Apple Pancakes with Oats
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
If you are ready for a bit of fall coziness, these apple pancakes will be your new favorite breakfast. They are made with whole-grain flour, oats, buttermilk, shredded fresh apple, and spices, and they turn out light and fluffy yet hearty!
These apple pancakes are a great way to start your weekend morning. They have a few simple ingredients you probably already have in your refrigerator and pantry. What’s more, you can reheat them for busy weekday mornings.
The batter is made with fresh shredded apple, cinnamon, and spices to give them a cozy fall flavor profile. They are perfect topped with rich maple syrup!
These apple pancakes are a riff on my oatmeal pancakes, a recipe I make often for my family. The apple in this version adds a little natural sweetness, and I find I use less maple syrup at the table because of it.
Key ingredients
- All purpose flour: To lighten the batter, I use a little all-purpose flour. This helps keep the pancakes from being too dense and chewy.
- Oats: For added texture I add in a half cup of rolled oats. Look for “old fashioned” or “rolled” oats for the best rustic texture. Substitute unsweetened quick-cooking oats. Note that they will make the batter more thick and hard to spread.
- Buttermilk: The acidity in the buttermilk helps to give rise to the batter and keep the texture tender. You can use 1 ¼ cup plant based or regular milk mixed with 1 tablespoon lemon juice instead.
- Apple: I like to use a hard and crisp sweet apple variety. Look for Honey Crisp, Pink lady, Gala or Fuji at the market or orchard.
Visual guide
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a big bowl, whisk together the whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, oats, spices, leaveners, and salt. Set them aside.
- Mix Wet Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk the buttermilk, half of the oil, and the eggs.
- Stir Pancake Batter Together: Add the dry mixture to the wet ingredients and stir it with a silicone spatula until combined. It will not be completely smooth but should be free of large clumps of the dry mixture. Set it aside for 5 minutes to allow the oats and flour to soak up some liquid. The batter will become thicker as it sits.
- Peel and Shred the Apple: While the batter rests, peel the apples with a vegetable peeler. Shred them with a box grater, leaving the core behind. You will have about 2 cups of shredded apple.
- Add Apples to the Pancake Batter: Gently fold the shredded apple into the batter. It will loosen the batter a bit, but do not over-stir it.
- Preheat and Oil the Griddle: Preheat the griddle thoroughly for best results. I suggest preheating it over low heat while you let the batter rest and shred the apple. Then, just before cooking the batter, turn the heat up to high and brush the griddle with some oil.
- Add Apple Pancake Batter: Scoop up ¼ cup of batter with a measuring spoon and drop it onto the hot griddle. Spread the batter into rounds about 3 ½ inches wide, spacing them out so they don’t run together.
- Flip the Pancakes: Flip the pancakes after they are nicely browned on the bottom, the edges are dry, and the bubbles are popped. Allow them to cook through for 2 to 3 minutes longer. Press down on the center of the pancakes to see if they are set up or still uncooked. If they feel like uncooked liquid batter in the center, continue cooking for another minute.
Serving Suggestions
We love to serve these apple pancakes topped with pure dark robust maple syrup and unsalted butter. But there are many other options!
- Greek yogurt, granola, and honey
- Add on some salted peanut butter and a dollop of unsweetened apple butter
- Sizzle apple slices in melted butter or oil and add them on top. Add on chopped nuts , raisins, and a dash of cinnamon sugar.
Make Ahead, Store, and Reheat
Make ahead: The best way to make them ahead is to stir the dry mix together and leave it covered on the counter. Then, mix the wet mixture and place it in the refrigerator. Before cooking, mix the batter, shred the apple, and add it in as directed.
Store: They can be refrigerated for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 1 month. Wrap them to prevent them from drying out.
Reheat: I recommend heating them in the microwave, uncovered, for 30 seconds per pancake or until steaming hot.
Apple Pancakes Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole-wheat flour
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup oats
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ⅓ cups buttermilk
- 2 large eggs
- 4 tablespoons neutral cooking oil, such as avocado (divided)
- 2 large apples, peeled and shredded
Instructions
- Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.1 cup whole-wheat flour, ½ cup all-purpose flour, ½ cup oats, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon nutmeg, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Whisk buttermilk, eggs, and 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large bowl.1 ⅓ cups buttermilk, 2 large eggs, 4 tablespoons neutral cooking oil, such as avocado
- Add in the dry mix to the wet mix and stir to combine. The batter will not be completely smooth, but there should be no large pockets of dry mix. Let batter sitfor 5 minutes.
