Sweet Cream Pancakes Recipe

These Sweet Cream Pancakes are the softest and fluffiest pancakes! These pillowy breakfast treats will kick start breakfast or brunch, especially on a slow Saturday morning or for any special occasion. Adding heavy cream to the batter gives them a melt-in-your-mouth texture and richer flavor than regular pancakes. This recipe is made with staple ingredients, and comes together quickly and easily!

Beautiful stack of sweet cream pancakes topped with berries on a plate near a pink napkin, with orange juice, and white flowers in the background with a hand pouring maple syrup onto the stack of pancakes.

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These delicious, tender pancakes are truly the best pancakes! It creates a luxurious, creamy taste and adds a dash of indulgence to your pancakes.

They're a great treat to have breakfast, brunch, or even dessert! Top them with all the good stuff- whipped cream, yogurt, fresh berries or fruits, nuts, real maple syrup, and more.

Looking for more easy breakfast recipes? Try our sourdough french toast or this brioche french toast casserole, and these bananas foster pancakes. Don't forget to serve everything with a side of smashed eggs on toast or these sausage and egg muffins.

You may also enjoy this vanilla sweet cold foam recipe or this breakfast burger!

Jump to:

❤️Why We Love this Recipe
🥞Ingredients
✨Substitutions
✨Variations
🔪Prep work
📋Instructions
✨Tips & tricks
💭Frequently Asked Questions
More Breakfast Recipes To Consider
📖 Recipe
💬 Community

❤️Why We Love this Recipe

A delicious breakfast treat. This sweet cream pancake recipe is even better than traditional pancakes. This recipe will give you a stack of fluffy and tender pancakes, that are softer, more decadent, and delicate than you've ever tried. They melt in your mouth, and are rich, lightly sweet, and have a delicious hint of vanilla that is just so delicious.
Made with simple ingredients. This recipe is made with simple pantry ingredients. Anything you need to make this recipe can be found at the grocery store if you don't have it on hand.
Quick and simple recipe. We promise - this is one of those fast and easy recipes that you'll come back to over and over again! You don't need anything special to make it, and the method is super simple, anyone can make it. It's not your average pancake, but the method is super simple!

🥞Ingredients

Here are the ingredients we used for this recipe. You can find more information for substitutions below.

Leavening agents. You will need both baking powder and baking soda to give the pancakes a nice lift, tender crumbs, and a cloud-like texture.
Apple cider vinegar. will work together with the leavening agents to make the pancakes light and fluffy. The small amount needed won't make the pancakes taste sour, but it will aid in balancing the richness of the cream and brighten the flavors too! We use it as an easy buttermilk replacement!
Heavy cream. This is truly the ingredient that gives these pancakes such a fluffy texture. Plus, it tastes amazing! Look for 36% or higher fat content.

Visit the recipe card for the full quantities and nutritional information.

✨Substitutions

Here are a few suggestions on additional flavors to try, or simple variations to this recipe.

Use sweetened condensed milk instead. Instead of heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk will also give the pancakes the same boost of texture and flavor. Just make sure to omit or lessen the amount of added sugar to prevent the pancakes from becoming overly sweet if you decide to use it. We'd also recommend adding a little extra milk to get the consistency right.
Swap the white sugar. You can use maple syrup, honey, brown sugar, or any sweetener of your choice here.
Other acidic elements. A good substitute for apple cider vinegar is distilled white vinegar or lemon juice. You can also replace the milk and apple cider 1:1 with buttermilk!
No butter. You can achieve the same moistness by using coconut oil or other neutral-tasting oil. It will not be as rich-tasting but will still be delicious.

✨Variations

Gluten-free. Simply swap the all-purpose flour with a 1:1 gluten free flour. We like using Bob's Red Mill 1:1 gluten-free flour.
Make it low-carb. You can follow the instructions for our keto coconut flour pancakes, and use heavy cream in the batter!
Make it dairy-free. Swap the butter for a vegan version. Swap the milk for your favorite dairy-free milk, and use coconut cream or your favorite vegan cream in place of heavy whipping cream.
Citrusy. Add some lemon or orange zest, plus some fresh orange or lemon juice to the batter to give the pancakes a nice citrusy flavor. Orange and lemon extracts would also work really well.
Spiced. For extra flavor, try mixing in some cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, or a little cardamom!
Add extracts. In addition to vanilla extract, try adding in some of your favorite flavors, like almond extract, cake batter, lemon, coconut extract, and more!
Add mix-ins. Add your favorite pancake mix-ins, like chocolate chips, nuts, blueberries, bananas, or even sprinkles for a fun birthday cake look!
Top them with berry syrups. Want to really ramp up the fruity flavor? Try serving them with our raspberry syrup, or even this blueberry simple syrup, or cranberry simple syrup for cooler months!
Pancakes for dessert. A dollop of ice cream on top will turn this classic breakfast into a mouthwatering dessert. Add some sprinkles to make it festive!

🔪Prep work

Take the heavy cream, milk, and eggs out of the fridge and keep them at room temperature for about half an hour before beginning.
Melt the butter needed for the pancake batter.
Measure the rest of the ingredients.

