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! And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your healthy buttermilk pancakes!
| 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 (see Notes!)
- 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 for the whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour, 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 plain whole wheat pancakes instead.
IMPORTANT BUTTERMILK NOTES: 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 (just about any should work — nonfat, 1%, 2%, or your preferred dairy-free milk!) until you reach the ½-cup mark. However, this second method will not yield the same iconic buttermilk flavor.
IF YOUR BATTER IS TOO THICK: If the batter is too thick to pour and spread easily in the pan, stir in up to 4 additional tablespoons of buttermilk (or regular milk or water), 1 tablespoon at a time, until it reaches a normal pancake batter consistency.
PANCAKE COOKING TIPS: For tips on the type of pan to use and how to properly flip pancakes, see the text in the blog post above.
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 pancakes are unbelievably good! Better than any other pancakes I’ve tried. I’m addicted! I make them every Saturday morning
No offense but I went exactly the way the recipe read and my pancakes came out heavy like an English muffin, nothing like the picture you show, very dry.
It means a lot that you tried my recipe, Kathy! That sounds disappointing and not like how these pancakes should turn out at all, so I’d love to help figure out why that happened. 🙂 In order to do so, I have some questions for you!
Did you make any substitutions or modifications to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section?
Did you use a kitchen scale or measuring cups/spoons for all of the ingredients, especially the flour, Greek yogurt, and buttermilk?
If you used measuring cups/spoons, can you describe how you used them to measure the flour?
What was the consistency of your batter like? Was it as thick as cookie dough, as thin as cake batter, or something else?
Did you add any additional buttermilk, milk, or water, as mentioned in the Notes section?
What level of heat did you use to cook your pancakes?
Did you spread out the batter at all after adding it to the pan, as mentioned in Step 3?
How long did you cook your pancakes per side?
Can you describe their color after you flipped them out of the pan?
I know I just asked a LOT of questions, but I’ll have a much better idea of the culprit once I know your answers to all of them!
This is the best whole wheat pancake recipe I have tried. Kids loved them. I added the extra milk as suggested. The batter was really thick, but I spread it a little on the pan and they turned out great. Really thick & fluffy!
I’m so glad your kids enjoyed these pancakes, Beth! It means so much that you’d call this the best whole wheat pancake recipe you’ve tried too. Thank you for taking the time to let me know! 🙂
This is a great recipe! I used a combination of freshly ground flours (red wheat, white wheat, and Einkorn) and the pancakes tasted great. I weighted the ingredients and wanted to let you know that baking soda (at least the one I used) weighed 6 grams / tsp. I went with the measurement rather than the weight and they turned out really well. Thanks.
I’m so glad you loved these pancakes John! Thanks for taking the time to let me know, as well as share the details about your baking soda and your recipe modifications too. I always love hearing what tweaks work — and your freshly ground flours sound so fun!
These looked so delicious! I’ve gone wrong somewhere though as the mixture was very very thick. I added more buttermilk to thin it out but I feel it shouldn’t have been as thick as it was to start.
I followed the recipe using all measuring instruments and instructions via your helpful guide.
The only substitution I made was I left out salt as I used more baking powder. 3 tsp as I had no baking soda.
The texture wasn’t great and they had a very floury flavour. I literally only used 1 cup + 2 tbsp wholemeal flour.
It means a lot that you tried making my recipe, Marnie! That sounds disappointing and not like how these pancakes should turn out, so I’d love to help figure out what happened. In order to do so, I have some questions for you!
Did you make any modifications or substitutions to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section?
Did you use a kitchen scale or measuring cups/spoons to measure all of the ingredients — especially the flour, buttermilk, and Greek yogurt?
What’s the exact brand and product name of the buttermilk that you used?
Can you describe the consistency of your batter in a bit more detail? Was it as thick and dry as cookie dough? A little wetter than that, similar to scone dough? Or even looser and closer to muffin batter?
How much extra buttermilk did you end up adding?
How much batter did you use per pancake?
How thick was each pancake batter “dollop” in your pan? Did you spread out the batter into a circular shape once it was in the pan?
How long did you cook your pancakes on each side? Can you describe their color compared to my 3-photo chart in the blog post above the recipe?
Can you describe the texture of your cooked pancakes? Were they wet and raw, dry and crumbly, or something else?
What would’ve made their flavor better to you? Sweeter, a stronger buttermilk flavor/tang, etc?
I know I just asked a LOT of questions, but I’ll have a much better idea of the culprit and how to fix it once I know your answers to all of them! 🙂
Definitely the lightest pancakes I’ve ever made. Thank you!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these pancakes, Rica! Thanks for taking the time to let me know. It really means a lot!