Fluffy, moist Lemon Blueberry Pancakes made with Greek yogurt for a scrumptious breakfast the whole family will love! Bursting with lemon flavor and juicy fresh blueberries, these are the ultimate crowd-pleasing summer brunch. They freeze and reheat great. Toddler-approved!
The breakfast gods are calling. We better pick up the phone!!
These lemon blueberry pancakes are everything I ever wanted at 7am when my toddler is on his third breakfast and I'm on my third cup of coffee.
Sweet, pillowy insides bursting with bright citrusy notes lemon and bejeweled with sweet blueberries. And they're easy!
We love to rotate between these and my Fluffy Whole Grain Pancakes, Orange Pancakes with Maple Tahini Syrup, or Fluffy Vegan Pancakes on weekends! What's your fave?
The low down on ingredients
- Flour: I like all purpose flour here to make them extra fluffy. You could also use whole wheat pastry flour. If you prefer whole wheat, I'd do half and half (I tested these that way and got the seal of approval).
- Milk: I use unsweetened vanilla almond, but any milk you have on hand is great.
- Lemon: Like my Lemon Blueberry Muffins, fresh lemon juice and zest make the brightest, tastiest muffins. I use the zest of a large lemon and measure out 2 tbsp juice.
- Egg: This adds fluff, fat, and moisture.
- Maple syrup: To naturally sweetened the batter. You can also use regular sugar.
- Oil: A splash of neutral oil to add moisture to the batter. Melted coconut oil also works.
- Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract for extra delicious flavor.
- Blueberries: I love fresh blueberries since the color doesn't bleed, but you can use frozen and simply toss with a bit of flour.
- Salt: Key to round of the flavor.
- Baking powder: For rise, of course!
So you want to substitute...
I got answers!
- Make it vegan: Use a flax egg and thick non-dairy yogurt.
- Make it gluten free: Use gluten free 1:1 all purpose baking flour.
- Add coconut: I love adding ¼ cup shredded unsqeetened coconut for extra pizazz
- Make blueberry syrup: Warm ½ cup blueberries with 2 tbsp maple syrup and a squeeze of lemon juice for a delicious syrup.
- Use wild blueberries: Extra antioxidant power!
Let's make it!
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
- In a liquid measuring cup, whisk wet ingredients (milk, lemon juice and zest, yogurt, oil, egg, maple syrup and vanilla).
- Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix with a wooden spoon just until combined.
- Warm a pat of butter or oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add ¼ cup of batter to skillet, repeating as needed. Top each pancake with 4-5 blueberries. Cook for 2-3 minutes per side, flipping once bubbles start to form and cooking 1-2 minutes or until golden. Turn down the heat if pancakes are cooking too fast.
The key to light and fluffy pancakes
Man, have I learned about fluff factor. A hot pan and a thick batter are non-negotiable!
- THICK batter. I always use a higher ratio of flour to liquid for thick and fluffy pancakes.
- Not over-mixing the batter. Lumps are your friend! Over-mixing means overworking the wheat protein (gluten) which leads to dense, chewy pancakes. Gently fold the batter with a wooden spoon, knowing some streaks of flour are totally fine.
- All purpose flour: I know I usually go whole wheat, but trust me when I say I far preferred the flavor and texture of all purpose flour here. Light and fluffy is the name of the game!
- A hot skillet. When you put a drop of water on the skillet, it should sizzle. You want the pan hot enough that you'll get that nice browning but not so hot that the exterior burns. I like just below medium or medium low heat. You can oil or butter the pan if it's not non-stick.
- Baking powder. You've gotta have a trusty leavening agent!
Store for later!
Pancakes reheat and freeze amazingly well!
Make a batch on Sunday and store them in the refrigerator for up to 5 days in an air-tight container for easy, healthy breakfasts all week.
To reheat, pop them in the toaster or microwave for 20-30 seconds to warm up before serving.
To freeze, lay them in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and place in the freezer. Once frozen, transfer to a baggie and store for up to two months. (Freezing flat prevents them from sticking together once frozen.)
I mean can every meal be lemon blueberry pancakes??
PrintFluffy Lemon Blueberry Pancakes (made with yogurt!)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 9 pancakes 1x
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Super fluffy and moist Lemon Blueberry Pancakes made with yogurt for a scrumptious breakfast the whole family will love! Bursting with lemon flavor and juicy blueberries, these are the ultimate crowd-pleasing brunch. They freeze and reheat great. Kid-approved!
Ingredients
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ⅔ cup milk (I used unsweetened vanilla almond)
- 1 lemon, zested and juiced (about 2 tbsp juice)*
- ¼ cup Greek yogurt (I used plain 2%)
- 1 tbsp oil (I used avocado oil)
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup fresh blueberries
- Optional: ½ tsp lemon extract for more lemon flavor
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
- In a liquid measuring cup, add almond milk, lemon juice, zest, yogurt, oil, egg, maple syrup and vanilla extract. Whisk until well combined.
- Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix with a wooden spoon just until combined, being careful not to over-mix the batter. Lumps are good!
- Warm a pat of butter or oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add ¼ cup of batter to skillet, repeating as needed. Top each pancake with 4-5 blueberries. Cook for 2-3 minutes per side, flipping once bubbles start to form and cooking 1-2 minutes or until golden. Turn down the heat if pancakes are cooking too fast.
- Devour warm with a drizzle of pure maple syrup and a giant cup of coffee!
Notes
For extra lemon flavor, you can use the zest of 2 lemons.
GLUTEN FREE: Use my favorite gluten free baking flour!
Kat @balancedhawaiieats says
Family loved these pancakes. They don't even need butter or syrup on top. My son said they taste like lemon blueberry cookies! We used the juice and zest of 1 lemon and it gave a light lemon flavor. Next time I will use 4 tbsp total to really kick up the lemon taste. Also added a couple tbsp of flax seeds bc why not when you can't when taste them!
Alexis Joseph, MS, RD says
The ultimate compliment, thank you so much Kat!!
Sarah says
Oh my word this was a flavor explosion in the mouth! So so delicious and flavorful! The only thing I would change is doubling the recipe for our family of 3 who devoured these pancakes!
Alexis Joseph says
Best news ever! Heck yes to a double recipe 🙂 thanks a ton for your sweet comment and review, Sarah!
rulla risto says
Hello,
Loved the pancakes! Just wondering why the eggs were left out of the instructions?
Rulla
Alexis says
Amazing! That was an error on my part--thanks for catching. Updated!
rulla risto says
Hello,
Loved the pancakes! Just wondering why the eggs were left out of the instructions? A
Rulla
Marissa Potente says
These pancakes had a great lemon flavor and were nice a fluffy! Will definitely be adding them to my Sunday pancake rotation.
Alexis says
Yayyy thanks so much, Marissa! Such a good Sunday treat 🙂
Alexis says
Yayyy thanks, Emily!
Megan says
I need to try these! Did you use plain Greek yogurt (vs. vanilla)?
Alexis says
I used plain but plain or vanilla is great!
Dylan says
These pancakes are so good, and such summery flavors! Major yum!
Alexis says
I wish we could eat a stack together!