Extra-fluffy, golden-edged, with a subtle lemon flavour and a luxuriously creamy interior, these Lemon Ricotta Pancakes are worth getting up for. Serve them for any special occasion breakfast or brunch, or when you’re feeling a little bored with the classic pancake.
Lemon Ricotta Pancake Recipe
If you’ve never added ricotta cheese to your pancake batter, it’s time to give it a try. Ricotta cheese makes pancakes that are tender, extra fluffy, creamy, and moist. You can pretty much add ricotta cheese to any pancake recipe but it’s most often accompanied with a lemon-infused batter. The combination of ricotta and lemons is a classic for a reason — it’s delicious — and it makes these pancakes absolutely delectable.
But the real secret to making these pillowy tender pancakes is to separate the eggs, whip the whites, then fold them into the creamy ricotta batter at the end. It may seem like a fussy extra step but the reward is huge: Light and airy pancakes that fry up like little golden soufflés. So, so good, I can’t even be left in the same room with them.
Ingredients And Notes
- Flour – You can keep these pancakes classic with all-purpose flour or experiment by substituting a third of the all-purpose flour with spelt or whole-wheat.
- Baking powder and baking soda – You will need both to get the ideal lift and light texture in your pancakes.
- Sugar – Just a bit of sugar will help give you a crispier, more golden-coloured pancake.
- Salt – As with most baked goods containing eggs, pancakes benefit greatly when seasoned with a little salt.
- Ricotta Cheese – Full-fat ricotta cheese is going to give you the best results. Cottage cheese could work in a pinch.
- Buttermilk – Buttermilk adds a lovely tangy flavour and helps moisten and thicken the batter of these lemon ricotta pancakes.
- Butter – A few tablespoons of melted butter are added to the batter. This gives the pancakes a deeper golden-brown colour, and adds a lot of flavour. I sometimes leave it out but find I miss it when I do.
- Lemon zest and juice – To give the pancakes a lovely citrusy and floral flavour.
- Eggs – You’ll need three room temperature eggs to make these pancakes.
- Vanilla extract- An optional ingredient but I find pancakes are always tastier with a splash of vanilla.
How to Make Lemon Ricotta Pancakes
Rubbing the lemon zest with the sugar really highlights the fruit’s floral flavour, so don’t skip this step.
- Combine the dry ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Whisk the wet ingredients: In a large bowl, use your fingers to rub the lemon zest into the sugar until the mixture is moist. Add the ricotta cheese, milk, egg yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and melted butter and whisk until smooth. A few lumps will remain from the ricotta.
- Make pancake batter: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and use a spatula to stir until most of the flour is incorporated. Do not overmix.
- Whip egg whites: In the bowl of a stand mixer, or using a hand mixer, whisk egg whites at medium-low speed until foamy, about 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium-high and whisk until stiff, but not dry, peaks form, about 2 minutes more.
- Fold in the egg whites: Gently fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the batter using circular movements from the bottom to the top to make an airy batter. Repeat with remaining whipped egg whites.
- Cook the pancakes: Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium-low heat. Once hot, add butter, or oil to the griddle and using a measuring cup, ladle 1/4 cup batter into the skillet. Cook until bubbles rise to the surface and the edges look brown and set, about 2 to 4 minutes. Flip and cook until the other sides are lightly browned and the pancakes look thick and puffed. Remove pancakes to a wire rack set inside a rimmed baking sheet, and keep in heated oven until all the batter is cooked. Serve with a light dusting of icing sugar, maple syrup, blueberry sauce, and/or fresh berries.
Do I Have To Beat The Egg Whites Separately?
Beating the egg whites separately is what makes these lemon ricotta pancakes seem almost ethereally. But if that is a step that seems too fussy for you to do first thing in the morning, I get it. Skip that step and simply beat the whole eggs along with the rest of the wet ingredients. Your pancakes may not be as airy or soufflé-like, but they will still be fluffy and delicious.
Buttermilk Substitutes
If you don’t have buttermilk, you can mix 1/4 cup plain yogurt with 2/3 cups milk. Depending on the thickness of the yogurt you may need to add a little more milk to thin it out a bit.
If you would like to just use milk, add the 2 tablespoons of lemon juice that the recipe calls for to 3/4 cups of milk and let it sit for 10 minutes. The pancakes might not puff up as much but they will still be delicious.
Tips To Cook The Best Pancakes
To be sure, pancake perfection is achieved with practice but these simple tricks will help you get there faster.
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- Room temperature eggs. Cold eggs will make the batter harder to mix and make it lumpier. If you forget to take the eggs out ahead of time, simply place them in a little bowl with warm water while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Don’t over-mix the batter. I’m sure you’ve heard this repeatedly but it is important to overstate; pancake batter should never be over-mixed. This will develop gluten in the batter which will make a tough pancake. Mix only until the dry flour is no longer visible but a few lumps are perfectly acceptable.
- Whip egg whites to stiff peaks. When mixing the egg whites, start on low speed. Once foamy increase the speed to medium high and beat until stiff and glossy but not dry.
- Fold in the beaten egg whites in batches. Slowly and gently incorporating the beaten egg whites into the batter will ensure it stays nice and light.
- A lumpy batter is OK! Don’t worry if your batter is a bit lumpy. In fact, if the batter is nice and smooth it means you overmixed it and the pancakes might be a bit dense.
