Apple Butter Pancakes
Fluffy homemade pancakes with apple butter mixed right into the batter, topped with buttery sautéed cinnamon apples and the same cream cheese drizzle from our cinnamon roll pancakes. Breakfast or dessert? You decide. Either way, this is fall on a plate, and it comes together easily on the griddle or in a skillet.
Servings: 18 pancakes
Ingredients
For the Sautéed Cinnamon Apples:
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 medium apples cored and diced (use a mix of sweet and tart, like Granny Smith and EverCrisp)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- Zest of 1 small orange
- 2 tablespoons apple brandy or apple liqueur optional
For the Apple Butter Pancakes:
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ½ tablespoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup whole milk
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- ⅓ cup apple butter plus more for serving
- 1 tablespoon butter or oil for oiling the griddle
For the Cream Cheese Drizzle:
- 3 tablespoons butter melted
- 2 ounces cream cheese softened
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1-2 tablespoons milk to thin if needed
Optional Topping:
- ¼ cup chopped pecans or walnuts
Instructions
- Sauté the apples. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the diced apples, a pinch of salt, cinnamon, orange zest, and brown sugar. Stir to coat.
- Reduce the glaze. Add the apple liqueur, if using, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid reduces to a thick glaze and the apples are tender but still have a little bite, about 8–10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and set aside. The glaze will thicken as it cools.
- Mix the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Make a well in the center and set aside.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, oil, apple cider vinegar, vanilla, sour cream, and eggs until smooth.
- Make the batter. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir. Add ⅓ cup apple butter and gently mix until just combined. A few lumps are fine; do not overmix. Let the batter rest for about 5 minutes while the griddle heats.
- Heat the griddle. Preheat the griddle to about 350–375°F. Add about ½ to 1 tablespoon of butter or oil to very lightly lubricate the griddle. Spread it around with your spatula.
- Make the cream cheese drizzle. With a hand mixer, beat together the melted butter, softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Add milk 1 tablespoon at a time if needed to reach a drizzling consistency. Transfer to a zip-top bag and set aside.
- Cook the pancakes. Scoop about ¼ cup of batter onto the griddle for each pancake, leaving room to flip. Cook until bubbles and air pockets form on top and the bottoms are golden, about 3–4 minutes. Flip and cook until cooked through, about 2 minutes more.
- Cool slightly. Transfer the pancakes to a plate and let them cool for a couple of minutes so the drizzle doesn't melt and run off.
- Top and serve. Spoon the cinnamon apples over the pancakes. You can also stack the pancakes with a thin spread of extra apple butter in between, and then top the stack with the apples. Then snip a small corner from the zip-top bag and drizzle with the cream cheese glaze. Sprinkle with chopped nuts, if using, and finish with a spoonful of syrup from the apples. Serve warm.
Notes
- Shortcut option: Use your favorite boxed pancake mix and stir in the apple butter.
- Watch the heat: Keep the griddle between 350 and 375°F. If the temperature climbs more than that, the bottoms will overcook before the centers are done.
- Griddle or skillet: Both work. Cooking the apples in a skillet saves you from scraping sticky sugar off the griddle.
- Apple liqueur substitute: Leave it out, or use a splash of apple cider instead.
- Peach variation: Swap the apple butter for peach butter and use sautéed peaches instead of apples. Peach butter is often closer to jelly, so you may want to use a little less in the batter.