Pumpkin Pancakes

This easy pumpkin pancakes recipe uses real pumpkin, and has the perfect blend of warming spices for a delicious fall brunch or breakfast.

It’s the time of year when everyone is looking for pumpkin recipes. If you’re looking for a delicious way to celebrate the arrival of fall, look no further than these pumpkin pancakes. They’re easy to make and taste absolutely amazing.

The pancakes are fluffy and moist, with a hint of pumpkin spice flavour. They’re perfect with a little maple syrup and whipped cream for a weekend breakfast or brunch.

So gather your ingredients and give this pumpkin pancakes recipe a try! You won’t be disappointed.

Why you will LOVE these Pumpkin Pancakes!

• Soft and fluffy homemade pancakes.
• Crisp outside edges!
• Made with real pumpkin
• Just the right amount of warming spices
• So easy to make, you’ll forget about box mixes.
• Perfect Saturday morning treat.
• Made with basic pantry staples.
• Easy to double or triple for a big batch.
• Freeze well, so make them ahead and enjoy on busy weekday mornings!

Tips for the Best Pumpkin Pancakes

• Use real buttermilk for your batter.
• Make sure your eggs and buttermilk are room temperature before starting.
• Carefully spoon and level your flour, and measure them exactly.
• Always start by combing your dry ingredients together to make sure your leavening ingredients are evenly distributed.
• Mix your pancake batter until just combined. Small lumps are OK.
• Let the batter rest for 5 minutes. Resting the batter allows the gluten to relax resulting in pancakes that are more soft and tender. This is when you should start pre-heating your pan.
• Use clarified butter for the best flavour, without burning.
• The perfect pancakes start with a pan at just the right temperature.
• Bubbles will form and burst on the pancakes when they are ready to flip. Don’t flip prior to this.
• Don’t be afraid to use your first set of pancakes as a test batch to gauge the heat of your pan.
• Serve with real maple syrup, not table syrup. As a maple syrup loving Canadian, yes, it makes a huge difference.

How to Make Fluffy Pancakes with Crispy Edges

The key to light and fluffy pancakes is using fresh baking powder. They should be no more than 6 months old to ensure you get the best reaction! The other detail is to make sure you don’t over-mix your batter. Over-mixing can result in rubbery or dense pancakes.

To make sure you get those amazing crispy edges, you just need to make sure you pan is just hot enough. If your pan is too cool then your pancakes will be rubbery and weird, too hot and they will burn.

Heat your pan over medium heat, then add your oil or butter, and allow that to get perfectly hot before adding your batter. Then let them fry until you not only see bubbles form on the top, but see those bubbles pop and form holes that stay open on the surface of the pancake. Voila! Perfect crispy edges.

What is the Best Oil to Make Pancakes with?

The best oil to make pancakes with is one that can handle high heats and has a fairly neutral or buttery flavor. There are many different types of oils to cook with, but I would really only recommend using either clarified butter or vegetable oil.

Butter is probably the best type of oil to make pancakes with because it not only has a delicious buttery flavor, but when clarified it also can handle high heats and will give your pancakes a rich flavor. Butter is best for frying with when it is clarified.

you can clarify your own butter. All you would need to do is melt the butter and let the milk solids and whey settle at the bottom of your mixing bowl. Pour off the liquid (the clarified butter) and save, discarding the sediment in your mixing bowl.

Clarified butter is also known as Gee, and you can also purchase it at the grocery store.

Vegetable oil and canola oil are two oils that work well to make pancakes with. They can be used to fry just about anything and they both have a very neutral flavour. Most vegetable oils can be used at high heat which makes them excellent choices for frying.

That said, using oil you will almost definitely miss that buttery flavour to the pancakes. To make up for this though, you can serve butter on top of your pancakes.

What is the Best Pan to use for Making Pancakes?

When it comes to making pancakes, there is a huge debate on which pan will give you the best results. I have seen people use everything from cast iron pans or non stick pans to griddles, but what is truly the best pan for cooking pancakes?

The best pancake pan for making pancakes is either an electric griddle or a cast iron griddle pan. I personally prefer using a cast iron griddle pan because not only does it give you that nice and crispy edge around the outside of the pancake but it also helps develop that golden brown colour we all know and love.

When I use any other pan, the pancakes don’t tend to be consistent as they don’t hold heat the same way as a griddle or cast iron. So while, yes, you can use any non-stick pan and end up with OK pancakes, you will get better results using an electric griddle or a cast iron griddle pan.