- Stir apples into the batter. Do not overmix as it will make the pancakes less fluffy and chewier.2 large apples, peeled and shredded
- Meanwhile, preheat the griddle (or skillet) to high heat. Brush with some of the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to coat the cooking surface.4 tablespoons neutral cooking oil, such as avocado
- Ladle ¼-cup of batter onto the griddle. Spread the batter into a 3 ½ inch circle with the back of the ladle. Repeat with ¼ cup-full of the batter, spacing accordingly.
- Let cook until the edges are dry and the bubbles on top are popped, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce heat as necessary if the oil is smoking or the pancakes are getting too dark. Cook on the second side until the center of the pancakes feels set up when lightly pressed, 2 to 3 minutes longer.
- Transfer the pancakes to a plate, tent with foil to keep warm. Proceed with the remaining batter, brushing the cooking surface with additional oil as necessary. Serve hot!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
More pancake recipes to try
- These Gluten-free Paleo Pancakes are made without any wheat flour or dairy.
- Try these Walnut Banana Pancakes with caramelized bananas and candied walnuts for another flavor idea.
Made these on the weekend using frozen (then thawed) apples that I chopped very small and they turned out great. Served them with some apple maple syrup. So good!
That sounds amazing! I love that you used frozen apples — such a smart idea. And apple maple syrup on top? Absolute perfection! 🍎🍁
“Reply to my previous comment” – I was running out of pancakes in the freezer and had leftover dairy free plain yoghurt (coconut milk base) so I figured why not replace apples with yoghurt. And it worked! I replaced spice mix with 1/4tsp ground ginger and 1/4tsp freshly grated nutmeg. I used 300ml (1.25 cups) yoghurt (all I had left), 130ml (1/2 cup) coconut milk (shake the can before using), I added vinegar to curdle it for more bubbles, and 100-125ml* (probably 1/2 cup) water to make a thick drop style pancake batter. I also added 75g frozen coconut pulp (1 cup shredded coconut basically) for a little bit of texture which worked really well here. I used 2tbsp sugar in the batter so I could smear honey on top. Otherwise I would use 3tbsp sugar so they’re portable (don’t need maple syrup). Again highly recommend! Oh and forgot to rate earlier!!
I’ve finally written a review, now that I’m happy with the recipe. It only took me two goes and now I no longer need to look elsewhere. It’s a shame nobody else knows about them! Now for my necessary changes in case anyone else has troubles – 1. Pancake batter forgets to add sugar (apples aren’t enough sugar, and I don’t want soggy/swamp pancakes with maple syrup but spice, salt and oil amount in the pancakes was spot on. 2. Recipe doesn’t specify oat type – all I had was jumbo rolled oats and they soaked up no liquid! 3. So by necessity I made coarsely ground oat flour (basically quick oats) which was the best decision ever! Pancakes retained the moisture overnight – stayed soft. 4. I swear US flour is more absorbent – I needed 125g WW flour (1 cup), 75g AP flour (scant 2/3 cup) and 75g coarse oat flour (1 scant cup oat flour or rolled oats (measurements the same), and had to rest the batter for 30 minutes because the flour needed that time to soak up all that liquid (and more rest = lighter and fluffier pancakes, yes even with all those wholegrains it’s still achievable.) 5. As it’s quicker to get whole milk and vinegar – I went with the buttermilk substitute. The kitchn have already tested that vinegar makes a better sub than lemon juice because more acidity = more bubbles = fluffier pancakes. I accidentally used 2tbsp vinegar instead of the standard 1 1/3tbsp and I think it gave me a better texture than before so I stuck with that amount. 6. I don’t see why you add the apples separately. Adding them to the wet ingredients worked perfectly well! And you avoid over mixing. 7. Pancakes don’t need 2tbsp oil to cook in when using non-stick. Anymore than a light film (1tsp easily) and you just got greasy pancakes, not nice. 8. I ain’t got time to cook one pancake at a time (not a specific fault of this recipe), so I made them smaller (just used a regular tablespoon) and cooked 4 at a time in a 12in skillet. Plus they’re easier to flip and fit in my toaster. Lastly pressing the batter down in the pan did no favours for fluffy texture! But again lots of recipes (wrongly) suggest this. Like I say after a little tweaking, I got perfect pancakes!
I’ve never made these sort of pancakes before today but they were delicious!
The first time I made my own pancakes, and it was a hit! Thanks for the recipe!