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How to make the best buttermilk blueberry pancakes. Fluffy and tender blueberry pancakes from scratch make the best weekend breakfast or brunch!
The Quest for the Best Blueberry Pancakes
Lately I’ve been obsessed with blueberry pancakes. I think it started when I was in the hospital after the baby fox was born. I think I mentioned before that I had some complications and had to stay in the hospital for a week. Needless to say, I got to know the hospital cafeteria menu pretty well. One of my favorite things to order was blueberry pancakes for breakfast. After coming home, mornings were rough. Sleep deprived and starving, I went on a quest to try to make the best blueberry pancakes ever.
I tried quite a few blueberry pancake recipes before finding a recipe that made the best buttermilk blueberry pancakes. I wanted fluffy, tender, golden brown buttermilk blueberry pancakes. But I’ve always found pancakes difficult to get right. They are always too heavy, burned on the outside, raw on the inside. Why is it so hard to make good fluffy pancakes?
How to make blueberry pancakes
Here are a few tips to make the best fluffy homemade pancakes:
- Don’t over-mix the batter! This is very important. Mixing the batter for too long will give you tough pancakes, and nobody wants tough pancakes! Just barely mix the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients and don’t worry about the lumps
- When measuring the flour, use the spoon and level method rather than the scoop method. What that means is, spoon the flour into the measuring cup, then use a knife to level it off. This will help keep you from adding too much flour to the batter, which makes the pancakes dense instead of fluffy.
- Be sure your pan is not too hot. I usually keep my pan at medium or just under medium. If your pan is too hot, you will get a burned pancake that is raw in the middle. Pay attention to this and adjust the heat as needed while cooking – you might need to turn it down.
- Use buttermilk! Buttermilk helps make your pancakes fluffy because of how it reacts to the baking soda. It also make your pancakes more tender.
How do you add blueberries to pancakes
The best way to add blueberries to pancakes is to sprinkle them onto the individual pancake batter after you have poured it into that pan, rather than mixing the berries into the bowl of batter. This will allow you to get the right amount of blueberries evenly distributed into each pancake.
Should you use fresh or frozen blueberries in blueberry pancakes?
You can use either fresh or frozen berries in blueberry pancakes. If using frozen, sprinkle the frozen berries right onto the pancake, no need to thaw them.
Can you freeze and reheat pancakes?
Yes! Let your pancakes cool completely in a single layer on a baking sheet fitted with a cooling rack to prevent them from getting soggy. Then individually wrap them in plastic wrap and store in a freezer bag. Or if you have the freezer space, you can leave them on the baking sheet, place the whole thing in the freezer and let them freeze solid. Then individually wrap or place a piece of parchment paper between each pancake, and store in a freezer bag. Pancakes should be used in 1-2 months.
How to reheat frozen pancakes
Here are three ways to reheat frozen pancakes:
How to reheat pancakes in the oven.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and warm up pancakes on a baking sheet covered in foil for about 10 minutes.
How to reheat pancakes in the microwave
. Place up to 6 pancakes in a single layer on a microwave safe plate. Reheat for 20 seconds for 1-2 pancakes, and 60 seconds for 4-6 pancakes.
How to reheat pancakes in the toaster.
Not the best method, but fast. Place one pancake in each slot and toast on the light setting. This method is more likely to dry out your pancakes.
Buttermilk Blueberry Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2 eggs large
- 1 and 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract optional
- 3 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup blueberries fresh or frozen
Instructions
- Heat a large frying pan over medium-low to medium heat . Grease the pan with oil or butter. When it's hot enough, a drop of water will skitter across the surface, evaporating immediately.
- whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and sugar, set aside.
- Whisk together the eggs, buttermilk and vanilla until light and foamy. Whisk in the melted butter.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring just to combine. Don't over mix, a few lumps are fine.
- Pour the batter in 1/4 cupfuls onto prepared pan. sprinkle 1-2 tablespoons of berries on top.
- Cook the pancakes until bubbles start to form on top and the sides start to set, 2-3 minutes. Flip and cook for another 2 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Serve right away, or keep on a baking sheet fitted with a cooling rack in a 200 degree oven. Serve with more blueberries, butter and maple syrup.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I like to serve my pancakes with bacon on the side – nothing like a little sweet and savory breakfast! Be sure to check out my favorite way to make bacon!
