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You’ll fall in love with these perfectly spiced pancakes that are full of apple flavor!
In southern Alabama, we're getting a jumpstart on enjoying the fall by making homemade Apple Butter Pancakes! I love recipes that can be made and frozen in big batches, and pancakes are perfect for cooking once and enjoying your efforts over multiple meals. If you enjoyed this recipe, be sure to check out our other fall favorites:
Ingredients Needed to Make Apple Butter Pancakes
Flour
I used organic, unbleached all-purpose flour for this recipe, but you could certainly use a gluten-free option. To ensure accurate flour measurements, use a spoon to add the flour to your measuring cup and level it off with a flat edge, like the back of a butterknife.
Buttermilk
Do not skimp out on this ingredient! Buttermilk has been found to activate baking soda, producing the gas to make dough or batter rise. If you use regular milk or even the DIY trick of adding vinegar or lemon juice to regular milk, your final product will likely not be as thick and fluffy.
Eggs, Sugar, and Salt
All are completely necessary to flavor and bind our dry ingredients.
Apple Cinnamon Extract
I love using my homemade extracts in baking recipes. If using a store-bought option, try to choose one that is of the highest quality. If you don’t have apple cinnamon extract, vanilla will work just fine.
Apple Butter
I follow a tested recipe from my Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving for my homemade apple butter. If you’re not a home canner, you can find a delicious, high-quality Amish Apple Butter here.
Apple Pie Spice
You can find apple pie spice in most stores and online. Or you can make your own:
3 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon allspice
½ teaspoon nutmeg
In a small bowl, mix all ingredients together until well combined. Store in an airtight container or a clean spice jar.
This recipe calls for only 2 teaspoons, however, this can be increased to your desired preference.
Baking Powder and Baking Soda
Yep, I use both baking powder and baking soda for our pancakes. We’re going for extra fluffy pancakes here!
How to Make Apple Butter Pancakes:
The short version of making almost any pancake, waffle, or baked good is: combine wet ingredients in one bowl, combine dry ingredients in another bowl, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir well. It may seem unnecessary to dirty up so many bowls, but there is actually some pretty cool science that happens when we separate the ingredients like this. When we use leavening agents, also known as aeration agents, like baking powder or baking soda, we want to make sure they are being dispersed evenly. This helps to ensure an even rise and consistency in flavor.
So, let’s get to it!
First, combine eggs, extract, buttermilk, melted butter, sugar, and apple butter in a large bowl.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, apple pie spice and salt.
Combine dry ingredients to wet ingredients by about a ½ cupful at a time.
Stir well to combine. The batter should be thick but still a pourable consistency. If your batter is too runny, add a tablespoon of flour and mix.
Preheat a large skillet or griddle and lightly spray with non-stick spray or additional melted butter.
When skillet is hot, pour batter by 1/8 to ¼ cupful onto skillet or griddle.
Flip pancakes when bubbles form in the middle and edges begin to harden (this should happen in about 60-90 seconds). Flip pancakes and cook until the second side is lightly golden brown.
Helpful Tips
Allow batter to rest covered at room temperature for approximately 10-15 minutes. This step really is the secret to getting fluffy pancakes! During this rest period, the flour is able to fully absorb the liquid which helps to provide a smooth texture and a better rise.
Don’t overmix the batter. Once the batter is well combined, leave it be and allow it to rest.
Preheat the skillet or griddle. This will ensure even cooking and color for the pancakes.
Ingredients
4 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
3 1/2 cups buttermilk
½ cup Apple Butter
2 teaspoons Apple Pie Spice
3 Tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons Homemade Apple Cinnamon Extract
2 sticks butter, melted
Directions
In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, buttermilk, butter, sugar, extract, and apple butter.
Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients one ½ cup at a time, stirring well after each addition.
Preheat skillet or griddle and spray lightly with non-stick spray or additional melted butter.
Pour approximately 1/8 to 1/4 cup of batter onto skillet or griddle.
Cook for approximately 60-90 seconds then carefully flip to brown the other side.
Serve immediately with your favorite pancake toppings.
How to Freeze Apple Butter Pancakes
Option 1: Allow pancakes to cool completely. Layer pancakes onto wax paper and wrap up the ends of the paper. Store in a gallon-sized freezer bag in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Option 2: Allow pancakes to cool completely. Place pancakes in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Flash freeze for at least 30 minutes. Remove and place into a freezer-safe bag or container.
To reheat, warm in the microwave pancakes in a single layer for 2 -2 ½ minutes.
How to Make Apple Butter Pancakes into Waffles:
No changes are needed to the ingredients.
Preheat waffle iron and spray lightly with non-stick spray.
Pour approximately ¼ cup of batter onto waffle iron.
Cook waffles as per manufacturer’s instructions or until waffles are golden brown and slightly crispy.
We recommend this waffle maker.
To freeze waffles, follow the same instructions listed above.
If you enjoyed this Apple Butter Pancake recipe, please let us know in the comments below! And don’t forget our online store. We have lots of fall printables available for a limited time!
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