Throughout my childhood, many of our weekends began with Mom’s pancakes. With the recipe basically memorized, she mixed up the batter while my brother and I watched an episode of cartoons on TV and Dad quietly turned the pages of the local newspaper.
Because our favorite brunch restaurant served Mickey Mouse pancakes, my brother and I always requested those shapes. Mom would cook in two pans so we were fed at the same time, and she set out the faux maple syrup for us to pour all over the pancakes.
After adding blueberries to the bowl for her and Dad (no fruit in ours, thanks!), she poured out the rest of the batter into regular circles for the two of them and served theirs hot with a pat of butter and real maple syrup. We almost never ended up with leftovers!
In her recipe, Mom always used regular milk since that’s all we kept in the fridge. It wasn’t until I reached high school that I realized “buttermilk” pancakes were the most iconic kind.
And recently, with my guy and I going out for breakfast every so often, we started sampling the buttermilk pancakes offered by various restaurants in town. Upon feeling sluggish after one too many of those heavier recipes, I decided to create my own back at home.
After lots of flipping and mixing and flipping some more, I finally came up with a recipe for The Ultimate Healthy Buttermilk Pancakes! They’re light and fluffy and full of buttermilk flavor, and we both think that they’re better than any restaurant’s that we’ve eaten.
Nerd alert!
Because I was an organic chemist before a baking blogger, I wanted to share a little bit of the food science behind what makes these the best lightened-up buttermilk pancakes you’ll ever try. Each of the ingredients plays a key role in creating their taste and texture, so let’s go over that briefly!
Buttermilk. In addition to its iconic flavor, buttermilk is more acidic than regular milk. This acidity reacts with the leavener (hang tight, that’s coming next!) to make the pancakes light and fluffy on the inside.
If you don’t keep buttermilk in the fridge very often, I recommend these two options. (a) Powdered buttermilk. It’s a pale yellow powder that’s shelf-stable and keeps for ages. Mix it with water and you’re all set! (b) Vinegar and milk. This won’t produce the same classic buttermilk taste, but it’ll add the acidity you need.
Leavener. In this recipe, we use more baking soda than baking powder. Baking soda is stronger and reacts better with the buttermilk. When you mix those two together, they release air bubbles, which makes the pancakes fluffy.
Egg. The yolk of the egg provides tenderness, while the white acts as the binder that holds the pancakes together and gives them structure.
Butter and Greek yogurt. The butter provides both flavor and a more tender texture. (We just use a tiny bit, so don’t skip it!) The Greek yogurt adds more moisture to the batter, and it also adds a little extra tangy taste to enhance that of the buttermilk.
Vanilla. This is my secret weapon! Extra vanilla enhances the flavor of butter, so these pancakes taste much more indulgent than they really are. I know 1 ½ teaspoons looks like a lot for pancakes, but trust me. You won’t want to use any less!
Now with the batter mixed up, let’s talk about how to cook your pancakes! For the best results, use a nonstick pan or electric griddle. The griddle will yield the most even golden coloring, but with my tiny kitchen, I don’t have the space to store one. So pans it is for me! However, do not use stainless steel cookware because it will burn your pancakes. (Lesson learned the hard way!)
To make each pancake, pour a dollop of 2 tablespoons of batter onto your cooking surface lightly coated with nonstick spray. Wait until the edges near the bottom look as if they’re forming a slight skin and the tops start showing bubbles that pop; then take a peek underneath. The bottom should be golden brown!
To flip the pancakes, slide a spatula underneath, lift your hand, and just turn your wrist. Do not use your elbow or your entire arm! If you do, the pancake will skid a little in the pan as it lands and form that lacey-looking “pancake skirt.” (They’ll still taste the same; they just don’t look as pretty!)
Now all that’s left is to serve yourself a big stack with real maple syrup, fresh fruit, and anything else your heart desires!
| The Ultimate Healthy Buttermilk Pancakes | | Print |
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp (135g) whole wheat pastry flour, all-purpose flour, or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 tsp (3g) baking soda
- ½ tsp (2g) baking powder
- ¼ tsp (2g) salt
- ½ tbsp (7g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ tsp (8mL) vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120mL) low-fat buttermilk, room temperature
- 1 tsp (5mL) pure maple syrup
- ¼ cup (60g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- Whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg, and vanilla. Whisk in the buttermilk and maple syrup. Stir in the yogurt until no large lumps remain. Add in the flour mixture, and stir until just incorporated.
