Perfect Pancake Muffins Recipe
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These Pancake Muffins are fluffy, delicious, and taste just like your favorite pancakes — but baked as muffins for easy grab-and-go breakfasts! Made with simple pantry ingredients and ready in under 30 minutes, they’re perfect for busy mornings or weekend brunch.
The light, fluffy texture and classic buttermilk pancake flavor make these pancake muffins a family favorite! This easy recipe turns traditional pancake batter into portable, kid-friendly muffins that are great for busy mornings or weekend brunch. Whether you serve them plain or with maple syrup, these pancake muffins are sure to become a favorite breakfast.
Why You’ll Love This Pancake Muffins Recipe
- Quick & Easy: Ready in under 30 minutes with simple pantry staples.
- Kid-Approved: Handheld muffins are a fun breakfast for little ones.
- Make-Ahead Friendly: Perfect for meal prep for easy weekday breakfasts.
- Portable: Great for on-the-go breakfasts, school lunches, or weekend brunch.
Ingredients
Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full listing of ingredients, instructions, notes, and estimated nutritional information.
- All-Purpose Flour: You can also use a blend of whole wheat and white flour if you like.
- Granulated Sugar: Adds a bit of sweetness and gives the muffins structure as they bake.
- Baking Powder: Acts as a leavener, helping the muffins rise.
- Baking Soda: Also helps the muffins rise, since this recipe uses buttermilk.
- Salt
- Buttermilk: If none on hand, make this 2-ingredient homemade buttermilk.
- Egg
- Butter: Melted butter. Can use cooking oil if you like.
- Maple Syrup: Warmed, for serving. Or use your favorite pancake syrup.
Optional Mix-Ins
- Chocolate Chips
- Blueberries, Diced Strawberries, Raspberries, or Chopped Peaches
- Lemon Zest
- Nuts: Chopped nuts such as pecans, walnuts, or almonds.
- Cinnamon
How to Make Perfect Pancake Muffins
This easy muffin recipe uses simple ingredients and no special equipment.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Preheat and prep: Set oven to 350º F. Spray a mini-muffin pan with nonstick baking spray or use muffin liners, and set aside.
- Mix the dry ingredients: Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
- Mix the wet ingredients: In a separate bowl, mix together buttermilk, egg, and melted butter.
- Combine: Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to just combine. Don’t overmix. Allow the batter to rest for about 3 minutes.
- Add any mix-ins (optional): Gently fold in chocolate chips, chopped nuts, or berries if using.
- Scoop into muffin tin: Scoop the pancake batter with a cookie scoop to evenly divide into muffin cups, filling each about 1/2 full.
- Bake: Bake for 13-15 minutes until slightly golden on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Serve: Serve them with warmed maple syrup for dipping.
Recipe Success Tips
- Don’t Overmix: Stir just until combined to keep muffins fluffy.
- Use Room Temperature Ingredients: Helps the batter mix evenly.
- Test for Doneness: A toothpick should come out clean or with only a few moist crumbs.
- Make Ahead: Bake a batch on the weekend for easy weekday breakfasts.
Storage Tips
- Store: Keep in an airtight container at room temperature overnight or refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- Freeze: Cool completely, wrap individually, and store in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight, then heat in oven or microwave.
- Reheat: Microwave 15–20 seconds or warm in a toaster oven.
- Make-Ahead: Bake ahead and freeze; Store the batter in the fridge for up to 4 days in an airtight container, then bake as directed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Homemade pancake batter, like in this recipe, can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Yes – many optional mix-ins, such as chocolate chips, fruit, and nuts, can be added.
Yes – substitute with your favorite 1:1 gluten-free flour blend.
More Favorite Breakfast Ideas
Why These Pancake Muffins are a Breakfast Star
Fluffy and sweet, these pancake muffins bring all the comfort of classic pancakes in a grab-and-go muffin. Easy to make, freezer-friendly, and endlessly customizable — they’re great for busy mornings and weekend brunch.