My boys devoured these. Said they didn’t need syrup or any other topping b/c they’re so good. 🙂
Yay, so happy to hear that Dina!
Fluffy and a real crowd pleaser at our house. I can’t wait to polish off the rest of the batch after I write this comment. Hands down, best buttermilk pancakes I have ever had. I can’t believe I made them, they are so good!
Yay, I’m so happy to hear that!
Wonderful recipe, Meghan. Took the liberty of tweaking to deal with missing and expiring ingredients. What ended up was still delicious, thanks to you. Some readers may find it interesting, probably not for most.
Used low-fat buttermilk, 2-to-1 whole wheat to regular flour, olive oil instead of butter, and no sugar or vanilla. While this implies that the result would be as heavy as a weapon, they came out really good, quite light (!), and with the slightest bit of a corn-mealy texture that I found really appealing. Most will want maple syrup with these, but good to remember that the buttermilk alone has 4 teaspoons of sugar in it naturally.
So happy they turned out great! Thanks for sharing the substitutions!
Hi Meghan, I have memorized this recipe and make it once a week while we are quarantined. When strawberries were in season, I used then instead of blueberries. But blueberries are in season now so I am using fresh ones. It is such a great recipe, I use bananas when berries are not in season. Thank you for a perfect recipe👌.
This has become my go to pancake recipe, the pancakes are light and fluffy, don’t feel heavy in my stomach. Simply delicious and easy to make.
Yay, that makes me so happy!
These ARE the best blueberry pancakes I’ve ever made. Easy and yummy. Makes a lot, so I halved the recipe, and we had plenty for two people.
Yay! So happy you loved them Barb!
Thank you for sharing this lovely recipe, which was quick and easy to make with excellent results. The pancakes tasted great, and were light, tender and fluffy. The flavor of the pancake was so good, even my pancake hating hubby enjoyed them. BK
Oh yay! I am so glad to hear that! Thank you BK!
Delicious recipe. My kids love. Have also used this recipe (with yogurt instead of buttermilk) to make delicious waffles. Thanks Meghan.
Yay! So glad to hear that Nicola!
crunchy !
YUMMY!!!
So glad you loved them Andy!
Thanks Meghan!
Meghan, I made these twice for my wife and her sister and two daughters, and they were amazing. I made a 1 and 1/2 recipe and it was perfect for us 5. A smash hit! Thank you so much for the deliciousness!
Hi Randy – Yay, I am so happy to hear that! So glad you and your family loved them!
Hello Meghan,
While I haven’t made your buttermilk blueberry pancakes, I want to for our traditional holiday pancake breakfast. Well we have 3 extra people to feed, can I increase the recipe by half? 3 eggs , 2 and 1.4 cup buttermilk, etc. Thanks!
Hi Randy – I haven’t tried it but I think it should be fine! You could also just double the recipe and if you have leftovers you can freeze them.
Hey Meghan,
WOW!! These are amazing. I’ve tried various pancake recips looking for the fluffy texture and this is the only one that will “stick” with me ;o)
I must admit that I substituted kefir for buttermilk since buttermilk is the only thing they did not have at the supermarket this morning! It was delicious!!
I saw a couple other interesting recipes on your site and will definitely come back and try them out.
Thanks for sharing!
Hi Elly – Yay, so glad you loved them! I can’t wait to hear what you think if the other recipes!
I’m not usually a pancake person, but these pancakes were amazing! Thank you for the recipe. I will definitely be making these again!
Yay! So happy to hear that Tracy!
These truly look like the perfect blueberry pancakes!
These pancakes are going to happen this weekend at our house! Yum!
Yay! I hope you love them!
I love buttermilk pancakes! Thank you for sharing.
I love a good breakfast like this! And that stack of blueberry pancakes looks sooo good.
Thanks Linda! Nothing beats a stack of blueberry pancakes on the weekend!
These look like the perfect pancakes! I hardly ever take the time to make a good breakfast. Now you’ve got me craving pancakes. 🙂
Thanks Natasha! I’m a big fan of breakfast!
Fantastic recipe for blueberry pancakes! Very fluffy and delicious. Could use any kind of berry’s or just plain. Don’t over mix the matter and don’t rush cooking them. Use medium heat and don’t turn them too soon. They are worth the wait. My guests raved about them. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Thank you Janice, so glad you love them!