- Lightly coat a large pan or griddle with nonstick cooking spray, and preheat over low heat.
- Using 2 tablespoons of batter for each pancake, dollop onto the hot pan, and spread into a circular shape if desired. Let the pancakes cook for 2-3 minutes, or until a slight skin starts to form around the edges and the bottom is light golden brown. Slide a spatula underneath, and flip. Continue to cook for another 1-2 minutes or until light golden brown on both sides. Serve hot.
White whole wheat flour may be substituted, as well as regular whole wheat flour. However, regular whole wheat flour's heartier taste may overpower the delicate flavor of the buttermilk, so the pancakes can sometimes taste like whole wheat pancakes instead.
You must use buttermilk in this recipe. It’s more acidic than regular milk, which is required to react with the baking soda and baking powder.
As a buttermilk substitute, I highly recommend this powdered buttermilk. It’s shelf-stable and keeps for ages. Simply mix 2 tablespoons with ½ cup of water to yield the buttermilk required by this recipe. Alternatively, measure out 1 ½ teaspoons of vinegar into a measuring cup, and pour in regular milk (skim, 1%, or 2%) until you reach the ½-cup mark. However, this second method will not yield the same iconic buttermilk flavor.
For tips on the type of pan to use and how to properly flip pancakes, see the text in the blog post above.
If the batter is too thick to pour and spread easily in the pan, stir in up to 4 additional tablespoons of buttermilk, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it reaches a normal pancake batter consistency.
This recipe is easily doubled to make more. If you have any leftovers, they freeze really well too!
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat}
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
These turned out great! I just needed to add several more table spoons of buttermilk to make the consistency right but that was no problem. Man! Wish I had doubled the recipe as everyone wanted more – that was the only problem we experienced with this recipe 😉
I’m printing this to make again.
I’m SO glad everyone enjoyed these pancakes Neetu! That’s the best kind of compliment if everyone wanted more… and that you plan on printing this recipe to make again! I’m truly honored — thank you for taking the time to let me know! You just made my entire day!! 🙂
I’m on Weight Watchers and have been craving pancakes that aren’t super high in points! These were far BETTER than the regular pancakes I used to make and are only worth 2 points a piece. The “regular” pancakes I used to make are 14 points a piece and didn’t taste near as good. I’m so excited to have found your recipe!
Oh my goodness Lisa — I’m truly honored!! That means the world to me that you’d say these pancakes taste even better than your previous regular pancakes. I’m really glad you loved these, and thank you SO much for taking the time to let me know! You just made my entire day!! 🙂
Pretty good! I followed the recipe exactly. For the flour I used half whole wheat and half white flout. Was surprised at how thick the batter was, more like a dough but still easy to spread. They’re definitely good and better than a lot of healthy recipes, but I wish they were a little fluffier/lighter and had that normal buttermilk taste that was somehow missing. I’d still make again!
I’m honored that you tried my recipe, and it means the world to me that you’d still consider making them again! I’d love to help you figure out how to make them even better the next time. 🙂 Did you make any substitutions or modifications to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section? What brand of buttermilk did you use? How did you measure the flour, with a kitchen scale or measuring cups? If the latter, can you describe in detail how you used them to measure?
I know I just asked a LOT of questions, but once I know your answers to all of them, I should have a much better idea of what you can do differently next time to get that buttermilk flavor and fluffy texture you’re hoping for! 🙂
Is it possible to have the dry ingredients mixed ahead of time (similar to a pancake mix)?
Yes, absolutely! Mixing together the first 4 ingredients ahead of time and storing them in an airtight container should work just fine. 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think of these pancakes if you try making them, Ale!
My family loved these pancakes so much! I also appreciated all of your notes on how to measure correctly, and the chemistry background was interesting too. These pancakes were fluffy and so delicious!
I’m so happy you and your family loved these pancakes, Em! It means a lot that you appreciated the tips, notes, and chemistry too. Thank you for taking the time to let me know! 🙂