Cakey Cinnamon Pancakes

These cakey cinnamon pancakes are cakey with a hint of cinnamon–possibly the fluffiest and thickest you’ll ever have. Quick to throw together, these use just 6 simple ingredients like flour, milk, egg and butter!

As you can guess from my blog name, I am a huge fan of breakfast food–but especially pancakes. For me, the thicker and fluffier the pancake, the better! This recipe comes from my friend Shelby and it’s one of the fluffiest I’ve ever had. Lightly scented with cinnamon, these pancakes are the perfect base for fruit, maple syrup, Nutella, peanut butter, or your favorite topping. These pancakes were quite popular in my best pancake recipe comparison!

What makes these pancakes so fluffy?

While most pancake recipes use granulated sugar, these pancakes use powdered sugar. Because powdered sugar contains cornstarch, this helps soften the proteins in the all-purpose flour to create a cakier, softer texture. (Note: organic powdered sugar typically contains tapioca starch, not cornstarch. But in this recipe, either works.) The sweetness of powdered sugar is somewhat diluted by the cornstarch, which helps keep these pancakes not too sweet.

These pancakes don’t require lumps in the batter (my usual preferred texture) because the batter itself is so thick and stiff. It will barely move in the pan except to allow sluggish bubbles to pop through the surface of the pancakes. This will yield tall, cakey pancakes!

Ingredients to make these fluffy pancakes

These pancakes are quite flexible–you can use any kind of milk or flour. Just make sure to let the batter sit for a few minutes before cooking to allow the liquid to absorb into the flour and thicken the batter.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• All-purpose flour – you can also use white whole wheat, half whole wheat and half AP, spelt flour, or a gluten-free 1:1 flour.
• Powdered sugar – either regular or organic works here.
• Baking powder
• Cinnamon
• Milk of choice – whole, skim, almond, oat, soy or anything else you like works! I like to microwave mine for 10-15 seconds to take the chill off.
• Large eggs – room temperature is best for emulsifying into the batter. You can soak the eggs in hot water for a few minutes to bring them to temperature.
• Butter – either salted or unsalted works. If using unsalted, I like to add a little pinch of salt.

How to make these pancakes

To make these pancakes, you’ll simply whisk all the dry ingredients together. I typically add the wet ingredients (milk and egg first) directly into the dry ingredients–no need for a separate bowl! It’s best to make sure all ingredients are room temperature.

Why are room temperature ingredients important? One common issue that can happen with pancake batter is adding warm melted butter into a cold batter (with cold milk and eggs). The butter will seize and form greasy lumps, refusing to incorporate into the batter. To remedy this, make sure all ingredients are room temperature! You can do this quickly by microwaving the milk for 10-15 seconds and soaking the eggs in hot water for a few minutes if you forgot to take them out of the fridge.

Once the milk mixture is almost incorporated into the flour mixture (try not to overmix to avoid chewy pancakes), add in the butter and stir until fully incorporated. Small lumps in the batter are great–these will help keep the pancakes fluffy!

Let the batter rest while you preheat a large skillet over medium heat. I don’t prescribe to the notion that the first pancake is always bad–as long as your pan is sufficiently hot and well-greased, it should turn out well! You can use a little oil or butter to grease your pan before using a quarter measuring cup to pour batter into the pan. A few tips:

• The more fat you use, the crispier the edge of the pancake will be.
• If you want a smooth, golden brown surface, use a paper towel to wipe out most of the fat from the pan, leaving just a smooth, thin layer of oil before adding the batter to the pan.
• If you want a speckled appearance and like more crispy edges, leave the melted butter/oil in the pan when you pour the batter into the pan.

Cook for 2-3 minutes on the first side until you see a number of bubbles rising to the surface. Flip and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes on the other side, or until golden brown. Lower to medium-low heat if the surface of the pancake is browning too fast. Repeat with the remaining batter.

Leftover pancakes are also great reheated! I keep mine in an airtight container in the fridge. Throwing them in a toaster oven or reheating on the stovetop are both great ways to reheat and revive those crispy edges.

Looking for more breakfast recipes? Give these a try!

• Best Pancakes: A Comparison
• Best Buttermilk Pancakes
• Best Buttermilk Waffle Bake Off
• Best Yeasted Waffle Bake Off
• Best Glazed Yeast Donut Fry Off
• Best Blueberry Muffin Bake Off

Happy baking! If you give this recipe a try, please leave a star rating below to help others discover this recipe!