Perfect Pancake Muffins Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour, (spoon + level)
- 3 tablespoons (36 g) granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (6 g) baking powder
- 1 teaspoon (4 g) baking soda
- pinch (0.4 g) kosher salt
- 2 cups (490 g) buttermilk
- 1 (50 g) egg
- 1/4 cup (56.75 g) melted butter
- maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350º F. Spray a mini-muffin pan with nonstick baking spray or use muffin liners and set aside.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Mix the wet ingredients: buttermilk, egg, and melted butter in a medium mixing bowl. Pour the buttermilk mixture slowly into the flour mixture, stirring to combine as you pour. Allow the batter to rest for about 3 minutes.
- Scoop pancake batter and fill each indention of mini muffin pan about 1/2 full. Bake for 13-15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Serve with warmed maple syrup for dipping.
Notes
- Store: Keep in an airtight container at room temperature overnight or refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- Freeze: Cool completely, wrap individually, and store in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight, then heat in oven or microwave.
- Reheat: Microwave 15–20 seconds or warm in a toaster oven.
- Make-Ahead: Bake ahead and freeze; Store the batter in the fridge for up to 4 days in an airtight container, then bake as directed.
- Chocolate Chips: I like to use mini-chocolate chips. I think they are sized perfectly for this recipe.
- Blueberries, Blackberries, Diced Strawberries, Chopped Peaches
- Lemon Zest
- Chopped Nuts
- Cinnamon
- Bacon: Add chopped cooked bacon
- Don’t Overmix: Stir just until combined to keep muffins fluffy.
- Use Room Temperature Ingredients: Helps the batter mix evenly.
- Test for Doneness: A toothpick should come out clean or with only a few moist crumbs.
- Make Ahead: Bake a batch on the weekend for easy weekday breakfasts.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
Made these today kids loved them I put chocolate chips in mine still taste great thou
Can Splenda or something similar be used instead of sugar .watching carbs and sugar intake with my son and if I will be giving carbs I’d like to limit the sugar
If I want to add choc chips to recipe, is it better to add in individual cups or to whole batter before putting it in muffin tin?
Can I replace butter with olive oil or canola oil for your pancake muffins?
Thank you
I just made these for my husband’s economics class. They’re learning about maple syrup cartels and will eat the pancake muffins with real maple syrup at the end of class. The pancake muffins turned out great! My husband said that maybe they could use a little more salt, though. I placed the batter in a ziplock bag and cut the corner and used it like a pastry bag to fill the little muffin cups. So much less mess! I actually had batter left over after all the muffin cups were filled, so I made tiny pancakes on a crepe pan. My children were jealous they didn’t get any, so we will make these again! Thank you!
Can I make these the night before for a brunch since I will need several batches? Or are they best the day of?
You can definitely make them the night before, Leslie. You can reheat them right before serving if you wish.
Do you know what the nutritional value is for these? Counting calories here! Lol
Thanks ☺
If you download an app called my fitness pall it lets you input a recipe and then it asks how many people it will serve. It then gives you the calorie count for the recipe on a per serving basis 🙂 Hope this helps 🙂
Can you post more GlutenFree recipes— please. Thank you !
Will do! Thank so much, Patsy! xo
Good day, I’m so happy I came across your awesome site. I tried these this morning for my son’s and they were a big hit! Even my husband gobbled them up. I made mine a little bigger and yielded 24. School times right around the corner so these will be made and frozen ahead of time. Thanks again, Jerene. M
Not only do they taste very good, it is such a great idea too. I am going to freeze them, having wolfed two down already!!
Makes everything much easier when you have them already to just heat for a few seconds….then wolf down!!!!!
Thanks.
We didn’t have buttermilk, just regular milk, but these still tasted delicious. We like to serve them with a design pressed in with a cookie cutter or cut the top off and then top with butter and pour syrup on, so it gets absorbed right into the muffin. Every bite is scrumptious!