With an electric griddle, you can make larger batches which is nice when cooking for a crowd. However, electric griddle pancakes tend to make pancakes without the crisp outside edges that I love about pancakes. I tend to prefer cast iron griddle pans for this reason.

The heat distribution on both an electric griddle or griddle pan is consistent and they make beautiful pancakes every time! A cast iron griddle pan will give you a gorgeous pancake with the buttery-crisp edges and texture everyone loves about pancakes!

While you can use a regular cast iron pan for this job with great results, the higher sides of a cast iron pan make it tough to flip those pancakes. No matter which option you choose, just make sure to use a wide heavy-bottomed pan – if your pan is too thin, your pancakes will burn.

Bottom line – a cast iron griddle pan is your best bet and a great investment!

Can You Make Pumpkin Pancakes Ahead of Time?

You can make the batter in advance and store it up to 2 days in the fridge. Just give it a mix before using.

That said, your leavening ingredients won’t work as hard, so your pancakes may not be as light and fluffy.

Pancakes really are best when the batter is used within 5-30 minutes. If you do need to make pancakes ahead of time, you will get better results by frying them and storing the actual pancakes.

How to Freeze Pancakes

These pancakes are best eaten immediately after being prepared. However, you can store them in the refrigerator or freezer for later use.

To store, let the cooked pancakes cool completely then wrap each pancake tightly in plastic wrap followed by foil or place in freezer bags.

Place in the refrigerator for up to three days or freeze up to three months.

How to Reheat Pancakes from Frozen

When you are ready to eat, simply remove the wrapping and pop them in the microwave for 45-60 seconds or until warm. To help prevent overly soggy pancakes, place them on a paper towel on a plate when microwaving.

You can also reheat them from frozen right in your toaster – this is my favourite method! I find microwaving can make them soggy but the toaster makes them taste almost as good as fresh from the pan.

You can also reheat them in your frying pan over medium-low heat, turning frequently until heated through.

About the Equipment Needed to Make Pancakes

2 Mixing Bowls – Use a medium bowl to mix together the dry ingredients, and a large bowl to combine the batter.

Whisk – Use a hand whisk to combine the batter, you don’t need an electric mixer for this job.

Frying Pan or Griddle – Read my notes above.

About the Ingredients for Pumpkin Pancakes

Flour – Spoon and level the flour when measuring it, otherwise you’ll wind up with pancakes.

Baking powder – Leavens the pancakes, make sure it is still active so your pancakes rises perfectly.

Salt – Helps to balance all the flavours and make em shine.

Sugar – Just plain white granulated sugar.

Buttermilk – Make sure your buttermilk is room temperature before starting. If you don’t have any buttermilk on hand make it yourself by adding a tbsp of lemon juice to regular milk. While buttermilk substitutes might do the job, I’d recommend using real buttermilk if possible though.

Eggs – Make sure you have room temperature eggs to start with.

Vanilla – Real vanilla extract is best but feel free to use artificial if that is what you have on hand.

Spices – Cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves add a bit of warmth to these pancakes. Feel free to substitute with pumpkin spice.

Pumpkin puree – Use pure pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling for the best results. If you absolutely must use pumpkin pie filling, omit adding the sugar and spices from this recipe.

Looking for More Tasty Fall Breakfast Recipes?

Check out some of my favourite recipes for an autumn weekend breakfast or brunch!

The best chocolate chip pancakes recipe ever! Made with buttermilk, these pancakes are soft and fluffy! Add berries for extra flavour!

This gluten free Pumpkin Spice Granola recipe is filled with warm spices, filling granola and crunchy pumpkin seeds and pecans.

These Pumpkin Spiced Banana Nut Muffins are a welcomed autumnal twist on a classic recipe.

How to Make Pumpkin Pancakes

Yields: 8 Servings | Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook time: 3-4 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 ⅓ cup + 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 Tablespoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon cloves
• 4 eggs + 1 yolks, room temperature
• 1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
• 7 teaspoon sugar
• 15 oz pumpkin puree

Directions:

In a small mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and cloves. Set aside.

In a separate large mixing bowl whisk together eggs, buttermilk and sugar.

Whisk in pumpkin puree.

Add the dry ingredients to the bowl and whisk until just combined.

Place a frying pan over medium-high heat and let it warm up.

Once you have a hot pan or hot griddle, add a little vegetable oil or butter and let that heat up.

Add about ¼ cup of the pancake mixture to the pan then turn down the heat to medium.

Cook pancakes for 2-3 minutes or until golden on the bottom and the bubbles start to pop, then flip and fry for another 2-3 minutes or until cooked through.

Repeat with the remaining batter. You can cook multiple pancakes in one pan if large enough.