thanks so much for the tip and any clarification!

      1. Sheree Avatar
        Sheree

        I use half flour and half almond flour. The first day is ok, but if I finish the batch of batter the second day, it is really thin, like crepes. I only use 1/8 teaspoonful of xanthan gum for 1/2 a recipe. There are only 2 of us in our house.

        1. Thank you for clarifying and for your helpful hint!

  3. Sheree Avatar
    Sheree

    I made these for my junk food junkie husband and he LOVED THEM! Thank you so much. I calculated the Weight Watchers points and if a batch makes 24 pancakes and you eat 4 per serving, that is only 3 points per serving! Thank you so much for this recipe.

    1. You are very welcome, Sheree, and thank YOU for the great comment and the WW point information. I am delighted they went over so well!

  4. Tamara Avatar
    Tamara

    Made these this morning- delicious! Followed the recipe as written. Glad I found your site!

    1. So glad you love them, Tamara! Thank you for letting me know!

  5. Any idea if they freeze well?

    1. Hi Shea,
      This is one pancake recipe that I have not frozen. I have put one or two leftovers in the fridge and reheated in the toaster oven the following day. If anyone else has frozen them, please feel free to comment!

  6. holly Avatar
    holly

    These are amazing! Made them two weekends in a row and I really like these better than regular pancakes. I plugged in the ingredients in myfitnesspal, and they have about 2.5 grams of carbs per pancake. They keep me full for a long time because of all the protein, which is perfect for my low carb eating. Definitely my go to pancake recipe now!

    1. I am so glad you have a new favorite pancake recipe, Holly! Thank you so much for the carb information and the great feedback. I hope you find a few other recipes you like as well!

  7. Hope you don’t think spelt is gluten free because it is a form of wheat.

    1. You are right, Gloria! Thank you for the clarification. I don’t want there to be any confusion!

  8. Beverley Avatar
    Beverley

    right up my street and my fridge is never without cottage cheese , thank you Ann xoxo

    1. I think you will like these, Beverley! Hope all is well with you and your family!

  9. Tried these this morning and they were really good !
    I was not sure how they would turn out and pleasantly
    Surprised !
    Will use this recipe again —
    Oh yes, made them in the blender, so easy !
    Thanks

    1. Thanks so much for the feedback, Sidi…so glad you enjoyed!

  10. Lynne Falke Avatar
    Lynne Falke

    Made these for breakfast this morning and they were great! I added zest of a lemon and fresh blueberries….so good.
    Took a while to find the correct temp to cook them at. First couple browned too quickly before insides were cooked. Rest were perfect. Thanks so much for a great recipe.

    1. Thanks for the great feedback, Lynne, and I am thrilled you enjoyed these! Your additions sound delicious!

  11. I see a lot of different recipes using cottage cheese, but it never says whether you should use small or large curd. Does it really matter

    1. Hi Tracy,
      Out of habit, I always buy the small curd cottage cheese although I think the large curd would work equally well, especially since it is blended or processed until smooth.

  12. […] that are healthy and flavorful. Imagine my delight when I stumbled across this recipe on Pinterest (get the directions at The Fountain Avenue Kitchen) for low carb, high protein pancakes! The end result is moist, light, fluffy goodness that pairs […]

  13. OMG! NOM NOM NOM!

    1. Enjoy!!

  14. I noticed several mentioned using oats in this recipe…is it replacing all of the flour with oats or part? I usually make my pancakes with ordinary pancake mix but replace 1/2 of the 2 cups of the mix with oats.

    1. Hi Monica,
      If you read the note I added above the recipe, you will see what I found when I used oats in place of the flour as well as my gluten-free flour blend. To me, they are best with the flour or the gluten-free mix. They taste good with all oats, but lose their characteristic fluffiness. Hope the extra details above help!

  15. They were awesome, the whole family loved them. I added a couple of packs of Splenda and some vanilla extract. Will definitely make again and I know a couple families with diabetic kids, going to share the recipe with them. Thanks for the recipe.

    1. I am so glad they were a hit, Dania, and am glad you can think of a few families that may enjoy the recipe, too! Thanks so much for letting me know!

  16. I calculated the calories in the pancakes. It seems that the total recipe is 960 calories. If you get 24 pancakes out of it…it is only 40 calories per pancake!

    1. Thank you very much, Kylie! That sounds pretty terrific!

  17. I just tried this recipe and it was delicious and I hate cottage cheese. I just used a hand blender to smooth the cottage cheese. Amazing!

    1. I am so glad you loved these and I appreciate your helpful comment regarding the hand blender, Claire!

  18. I have made these pancakes and instead of cottage cheese, I use Ricotta! very good and I think better this way.

    1. Thanks so much for a great suggestion, Lynne. The upside to the ricotta is that it need not be mashed or put in the food processor. The cottage cheese, on the other hand, is a bit healthier. Either way, two delicious options!

  19. I am looking forward to trying these! I have recently been put on a gluten free diet and need help! What is gluten free flour blend and where do I get it? Can I use it to make my gravy? Being a southern cook this has not been easy.

    1. Hi Debbie,
      I meant to provide a link and forgot…I will provide here and above so you can see what I use. Although you can buy a variety of mixes, I like to mix my own as I have had mixed success with store-bought varieties. I use this mix (a blend of rice flour and a few other ingredients) as a cup-for-cup substitution for regular flour when I need to make a gluten-free option in my baking. It is not exactly the same, but it is rather close and, most times, people do not notice a difference. Good luck, and I hope this helps!
      https://staging-fountainavenuekitchen.kinsta.cloud/all-purpose-gluten-free-flour-blend/

      1. Thanks so much for that link! I can’t wait to try these. Will try this blend when I make my cornbread also. Will let you know how that went.

        1. You are welcome, Debbie, and I would love to hear how you make out with your cornbread!

  20. Making these right now and used spelt flour and added blueberries to the batter. “Fantastic” according to my family. Thank you!

    1. I am so glad, Jan! Coincidently, I just made them, too! Tried with oats as one person had done previously and also with my gluten-free flour blend. I preferred the blend although the ones with oats tasted great…just a little more of the egg flavor and a little flatter. Perhaps I will have to try with spelt flour next!