Quick and easy breakfasts are my jam, which is why I love these pancake muffins.
Pancake Muffin Recipe
They’re easy homemade pancakes that are perfect for breakfast on the go…because who has time to stand and flip pancakes all morning? Simply pour them into a muffin tin and be done!
Homemade pancakes are my favorite breakfast food but, as I’ve mentioned before, breakfast is not a meal I typically have a lot of time to prepare.
Quick and easy is my morning breakfast routine and though they’re not necessarily difficult to make, quick is not a word I would use to describe traditional homemade pancakes.
They’re not a food you can leave cooking while you finish getting ready, unless you’d like one side to be completely burnt.
Pancake Bites
That’s where these Pancake Muffins come in. With these, I turned my favorite pancake recipe into a grab-and-go breakfast that can bake while I finish getting ready.
No need to hover over the stove waiting for the pancakes to be the perfect amount of cooked before flipping. No flipping required at all, actually.
As well regular pancakes, mixing the batter too much can lead to tough or chewy Pancake Muffins, when they really should be light and fluffy.
Mix Ins
The fun part about these delicious pancakes is adding your favorite toppings. I love to mix it up between chocolate chips, berries, and walnuts. Great for kids and slumber parties to let everyone create their own. Here are more ideas!
- Sprinkles
- Nutella (though be prepared for these to be messy)
- Trix
- Fruity Pebbles
- Any fresh fruit
- Nuts
- Peanut Butter Chips
- Butterscotch Chips
- Chocolate Syrup
- Cinnamon Sugar
- Swap vanilla extract for lemon, rum, butter or almond
Syrup
You can eat these Pancake Muffins two ways – as traditional pancakes at breakfast, with syrup and butter, or as breakfast on the go.
Syrup isn’t exactly portable so on busy mornings I’ll grab one or two Pancake Muffins, slather on some butter, and eat them without syrup in the car.
Bit if you want some… check out Dutch Honey, Apple Cider Syrup or even our Homemade Blueberry Syrup!
How to Make
Start by gathering your ingredients. You can also use the same recipe, but swap in dry pancake mix and make it according to the instructions on the box. I like to make my own.
- Eggs
- Buttermilk (or buttermilk substitute)
- Unsalted butter (omit additional salt if using salted butter)
- Vanilla extract (almond or raspberry flavor are great too!)
- Flour
- Sugar
- Baking powder
- Baking Soda
- Fine sea salt
- Cooking Spray
- Mix-Ins
Then…
- Preheat the oven and coat the muffin tin with cooking spray. I used a standard muffin tin, but feel free to use a mini or jumbo (but make sure to adjust the cooking times accordingly).
- Assemble the pancake batter by whisking the eggs until fluffy, then incorporating in melted butter, buttermilk and vanilla extract.
- Blend together the dry ingredients in a separate bowl: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Gradually add dry mixture to wet mixture. Do not overmix. Batter will be lumpy.
- Equally divide batter into 24 muffin tins, about 1/2 full.
- Place add-ins on top of batter as desired. See out list below for ideas!
- Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until edges start to crisp and brown. If you opted for a mini or jumbo tin, adjust cooking times up or down.
- Remove and serve with butter and syrup.
Syrup
I honestly eat these bad boys by hand without any topping, but sauces are also fabulous. Try serving one of these on the side as a dipping sauce option.
- Dutch Honey
- Homemade Blueberry Syrup
- Apple Cider Syrup
- Cranberry Syrup
- Blueberry Thyme Sauce
- Homemade Caramel Sauce
- Fudge Sauce
Make Ahead & Freezing
Can you make them ahead of time? You sure can! Although I would recommend reheating them in the oven so they don’t ge rubbery like breads tend to do in the microwave.
You can also make the batter ahead of time and just refrigerate until ready to bake.
Can you freeze pancake muffins? Sure! Freeze them in an airtight plastic bag, being mindful to get out as much air as possible. They are good for up to 4 months.
More easy homemade pancakes:
Pancake Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 4 tablespoons butter , melted
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Cooking spray
- Add-Ins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat 2 muffin tins with cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs until fluffy.
- Whisk in buttermilk, melted butter and vanilla extract.
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Gradually add dry mixture to wet mixture. Do not overmix. Batter will be lumpy.
- Equally divide batter into 24 muffin tins, about 1/2 full.
- Place add-ins on top of batter.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until edges start to crisp and brown.
- Remove and serve with butter and syrup as desired.
- If you've tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comments or ratings!
Hello! How do you make this recipe with a pancake dry mix? You didn’t specify if I would just use the normal process to make the mix or if you added additional ingredients. How much dry mix do you use?
Hi, I didn’t use pancake mix, I used a from scratch recipe. You can just use the recipe on the side of the pancake box, however much 1 batch and then add your add-ins.
Hi thanks for the fast response. Sorry, I was looking at a lot of other pancake muffin recipes that incorporate a dry muffin mix, so I assumed when you said you could use a dry muffin mix that you also used additional ingredients. Your recipe sounds delicious though! Thanks for the advice!
No problem!
I’m sure you can just add a tbsp of vinegar or lemon juice to milk as a substitute for buttermilk.
You sure can.
Delicious.
Thank you!
How many calories. Are these plain? Thanks 🙂 wonderful idea! 🙂
Hi- the nutrition displayed is for plain, add additional calories or your add-ins.
This are delicious! Super easy to make, and most importantly, the kids love them!!!! Great way to start The day!
I also like that I can pack them for a little snack during the day.
Thank you! I agree- they are great as a snack. I even freeze them and they only take 10-15 minutes to defrost.
I used half a teaspoon salt and subbed 1 cup Greek yogurt/1 cup milk for the buttermilk. They are so good! I don’t think they even need butter or syrup!
Nice! Thanks for letting us know, I’ll have to try Greek yogurt next time.
I was super excited to try these, but they came out a little salty. They were good with syrup, but i’ll alter the recipe a little next time.
Thanks for the feedback! I happen to love salt, LOL.
Confused about the size on these to make 12 servings. Are they regular muffins in two pans of 12 (24 count) or mini’s in a pan of 24 or two large pans of 6?
Hi Susan! Great question- it makes 24 muffins in a standard muffin tin. I allowed for 3 muffins per serving.
No stores near me have WHOLE buttermilk as this recipe asks for. All anyone ever sees is the low fat buttermilk and i dont think that would taste right. where or where do you go and are able to just buy regular buttermilk?
Hi Diana, You can probably use low fat buttermilk and be ok. If you want to use low fat and add a tablespoon of melted butter for every 1 cup buttermilk (not sure how much you are making), that will be fine too.
I made these and I would recommend them for sure. They are delicious and you don’t have to stand at the stove and make them which is a bonus for me because my back is sore a big thumbs up to you
Thank you for coming back to let us know, Judy! And so glad you loved them- I agree, the griddle is the worst part of making pancakes.
Pancake muffins, genius! Can’t wait to whip a batch of these up!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Very pretty and looks yummy!
I love these! So many different flavor ideas! There’s an option for everyone.
These pancake muffins are genius! I’m looking for recipes to freeze ahead, and I think these will be great for breakfast!
These are Awesome! Perfect for an on the go breakfast.
Oh how cute- I love this idea! I am a big fan of how customizable they are and how easy they are to grab and go… My kind of breakfast!