Gingerbread Pancakes

This easy recipe for gingerbread pancakes with warm buttered apples on top takes this favorite breakfast dish to new heights of wonderfulness!

So there are regular pancakes (which I love, just for the record) and then there are gingerbread pancakes with a buttery apple topping (which I love to the moon and back again.

Here’s why we love this recipe

Gingerbread pancakes are pretty close to regular pancakes, except with a few extra ingredients that make them all gingerbread-tasting-ish.

Some you would expect (ground ginger and cinnamon and brown sugar) and some you might not (hello, molasses!), but they all come together in a perfect gingerbread way.

They are super easy to make – I’ve cooked them up in both a skillet and a griddle – and they taste like Christmas even if you are making them in the middle of summer.

They also include a buttery apple topping that works some fruit into your breakfast!

Ingredients you need

Ingredient notes and substitutions

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Here’s how you make this recipe

STEP 1: Dice an apple into little pieces (no need to take off the skin, hurray!).  Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium high heat and then add in your apples with the sugar and the cinnamon.Stir it around for just a few minutes until the apples are soft, and then set it aside to cool a little bit while you make pancakes!

STEP 2: Mix together flour, ginger, remaining cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl.

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STEP 3: Whisk together eggs, remaining brown sugar, molasses and melted butter.

STEP 4: Add to flour mixture and stir until combined (don’t worry if there are a few lumps!)

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STEP 5: Measure out the batter in 1/4 cup increments (if you have a 1/4 cup measuring cup that’s the easiest way…you can just scoop it out) and cook them over medium heat – no hotter than that – until the bottom is golden brown and there are a few bubbles on the top.

One thing that you definitely need to keep in mind is that because of all the sweet goodness in these…the brown sugar and the molasses…they will burn if you have the heat too high or don’t keep a good eye on them.

So do keep that heat at medium and feel free to keep peeking at the undersides of them as they brown up.

Flip ’em over, press down a teeny bit and cook the other side, still watching carefully.  This recipe is going to make about 8 good sized pancakes, so you might need to do them in batches.

You can keep the already-cooked pancakes warm in a 200 degree oven – just pop them on a cookie sheet while you cook up the others.

Once all the pancakes are done, scoop out a generous spoonful of apples and scatter on the top of each serving, and then drizzle on as much maple syrup as you like.

Recipe FAQs

Yep, this is kind of like dessert for breakfast…or dinner, depending on your schedule!  And it’s guaranteed to make you feel like Christmas, even if you are making them in July.

Happy pancakes!

Want to round out your meal?

We love this Mimosa Fruit Salad on the side of our pancakes. Oh, and we also love this fancy bacon recipe. I know, shocking! 🥰

Other pancake recipes we love

Looking for more breakfast inspiration? Here is our complete collection of breakfast and brunch recipes!

Could you leave us a review?

If you try this recipe, we would love to hear how it came out for you! I’d be super grateful if you could leave a star rating (you pick how many stars! 🌟 ) and your thoughts in the Comments section.

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Gingerbread Pancakes

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This easy recipe for gingerbread pancakes with warm buttered apples on top takes this favorite breakfast dish to new heights of wonderfulness!

• Author: Kate Morgan Jackson
• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Total Time: 35 minutes
• Yield: 8 good-sized pancakes 1x
• Category: Breakfast
• Method: Stovetop
• Cuisine: American
• Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

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• 2 apples, cored and diced
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons molasses
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• Maple syrup for serving (optional)

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Instructions

1. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a medium skillet until melted. Add apples, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon and stir until apples are softened, about 3-5 minutes. Transfer to bowl and set aside.
2. Spray a griddle or large frying pan with nonstick spray, and heat oven to 200 if you are going to use it to keep the pancakes warm.
3. Mix together flour, ginger, remaining cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl.
4. Whisk together eggs, remaining brown sugar, molasses and melted butter. Add to flour mixture and stir until combined (don’t worry if there are a few lumps!)
5. Heat griddle over medium heat for 2 minutes. Scoop out 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake and pour onto heated griddle. Cook until the underside is golden and there are a few bubbles on the top, peeking at the underside a few times to make sure the pancakes aren’t cooking too fast. Flip, press down a little and continue cooking until the second side is done.
6. If you need to cook in two batches, keep the first batch warm on a cookie sheet in the heated oven.
7. Divide pancakes among plates, top with apple mixture (and syrup if you want) and serve!

Notes

• Apples: Any kind you like! We like the sweeter taste of Macintosh, but if you like a little bit of tartness, go for the green Granny Smith variety.
• Brown Sugar: I use light brown, but dark brown is fine too. Dark brown with amp up the molasses flavor a tiny bit.
• Molasses: Look for regular molasses in the baking aisle – or sometimes it is hanging out in the breakfast aisle near the syrup.
• Maple Syrup: It’s not officially one of the ingredients, but I usually can’t help adding a drizzle. Warm it up for about 20 seconds in the microwave first.