Easy Pancake Recipes: Your Guide To The Perfect Day

Pancake Day was definitely a highlight of the year as a kid. It wasn’t often that you could gorge yourself on sugar-coated, chocolate stacks and call it dinner. As Pancake Day is just around the corner, I’ve put together a guide for three styles of easy pancake recipes. From Classic Crêpes, American style or healthy Banana & Oat, prepare to be in pancake heaven!

Classic Crêpes

The first of my easy pancake recipes are crepes. Originating from Brittany, France, these thin pancakes can be eaten sweet or savoury with a multitude of toppings or fillings. They remind me of winter as they’re often a warming post-ski treat or Christmas market snack. 

The classic go-to crepe combo, of course, is a sprinkling of sugar juxtaposed with the sharp citrus lemon squeeze. But something that rivals it, in my opinion, would be lashings of smooth melted chocolate upon piles of sliced bananas or strawberries (or both). Anyway, before we get on to the toppings, here’s the full recipe for classic crepes:

Makes 6 crepes
Prep time: 5 mins (+30 minutes resting) 
Cook time: 20 minutes 

Ingredients

140g / 5 oz plain flour
Pinch of salt 
200ml whole milk
100ml water 
2 eggs
25g / 0.8 oz unsalted melted butter (plus a little extra for greasing)

Best served with

Lemon juice and sugar
Chocolate spread and banana/strawberries

Method

Sift the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl, creating a small well in the centre of the dry ingredients. Next, in a separate bowl or jug, add the eggs, milk and water together and whisk. Slowly pour the liquid into the bowl, whisking until the flour is fully incorporated and the batter is smooth. Pour the mixture into a jug and set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes to rest the batter. 

Next, add the melted butter to the mixture and combine. Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium to high heat and lightly grease with some butter.

Pour roughly 2-3 tablespoons of batter into the centre and swirl the pan as you do so, in order for the batter to evenly coat the base of the pan. Place it back onto the heat and cook for a minute or so, until you see little bubbles forming on top and the base is lightly golden. The edges should be easing away from the sides.

Next, flip the pancake using a wide fish slice-like spatula (or if you’re feeling confident, use a bit of wrist action to flip the pancake into the air and hopefully land it back in the pan). Cook the other side for about 30 secs until it’s golden in colour.

Slide the pancake out of the pan and either serve immediately or stack it on a plate, covering it with tin foil to keep the heat in. Continue until all the batter is used up.

Best served with a sprinkle of sugar and a squeeze of lemon juice. Or, if you’re a chocoholic like me, layers of chocolate spread and sliced bananas. For our savoury folk, why not try melting cheese on top while it’s still in the pan to accompany an array of fillings.

American Style Pancake Recipe

#2 of my easy pancake recipes is the American style. The American-style pancakes differ from crepes because a raising agent is used as part of the ingredients. When cooked the agent is activated, causing the batter to rise and result in soft, fluffy pancakes. Plus, the added sugar makes them sweet to taste. Here’s the full recipe for making American-style pancakes.

Makes 12
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

270g / 9.5 oz self-raising flour
1 tsp salt
4 tbsp caster sugar
260 ml  milk
2 large eggs
4 tbsp melted butter (allowed to cool slightly) or olive oil, plus extra for cooking

Best served with 

Maple Syrup
Crisp Bacon
Butter

And/Or, best filled with

Chocolate Chips
Blueberries

Method

Sift the flour, salt and caster sugar into a large bowl. In a separate bowl or jug, lightly whisk together the milk and eggs, then whisk in the melted butter.

Pour the liquid into the flour mixture and, using a fork or whisk, beat until you have a smooth, thick batter. Let it stand for a few minutes.

Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium to high heat and add a little butter, let it melt and drop a ladle of batter into the centre. The batter should be thick, spreading only slightly in the pan.

Cook for a minute or so, until the top of the pancake, begins to bubble, then turn it over and cook until both sides are golden brown and the pancake has risen to about 1cm thick. Place onto a warm plate and cover with a sheet of foil. 

Repeat until you run out of batter. 

To add an extra dash of deliciousness, sprinkle a few chocolate chips or blueberries onto the batter after you’ve initially ladled it into the pan. Then, carefully flip to incorporate the extra filings inside the centre of the pancake.

These pancakes are best served with lashings of maple syrup and strips of crispy streaky bacon (which I think is more Canadian). Anyway, enjoy your North American pancakes!

Banana and Oat Pancake Recipe

Finally, one of my favourite breakfast options! These banana, oat and egg pancakes are a delicious and healthier alternative to the more traditional pancake choices. They’re quick and simple to make and pair perfectly well with some yoghurt and fresh fruit. 

Serves 1, makes 3 small pancakes 
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes

Ingredients 

1 banana, mashed
40g /1.4 oz oats 
1 egg 
1 tsp cinnamon (optional) 

Best served with

Greek yoghurt, honey and fresh fruit
Nuts (optional)

Method

In a small bowl, combine the mashed banana, oats, egg and cinnamon until you have a smooth batter.

Next, lightly grease a non-stick frying pan and place on medium to high heat. 

Using a ladle, divide the mixture into three evenly sized portions as it is spooned into the preheated pan. 

Cook for 1-2 minutes until little bubbles have formed on the top and the base is golden. Use a fish slice to flip each pancake one by one.

TIP: If they’re hard to remove from the base or they get stuck, don’t worry, they may just need a little longer in the pan. Or if it’s too dark in the colour, turn the hob heat down to avoid burning. 

Cook the other side for 30 seconds to 1 minute until it’s golden in colour. 

Serve immediately. I highly recommend a heaped tablespoon or two of Greek yoghurt, a teaspoon of honey and a selection of fresh berries. 

The Easy Pancake Recipes you need

And there you have it, 3 easy pancake recipes, perfect for Pancake Day or any day for that matter! Now the real trouble is deciding which one to try first!

As ever, let me know how you get on and which is your favourite to make, or eat!

Els x

For more baking inspiration or to watch how I make these easy pancakes follow @theardentbakery on Insta.

Or for more recipes, head to the baking section of my blog.