Fall is here – it’s time to serve your family some homemade fluffy pumpkin pancakes for breakfast. These pancakes are quick to whip up and you can serve them with any topping you like – even ice cream, I won’t tell!
Pumpkin pancakes are the BEST way to celebrate those crisp fall mornings. At least my family thinks it is 😉
Now let me let you in on a secret… Yes, I serve my family fluffy homemade pancakes for breakfast on early mid-week mornings. But I don’t get up at silly o’clock to whip them up. Instead I make a tripe batch on Saturday and freeze the leftovers for later – busy morning win right there!
Ingredients you’ll need
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Brown sugar: You can replace the brown sugar with white sugar if that’s all you have. The taste will be a little different but still delicious.
- Oil: Use melted butter in place of the oil if you prefer! It will give a richer taste, but I usually go for the ease of the oil.
- Milk: Feel free to use buttermilk in place of the milk if you prefer.
- Pumpkin: Make sure to use high quality canned pumpkin product. Lower quality ones tend to be watery and will alter the consistency of the batter.
Step by step photos
Recipe tips
- Do NOT overmix the batter! Lumpy I perfectly fine. Baked goods with pumpkin tend to come out heavier, so it’s very important to make sure the batter only gets stirred as much as necessary.
- If the batter feels too runny (can happen if your eggs are very large), add a few tablespoons of flour. Conversely, if your batter feels very thick, add a few more tablespoons of milk. It helps to cook one pancake before making any adjustments – that way you can see if the batter is actually fine or if you do need to alter it a little.
- Do not stack the pancakes before serving, or they’ll become soggy. Keep them on a wire rack. It’s fine to stack them on the plate for serving, as long as they get eaten right away.
- For the best taste and texture, I recommend letting the pancakes cool for 5 minutes before serving. Then, they should be eaten pretty quickly.
Freezer instructions
Yes, you can! They are the perfect make-ahead breakfast.
Make the pancakes as instructed. Once you remove them from the skillet, immediately place them on a cooling rack.
Pack them up for the freezer
Once the pancakes have completely cooled down, place them into small freezer bags individually.
Alternatively, place them in a single layer on a lined baking sheet and freeze, covered, until solid before transferring stacks of pancakes to large freezer bags.
OR place a sheet of parchment paper between each pancake and stack them.
Wrap the stack very well in aluminum foil or place the pancakes inside a large freezer container.
How to reheat them
To reheat the pancakes in a microwave, place the frozen pancakes on a microwave-safe plate. Cook uncovered on high for 1-2 minutes or until steaming hot and heated all the way through to the middle.
To reheat in an oven, place frozen pancakes in a single layer on a cookie sheet and cover with foil.
Alternatively, bake them covered with foil on a lined cookie sheet for 10-12 minutes at 375°F in your preheated oven for 8-10 minutes.
Serving suggestions
We really like these with a little cream cheese “frosting” (just cream cheese and maple syrup stirred together), chopped nuts and more syrup.
They’re also delicious with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or so I’ve been told 😉
If I want to go all out on the fall celebration, I’ll also make a batch of cinnamon apples on the side. For a more savory twist, try some turkey bacon or turkey breakfast sausage!
More pumpkin breakfast recipes
PS If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page? I always appreciate your feedback! You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram. Sign up for my email list, too!
Fluffy Pumpkin Pancakes
Recipe details
Equipment
- Measuring Jug
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¼ cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar this yields lightly sweet pancakes; double for a sweeter taste
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice or more for a strong pumpkin spice taste
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups milk
- 1 cup pumpkin puree NOT 1 CAN!
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons oil plus extra for cooking
Instructions
- Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Whisk all wet ingredients together in a medium bowl or measuring jug.
- Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. DO NOT OVERMIX! Do NOT mix with a whisk, ONLY with a wooden spoon or spatula!! DO NOT stir more than approximately 10 times!! Or you will end up with dense and gummy pancakes!!
- Heat a griddle or skillet over medium-high heat. Brush on a little oil or spray with cooking spray.
