Fun Pancake Recipes for Any Occasion

I love recreating old and making new traditions with my family. As my daughter has gotten older, it’s been fun to include her in these traditions, whether it’s making and decorating holiday cookies, going for neighborhood bike rides, or family Lego-building nights (well, if my husband and daughter invite me!).

One new tradition we’ve landed on is Saturday morning pancakes. My daughter will climb on her step stool and help me mix the batter. My husband will flip the sizzling pancakes. I’ll then smother my pancakes in maple syrup while my husband pours a more reserved amount and my daughter bites into them plain.

We usually stick to the store-bought pancake mix, but when we want to branch out, we like to find new recipes to try. Here are four ways to make your own Saturday (or Mardi Gras, Easter, Mother's Day, Father's Day) pancakes!

1. Make Flying Flapjacks from “Donkey Hodie.” OK, so these flapjacks may not actually fly on their own, but they’re definitely delicious. So delicious, you might see them “fly” off your family’s plates! (Sorry, I couldn’t help it.) This easy and fun recipe is a perfect introduction to measuring, mixing, and pouring to help your child gain confidence in their kitchen skills. Add in blueberries, chocolate chips, or other add-ins to mix it up!
2. Practice STEM learning with this easy pancake recipe. Math and science are an essential part of baking — though we don’t always think of it that way! While you whip up the pancakes, ask your child how many cups of flour, how many eggs, and so on you would need to double the recipe. You can also work in some fractions! Lay out 1/2 and 1/4 measuring cups or spoons. Ask your child to find out how many it takes to equal one whole. When you and your child combine the wet and dry ingredients, you’re really mixing an acid (from the buttermilk) with a base to create a chemical reaction. The result? Bubbles that form to make the pancakes light and fluffy! When you add the pancake batter to the griddle, you’re applying energy (in this case, heat) and that energy changes the liquid batter to a solid. Our buttermilk mixture then becomes pancakes we can eat!
3. Create colorful pancakes. Add a bit of color by adding food coloring to your pancake batter in this recipe! In the video, the family uses red and green for Christmas-themed pancakes, but you can use any colors for any occasion, even Saturday pancakes! (I have a feeling my daughter would insist on purple pancakes.) And the cream cheese icing glaze sounds like the perfect topping — almost as good as my beloved maple syrup.
4. Make flourless banana pancakes. One of our extended family members is gluten-free, so when they’re in town, we try to accommodate. Making banana pancakes is the perfect delicious treat that works for all of us! You only need three ingredients: two bananas, four eggs, and ½ tsp cinnamon. Mash the bananas, then mix in the eggs and cinnamon. Grease a griddle or nonstick pan, then add a spoonful of batter. Cook until small bubbles form on the pancakes (about 3-4 minutes), then flip to cook on the other side. Then enjoy! (This recipe makes about eight pancakes, so you may need to double it!)

Which recipes will your family try?