Valentine's Day Pancakes Recipe
There's no better way to tell someone you love them than by making some fluffy pancakes. If you're looking to impress your partner, kids, or someone else on Valentine's Day, then these heart-shaped pancakes are the perfect way to kickstart the day. Recipe developer Catherine Brookes of Blue Sky Eating came up with this yummy pancake recipe and we love that you make the batter from scratch instead of purchasing it from a store. "I find that homemade pancakes have a richer, fresher taste, especially when using buttermilk," Brookes shares.
The fact that you can shape pancakes into a heart is another major win, and it's easy to do if you have heart-shaped cookie cutters on hand. "These are such a fun twist on classic buttermilk pancakes!" Brookes raves. "Using a cookie cutter is super easy to create perfect heart shapes and there's always the option to add extras into the mix, such as chocolate chips or blueberries."
Keep reading to find out how to make these sweet and fluffy pancakes.
Gather the ingredients for Valentine's Day pancakes
Pancakes are surprisingly easy to make, and you only need a handful of ingredients. Start with some all-purpose flour and baking soda. Then, be sure you have salt and sugar on-hand. Double-check to see what you may have at home versus what you need to buy at the store.
You'll also need buttermilk, eggs, butter, and vanilla extract. Lastly, be sure to pick up vegetable or canola oil.
Whisk together the wet and dry ingredients
Ready to start? First, take out a large mixing bowl and add in your dry ingredients. This includes flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Whisk them together to combine.
Using a separate bowl, it's time to mix the wet ingredients. It's common practice to mix the wet and the dry ingredients separately before combining them. Pour in the buttermilk, then crack the egg into the bowl. Add in the melted butter and vanilla extract. Give everything a few good stirs to mix it together.
Combine the wet and dry ingredients and prep your pan
After mixing the wet and dry ingredients separately, fold the wet and the dry ingredients together until just combined. It's okay if you have a few lumps in the batter, but try to smooth it out as much as you can. That's all you need to do for the batter!
Now, take the frying pan and place it on your burner. Crank the heat up to medium-high. Grease a heart-shaped cookie cutter in the pan and set it in place. Brookes shares that she used a 3-inch wide heart cutter.
Spoon the batter into heart-shaped cookie cutters
Spoon about 3 tablespoons of pancake batter into the heart-shaped cookie cutter and spread it out to the edges, ensuring that it's evenly dispersed. Cook the pancake about 3-4 minutes on the first side, until bubbles start to appear on the surface. Then, slide a spatula underneath, lift it up, and flip the pancake over.
Use a tea towel or something similar to protect your hand while you touch the cookie cutter because it will be hot.
Finish cooking your heart-shaped pancakes
When you flip the pancakes to the other side, cook for an additional 3-4 minutes just like you did on the first side. Then, lift up the cookie-cutter, and the heart-shaped pancake should slide out. As a reminder, you should protect your hands from the hot cookie cutter with a tea towel — just like you did in the previous step.
Transfer the pancake to a plate and repeat the process with the remaining batter. If you have more than one cookie cutter, you can make multiple pancakes at once.
Serve your Valentine's Day pancakes and enjoy
Once you finish the last batch, plate and serve the pancakes as you wish. Brookes recommends serving them with fresh berries and syrup. Another great idea? "Greek yogurt and honey, or Nutella and banana," Brookes suggests. We also think these pancakes would go great with a side of bacon, some eggs, and a big glass of orange juice or a nice, hot cup of coffee.
We hope you love these fluffy pancakes and we're sure they'll be a hit on Valentine's Day ... or any other day, for that matter!
- 1 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ¾ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 ⅔ cups buttermilk
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons canola oil or extra melted butter for frying and greasing the heart cutter
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg, melted butter, and vanilla extract.
- Add the wet ingredients to the bowl with the dry ingredients and fold everything together until just combined. A few lumps are ok.
- Heat a little oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Grease a heart-shaped cookie cutter approximately 3-innches wide and place it in the pan.
- Spoon approximately 3 tablespoons of the pancake batter into the cookie cutter and spread it to the edges.
- Cook for 3-4 minutes or until bubbles start to appear on the surface.
- Slide a spatula underneath the heart cutter, lift it up and flip it over. Use a tea towel to protect your hand when touching the cookie cutter.
- Cook for another 3-4 minutes on the other side, then lift up the cutter and the heart-shaped pancake should slide out (again protect your hands from the hot cutter).
- Transfer the pancake to a plate and repeat with the remaining batter. Grease the cutter between making each pancake. If you have more than one cutter, you can cook multiple pancakes at once in a larger pan.
- Serve with fresh berries and syrup.
| Calories per Serving | 117 |
| Total Fat | 5.1 g |
| Saturated Fat | 1.7 g |
| Trans Fat | 0.1 g |
| Cholesterol | 21.9 mg |
| Total Carbohydrates | 14.5 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 0.4 g |
| Total Sugars | 3.8 g |
| Sodium | 138.9 mg |
| Protein | 3.1 g |