- Ladle on about ¼ cup of batter per pancake and cook until bubbles form on top of the batter, around 3 minutes. Flip and cook until browned on the bottom as well, another 2 minutes or so.
- Serve immediately with maple syrup, chopped pecans or whatever you like. Alternatively, follow the freezer instructions in the post.
Notes
Nutrition
More recipe information
P.S: Want more pumpkin recipes? Check out our collection of canned pumpkin recipes!
Liz says
Great recipe! I used butter and 1/4 c brown sugar only (I cut and substitute sugar in all recipes) and added 2 tsp vanilla for an extra pop of flavor. Yummy!
Nora says
I’m so glad to hear, Liz!
Nick says
Super easy and delicious!
Nora says
I’m so glad, Nick!
Marisol says
First time making this and it was delicious. I submitted milk for buttermilk, butter to cook them. I also made a glaze to coat them instead of maple syrup. I would def make this again.
Thank you for easy to follow recipe.
Saralane says
These are the best pumpkin pancakes we have ever eaten! We made these this morning for a taste of fall on the coldest morning we’ve had so far this fall. My husband and daughter both said they taste like pumpkin roll, which is their favorite fall dessert. I made the cream cheese and maple syrup to spread on the cakes with more syrup to drizzle and was surprised that they really Does She like pumpkin roll! We are making more to freeze for holiday breakfasts. Wonderful recipe!!!
Libby says
I added in crisp bacon pieces to the batter. An excellent upgrade I must say, my husband is enjoying his second helping. Thank you for the easy to follow recipe.
LH
Stephanie Pazoles says
These were very good! Nice and fluffy and good tasting. I used all brown sugar in stead of the granulated.
Callie says
I made these into waffles but I added my own spice to it. Pumpkin spice, nutmeg, and allspice in addition to cinnamon. Much more flavor!
Alisa O says
These are my favorite pancakes but the recipe is almost impossible to read. I delete the pop-up video (useless and annoying…I know how to stir batter) but then ads appear at the bottom of the pin and the scrolling freezes.🤬
Nora Rusev says
Alisa, I’m glad you like the pancakes, but I’m so sorry you’re having trouble reading the recipe. I’m working on updating the recipes on my site to be more user friendly, but it’s taking me some time (I have to do it one by one, and I’m a one woman show with three kids over here 🙈). Re: the video… As a former home-ec teacher, I can tell you that you’re the exception for knowing how to stir batter 😉 even if you don’t need the video, many novice cooks do, and I’m trying to make my site accessible to cooks in every walk of life, with every skill level. I hope you understand! (The freezing and ads at the bottom should NOT be happening though, and I’ll look into that ASAP.)
Ruthann Doutlick says
This is my three-year-old sons favorite recipe. He loves to cook, loves to help in the kitchen, and loves pancakes. These are the fluffiest pancakes ever! It makes a ton so we can make them and eat them out of the freezer for the next week.
Barbara says
Delicious but I used just brown sugar and half cup of oatmeal and one and half cups of flour. Putting this recipe in my recipe book!
Nora Rusev says
Barbara, I love the changes you made! Sounds delicious. Thanks for coming back to share, I appreciate it!
Jillian says
These pancakes were easy and they taste great. My kids LOVED them! I used Libby’s pure pumpkin and added a little more milk at the end because the batter was very thick. Will definitely be making these again!
Nora Rusev says
I’m so glad, Jillian! Thank you for taking the time to leave a review, I appreciate it so very much.
Mariah says
Made this this morning and my family LOVED it! We had some leftover pumpkin purée from thanksgiving baking and this was the perfect use for it!
Nora Rusev says
I’m so glad, Mariah! Thanks for taking the time to leave a review, I appreciate it very much.
Marlene says
Excellent…I used 1c white flour & 1c whole wheat. Thank you for the recipe & technique detail.
Stacy says
We made this today and loved them! Really great recipe. Thank you!
Kimberly says
Made these with gluten free flour and they were fluffy and delicious!
Mandi says
I’ve made this recipe twice now, the first time the center of the pancakes came out pretty dense, but the second time I omitted the oil and they came out perfect! The pumpkin does enough to create moisture on its own!
