Ube Mochi Pancakes

Mother’s Day is this weekend. That means it’s time to brush off your breakfast making skills for the perfect Sunday brunch. But really, I love a good brunch recipe because you can be a little more whimsical with breakfast than other meals of the day. These ube mochi pancakes are the perfect balance of sweet and chewy, and they’re purple! They’re made with sweet rice flour (or mochi flour), coconut milk, and ube halaya.

What is ube halaya?

Ube halaya is a Filipino dessert made with purple yam, coconut milk, and butter. It can be eaten as a snack or used in various Filipino desserts like halo halo, cakes, cinnamon rolls, and ube ice cream. There are so many amazing recipes for ube halaya online, but I opted to buy mine pre-made at the store to cut down on cook time. I purchased the ube halaya jam at my local Filipino grocery store, but if you can’t find it locally, you can also get it on Amazon.

Why I like using sweet rice flour

Sweet rice flour is one of my favorite ingredients to use, especially in sweets. (I consider pancakes a sweet because of the amount of sugar involved in a pancake dish.) What I love most about it is the texture it gives food. Sweet rice flour gives food a chewy, pillowy texture which it derives from the sticky rice it is made with. The other great thing about sweet rice flour is that it is gluten free! This is a huge win for people with celiac disease because you can get a similar texture to gluten based desserts without the negative side effects.

Ingredients, Substitutions & Adjustments

• Light brown sugar – Adds sweetness to these ube mochi pancakes. You can also use dark brown sugar which would make the pancakes sweeter.
• Unsalted butter – Adds a nutty flavor to the pancakes.
• Eggs – Adds a richness to the pancakes and helps make them fluffy.
• Coconut milk – Makes the pancakes fluffy and rich. A good substitute is whole milk.
• Vanilla extract – Adds flavor to the pancakes. Good substitutes are 1 vanilla bean or an equal amount of vanilla paste.
• Ube extract – Adds the purple color and ube flavor to the pancakes. I use Butterfly Ube Extract. It is, in my opinion, the best ube extract to use.
• Ube halaya – This is sometimes called halayang ube and adds actual ube into the pancakes. You can find this at an Asian grocery store or you can make it yourself. I like to use Tropics Ube Halaya. There are also a lot of ube halaya recipes online.
• Salt – Brings out the flavor of the other ingredients. Any kind of salt should work for this recipe.
• Sweet rice flour – This is the main dry ingredient in this dish and adds a chewy texture to the pancakes. You can substitute with all purpose flour, but this will make the pancake texture less chewy. If you use AP flour, I would also make sure to not over mix the batter because it will create for a tougher pancake.
• Baking powder – Helps the pancake rise and gives it that fluffy texture.

Making my ube mochi pancakes

First, combine all the ingredients into a large bowl. Whisk together until a uniform, thick purple batter forms. Heat a little bit of butter over medium low heat. Make sure to use a nonstick pan. Use a 1/3 cup measuring spoon or a soup ladle to spoon the batter into the center of the pan. Move in a circular motion to get that perfect circular pancake. Cook the pancake for 1-2 minutes until small bubbles start to appear. Flip the pancake, and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Transfer the pancake onto a plate. Repeat this process until the batter is used up. You should get about 8 pancakes. Top the pancakes with fresh fruit and a drizzle of maple syrup.

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