📋Instructions

In a medium bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar. (Image 1)

Whisk together until well combined. Set aside. (Image 2)

Flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl.

Dry ingredients to make pancakes mixed together in a bowl with a whisk.

⭑Pro Tip: Use a digital food scale for precise results when measuring the flour. Too much flour can make your pancakes dense and dry, so using exact measurements can help prevent that.

In a separate large bowl, start by whisking the eggs until well combined. (Image 3)

Add in the heavy cream, milk, apple cider vinegar, melted butter, and vanilla extract. (Image 4)

Whisk until well combined. (Image 5)

Milk, cream, vinegar, melted butter, and vanilla added to eggs in a large bowl with a whisk.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. (Image 6)

Use a rubber spatula to fold the dry ingredients together very gently. Mix until there are no streaks of flour, but it's okay if there are lumps in the batter.

The batter will look really thick (almost like cottage cheese) but don't be alarmed! It's full of air bubbles that will help us achieve really light and fluffy pancakes. (Image 7)

Don't overmix! Allow the batter to rest for just a few minutes (5-10 minutes) before making the pancakes.

Dry ingredients added to wet ingredients in a large bowl.

Sweet cream pancake batter with lots of lumps and increased in volume due to bubbles in a large bowl.

⭑Pro Tip: Trust the process with these pancakes! Make sure to give them time to rest, and don't be alarmed by how thick they look. You'll be surprised how light and airy the batter actually is!

Meanwhile, preheat a griddle or pan over medium heat. Rub or brush a hot skillet or pancake griddle with a small amount of butter to lightly grease the pan. If using a non-stick pan, you may not need to add anything.

We like to reduce the heat to medium-low before beginning. Working in batches, add about ¼ cup of batter for each pancake. Using a large cookie scoop is also a great method to get even-sized pancakes.

Cook for a few minutes until golden on the bottom and bubbles start to appear on the top. (Image 8)

Then, flip over and cook an additional minute or until golden brown. (Image 9)

Add more butter to the pan as needed as you continue cooking the pancakes.

Pancake in a large skillet beginning to get bubbles on the top.

⭑Pro tip: Don't continue to flip the pancakes or press the pancakes down with your spatula! We want to keep the pancakes light and fluffy, and moving them too much will disrupt the fluffy texture and air bubbles.

Keep finished pancakes warm by placing them on a baking sheet and putting them in the oven keep finished pancakes warm in a low-heat oven (around 250°F) until ready to serve.

Serve the pancakes warm with your favorite toppings like more butter, (maybe even homemade butter!) maple syrup, fresh fruit and berries, whipped cream, or a dusting of powdered sugar. Enjoy!

You may also enjoy serving them with this strawberry butter, this blueberry butter, or this whipped honey butter!

Stack of pancakes topped with butter and fresh berries, with a big bite taken out with a fork.

✨Tips & tricks

Use room temperature ingredients. This will ensure the batter comes together nicely. If the ingredients are too cold, the butter will seize when added to the batter, making it clumpy.
Don't overmix the batter. Mix the wet and dry ingredients until just combined. Overmixing can lead to dense pancakes. A few lumps in the batter are okay; they will disappear as the pancakes cook. The apple cider vinegar added helps give the pancakes extra lift, which will create bubbles in the pancakes and make them nice and fluffy.
Rest the batter. Letting the batter rest for 5-10 minutes allows the flour to absorb the liquid, resulting in a smoother batter and fluffier pancakes.
Use a measuring cup. Use a measuring cup to pour an equal amount of batter for each pancake. This ensures they cook evenly and are the same size.
Preheat the pan or griddle. Make sure your griddle or skillet is well-heated before cooking the pancakes. A moderately hot surface helps in achieving that golden-brown color.
Grease the griddle or pan. Adding a small amount of butter to the griddle before cooking each batch of pancakes enhances the flavor and prevents sticking.
Do not overcrowd the skillet/griddle. Give yourself room to easily flip the pancakes so they remain intact.
Don't flip the pancakes too soon. Wait until bubbles form on the surface of the pancake and the edges look set before flipping. This ensures that the bottom is properly cooked, and the pancakes won't fall apart when flipped.
Don't press on the pancakes with a spatula. Resist the urge to press down on the pancakes with the spatula while cooking. This can make them dense, and we want them nice and fluffy.
Keep warm. If you're making a large batch, keep finished pancakes warm in a low-heat oven until ready to serve.

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💭Frequently Asked Questions

How to store the leftovers?

Leftover pancakes can be stored in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.

Can I make the pancake batter in advance?

Sure, this is a convenient time-saver! You can make the batter and place it in an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours in advance.

Can I freeze and reheat these pancakes?

Yes, you can. Allow the pancakes to cool off completely, then place on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze until solid, about 2 hours. After frozen solid, transfer to a freezer-safe container and store for up to 3 months. Reheat in the microwave, in the air fryer, or on the stovetop.

Stack of sweet cream pancakes with berries on top and a hand pouring maple syrup onto the stack, with a bite taken out of the side to reveal the delicious fluffy interior.

More Breakfast Recipes To Consider

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