Nora says
I’m so glad your pancakes turned out even better with your little tweak, Mandi! I’ve never had a dense middle, but I do cook them a little longer than I probably would regular pancakes. Thanks for coming back to leave a review – I appreciate your time.
Adrianna says
Great instructions on your recipe. I followed it to a t and they were delicious!! They were fluffy and pumpkin tasting. I was hesitant to only stir the dry and wet ingredients only 10 times but I’m glad I did because they turned out perfectly!
Nora says
I’m so happy to hear the pancakes turned out well for you, Adrianna! And thanks for trusting my instructions, I know it isn’t easy – sometimes I struggle with following my own recipes 😉
Monica says
These pumpkin pancakes are the best ones I have made, and I have tried many different recipes! Delicious, just enough pumpkin and spices, perfectly moist, and just the right sweetness. Very good job with this recipe!
Nora says
I’m glad the pumpkins turned out so well for you, Monica!
Linda F says
I followed the recipe exactly also, including the mixing instructions. I did have white lumps and a huge amount of flour in the bottom of the bowl. They tasted good, but I used 2 T of pumpkin pie spice. They were not gummy or bad, but I wouldn’t have called them fluffy either. I would call them hearty, as they were thick or tall pancakes. When I try the recipe next time, I think I will stop stirring at 12 times, just to get the flour off the bottom of the bowl.
Nora says
Linda – thank you so much for your feedback! Glad they tasted good. I guess it’s hard to make pancakes come out really, really fluffy with canned pumpkin, but a tall and hearty pancake sounds amazing, too 😉
Nikki G says
If I was using almond milk, do you think it would be the same amount? Any ideas?? Thanks! I look forward to trying these!!
Nora says
Hi Nikki, I have never tried these with almond milk, so I can’t guarantee it will be the same. BUT I have made pancakes in general with nut milk or coconut milk before, and they always turned out great. If you keep the other ingredients the same, I would try using the same amount. Let me know how it goes!
Keiana says
These were amazing!! Very fluffy!!
Nora says
So glad to read this, Keiana! Thank you so much for coming back to leave a review for the pancakes, I appreciate your time.
Christina says
I followed the recipe precisely, but they had the consistency of play doh 🙁 I don’t know what I did wrong.
Nora says
Hi Christina, sorry the pancakes didn’t work out for you. I make these all the time during fall, and it’s really, REALLY important to not overmix the batter. Stirring no more than 10 times! It doesn’t matter if it looks lumpy and gross, any recipe for pancakes, waffles, muffins or bread that contains pumpkin turns bad really fast if stirred too much.
I just did a quick search on Pinterest and the ingredients are pretty much the same as most other pumpkin pancake recipes out there. I cannot stress this enough – if this batter is mixed too much, the pancakes will turn out gummy, but that’s just the nature of pumpkin in batters. So if you try them again, make sure you keep stirring to an absolute minimum, and please do NOT combined the wet and dry ingredients with a whisk!! Only with a wooden spoon or a spatula.
Nevertheless, I made them this morning to try a few tweaks after seeing your comment, and I increased the spices, sugar and baking powder a little; plus I added a note about the liquid content in the recipe. Hope that helps!
Xochitl says
Wow I just made these pancakes and they definitely were fluffy and delicious. I made the half recipe. Will definitely be making them in the future. Thanks for the recipe.
Nora says
Very happy you liked them! Thank you so much for rating the recipe – I appreciate it so much.
Medha says
I go crazy for pumpkin in general, but never really for breakfast! I’ve just never tried pumpkin frnech toast, or waffles, or pancakes, or even a PSL. It’s been all about the cookies/brownies/breads/cakes for me, up until now. These pancakes look delicious! I’m imagining them with maple syrup, pumpkin butter, and pecans 🙂 Incredible!
Liz says
I still have your pumpkin waffle recipe stowed away for the fall! I will have to add this one!
Nora says
Oh yes, Liz! I know you liked the pumpkin waffles, so I’m sure you’ll love the pancakes just as much as we do!