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How to make Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

Lemon ricotta pancakes are one of our favorite weekend treats. Banana pancakes are another. You don’t need a box mix to make pancakes at home. With a handful of pantry ingredients, you can whip up a delicious breakfast from scratch in no time.

lemon ricotta pancakes with blueberries on white plate

Light and fluffy, lemony and slightly sweet, these pancakes are easy to whip up for any occasion. Whether it’s a lazy Saturday or a celebratory breakfast, they are always the perfect choice.

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Ricotta pancakes

Brunch is by far my favorite indulgence. These days, I make it at home, but that doesn’t mean we don’t go all out.

Sometimes it’s a breakfast casserole with a Bloody Mary. Or it might be bacon and eggs with crispy hash browns.

ricotta pancakes with lemon and blueberries

Pancakes are always a good idea in my book, and these are not only simple to make, but they are good enough to eat plain.

I’m sure we’ve all had pancakes that needed butter, blueberry syrup or some kind of jam to give them flavor, right? Rest easy, friends. You can eat these straight out of the pan.

How to make lemon ricotta pancakes

I make my lemon ricotta pancakes with a little almond flour. It gives it just a touch of texture and extra flavor. I’ve been making them this way for over a decade, well before almond flour was readily available.

If you live in a nut-free house, you don’t have almond flour or you just don’t want to use it, feel free to omit it and replace with all-purpose flour.

Ingredients

  • Almond flour – made from ground almonds, you can make your own by grinding blanched almonds into a flour or you can buy it, like I did.
  • Eggs – recipe uses large eggs.
  • All purpose flour – King Arthur or Gold Medal are favorites.
  • Sugar, salt, baking powder & baking soda – give our pancakes flavor & rise.
  • Milk – I used whole milk, you can sub 2%, but I wouldn’t recommend skim.
  • Vanilla – use pure extract, if possible.
  • Ricotta – whole milk, not fat free.
  • Lemons – we’re using the zest and the juice. A microplane makes quick work of this.
Ingredients for lemon ricotta pancakes

Procedure

  1. Combine dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl.
  2. Add lemon zest and give it a good whisk to coat zest with flour.
  3. Combine wet ingredients, then add to dry.
  4. Cook pancakes in butter for a few minutes on each side.
step by step instructions for lemon ricotta pancakes

You’ll know when it’s time to flip the pancakes when you see bubbles around the edges. The edge of the pancake will also start to look dry.

That’s your cue to gently flip them over and cook the other side.

lemon ricotta pancakes on fork

If you look closely, you can see tiny bursts of yellow in the pancakes. That’s the lemon zest giving the pancakes little pockets of zing!

Blueberries complement these pancakes really well. To make a quick topping, grab some blueberry jam and warm it in a pot with a splash of water to loosen it up. Then generously pile on your stack of pancakes and dig in.

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Yield: 8 pancakes

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

Lemon ricotta pancakes are the perfect weekend brunch. Light, fluffy and lemony, they are perfect for any occasion.

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup almond flour
  • 1/4 tsp. fine sea salt
  • 2 tbsp. sugar
  • 1 tbsp. baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
  • 2 eggs
  • 2/3 cup whole milk
  • 2 tbsp. lemon zest
  • 2 tbsp. lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp. unsalted butter (for pan)
  • Black and Blue Jam

Instructions

  1. In a medium bowl combine flour, almond flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda and lemon zest. Stir to combine, making sure to coat the lemon zest with flour and break up any clumps of zest.
  2. Beat the eggs in a small bowl, then add milk and vanilla. Whisk to combine.
  3. Gently whisk in ricotta cheese and lemon juice until mixture is fairly smooth.
  4. Add wet ingredients to flour mixture and whisk to combine (mixture will be slightly lumpy, it's ok).
  5. Heat medium sauté pan over medium heat and add 1 tbsp. of butter.
  6. Using a 1/3 cup measure, pour batter into the center or the pan.
  7. Cook pancakes, without moving, until they begin to form bubbles on top and start to dry around the edges. Gently flip pancakes over and cook until golden and cooked through. (about 3 minutes per side)
  8. Add butter to the pan as needed and continue cooking pancakes until all of the batter is gone.
  9. Warm the jam in a small saucepan & thin with a few tablespoons of water. Serve warm over pancakes.

Notes

For my personal taste, 2 tbsp. of sugar is enough. If you prefer things a bit sweeter, increase to 3 tbsp.


For nut-free pancakes, omit almond flour and increase AP flour to 1 1/4 cups

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

2 pancakes

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 405Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 144mgSodium: 698mgCarbohydrates: 38gFiber: 2gSugar: 9gProtein: 16g

Nutrition information calculated by a third-party company as a courtesy. It is intended as a guideline only.

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Originally published 4/2/12, most recent update 1/15/21.

2 Comments

  1. I made these pancakes this morning. OH. MY. GOODNESS!!! They are soo good!! I made my own almond flour, as described. It never would have occurred to me to melt down jam to use as pancake syrup!! I used some blueberry jam we had in the fridge. It worked very well. Thanks for another winning recipe, Cheryl!

    1. Thank you so much, Kristi!!! I’m so happy that you liked them! And bravo to you for making your own almond flour! Way to go!!!

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