- Be sure to start with a hot griddle or pan. Getting the temperature right is the trickiest part of cooking pancakes. Too hot and they will burn quickly, not hot enough and the batter will not puff up. The surface is hot enough when a drop of water sizzles and skips on the pan. If the pancakes are browning too quickly, lower the temperature just a bit.
- Keep the size small for fluffier pancakes. Smaller pancakes will rise more and will stay puffier. If you prefer larger panckaes, use a 1/3 cup measure instead.
- Use a cookie scoop. A spring-loaded ice cream scoop works great for scooping and dropping the batter into the pan. This also makes it easier to get uniform-sized pancakes.
- Keep them warm. As you cook the pancakes, keep the cooked ones in a warm oven on a wire rack set inside a sheet pan until all the batter is cooked.
What Is The Best Fat For Cooking Pancakes?
I like to use coconut oil or ghee which will not burn quickly like butter. That said, regular butter will give the pancakes a beautiful golden and crispy exterior so use whichever suits your needs the best. *The pancakes shown in these photos were cooked in butter and they turned out so lovely I might now be a butter convert 🙂
Serving Suggestions
We enjoy these fluffy lemon ricotta pancakes with maple syrup and lots of berries on the side. We also love to top our pancakes with generous dollops of thick plain yogurt – so good.
For an extra special treat I love to serve these pancakes with a blueberry compote that is gloriously good and takes just minutes to make.
Needless to say, these pancakes are as lovely for dinner as they are for breakfast. If going that route, consider serving them with scrambled or fried eggs, and perhaps some grilled chicken sausage. Yum.
To Store and Reheat
These lemon ricotta pancakes freeze and reheat beautifully so I highly recommend making a double or triple batch to enjoy many quick and delicious breakfasts.
- Fridge: Though I prefer to freeze my leftover pancakes, you can also store them in the fridge. Place leftover pancakes between layers of parchment paper in a storage bag or airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: Let the pancakes cool completely. Place layers of parchment paper between the pancakes and store in a freezer-safe bag or airtight container. Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Reheat: I like to pop the pancakes frozen straight into the toaster but they do take a little long to heat up. If you’re in a hurry, thaw them for a few seconds in the microwave (I do about 10 seconds a side) before placing them in the toaster. If you are reheating a large batch, you will need to use the oven: Preheat oven to 350ºF. Place pancakes on a baking sheet in a single layer and cover with foil. Transfer to oven for 8-10 minutes for thawed pancakes, or 15 to 20 minutes if frozen.
More Breakfast/Brunch Recipes To Try
- Everything Bagel Breakfast Casserole
- Crustless Quiche
- Fluffy Yogurt Pancakes
- Baked French Toast
- Epic Summer Frittata
If you give this Lemon Ricotta Pancake recipe a try, please feel free to leave a comment and/or a star rating below. We appreciate and welcome all your feedback. Thank you!
Lemon Ricotta Pancakes
Ingredients
- zest from 1 large lemon about 2 teaspoons
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 cup (250g) full-fat ricotta cheese
- 1 cup buttermilk *see notes for substitutes
- 3 large eggs yolks and whites separated (*see notes if you don't wish to separate the eggs)
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract optional
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- ghee, butter, or coconut oil for cooking pancakes
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- In a large bowl, use your fingers to rub the lemon zest into the sugar until the mixture is moist. Add the ricotta cheese, buttermilk, egg yolks, lemon juice, melted butter, and vanilla extract (if using), and whisk until fairly smooth (a few lumps will remain from the ricotta).
- Fold in the dry ingredients and use a spatula to stir just until most of the flour is incorporated. Do not overmix.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, or using a hand mixer, whisk egg whites at medium-low speed until foamy, about 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium-high and whisk until stiff, but not dry, peaks form, about 2 minutes more.
- Gently fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the batter using circular movements from the bottom to the top to make an airy batter. Repeat twice with remaining whipped egg whites.
- Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium to medium-low heat. Once hot, add butter, or oil to the griddle and using a measuring cup, ladle 1/4 cup batter into the skillet. Cook until bubbles rise to the surface and the edges look brown and set, about 2 to 4 minutes. Flip and cook until the other sides are lightly browned and the pancakes look thick and puffed.
- Remove pancakes to a wire rack set inside a rimmed baking sheet, and keep in heated oven until all the batter is cooked. Serve with your choice of icing sugar, maple syrup, blueberry sauce, and/or fresh berries.
Notes
- Fridge: Though I prefer to freeze my leftover pancakes, you can also store them in the fridge. Place leftover pancakes between layers of parchment paper in a storage bag or airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Freezer: To freeze, let the pancakes cool completely. Place layers of parchment paper between the pancakes and store in a freezer-safe bag or airtight container. Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Reheat: I like to pop the pancakes frozen straight into the toaster but they do take a little long to heat up. If you're in a hurry, thaw them for a few seconds in the microwave (I do about 10 seconds a side) before placing them in the toaster. If you are reheating a large batch, you will need to use the oven: Preheat oven to 350ºF. Place pancakes on a baking sheet in a single layer and cover with foil. Transfer to oven for 8-10 minutes for thawed pancakes, or 15 to 20 minutes if frozen.
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