Blueberry Lemon Pancakes

Good morning, Sunshine! Start the day right with a short stack of delicious, Blueberry Lemon Pancakes. Loaded with berries and bursting with flavor, they are a delicious morning meal.

Whether you serve them hot at the table or make them as a Meal Prep Breakfast, you’ll want to have these Blueberry Lemon Pancakes on repeat all year long. Serve them with Homemade Spicy Turkey Sausage Patties for a complete breakfast or for fun, make pancakes for dinner.

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Pancakes can be ultimate comfort food. I mean, entire restaurants are dedicated to pancakes, and believe it or not, civilizations through the ages have enjoyed these delicious flat cakes. It’s even a tradition to Make Pancakes for Mardi Gras!

Ancient Rome topped them with honey; Elizabethan England flavored pancakes with rosewater; Early American settlers poured on the molasses. Crepe, blin, johnny cake, panne-quaiques — they’re all good.

And they’re especially good when made with whole grains and dotted with juicy blueberries and scented with lemon zest!

For over twenty years, pancakes have been a regular on our family menu. However, here’s a little secret, after awhile this mama got a little tired of measuring after being up all night with a baby and up early with hungry toddlers. I needed a way to make pancakes and keep my sanity, too.

Make them ahead of time! Whether you mix up a few batches of the dry ingredients to stir up later or fully bake and freeze your pancakes, you can enjoy Blueberry Lemon Pancakes whenever you want!

Why Make This

They are a simple make-ahead meal. Anytime you can prep foods in advance you will save yourself time and money. Do it for pancakes and enjoy a great start to the day.

They are delicious. These Blueberry Lemon Pancakes are so packed with flavor, you won’t need syrup and a fork. They can be eaten out of hand on the go!

Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make Blueberry Lemon Pancakes:

whole wheat flour – I like using whole wheat flour in this recipe to make them more nutritious. I recommend keeping your whole wheat flour in the freezer. That way I can buy in bulk and extend the shelf life. And if you buy generic it’s another great way to save some money on your groceries. If whole wheat isn’t something you want to keep on hand, substitute more all-purpose flour.

unbleached, all-purpose flour – To keep the pancakes light, I use all-purpose flour as well.

whole grains – I add cornmeal and rolled oats to these pancakes to increase their nutrient density. I promise they won’t taste “healthy”. There are so many great oat recipes for you to try after this one!

sugar – A little bit of sugar helps round out the flavor of these Blueberry Lemon Pancakes. You can use granulated sugar, brown sugar, or Sucanat.

leavening – You’ll need baking powder, baking soda, and salt in this homemade pancake mix.

buttermilk – This helps the pancakes rise light and fluffy. You can culture buttermilk yourself or buy it at the store. If you’re in a pinch, you can combine equal parts milk and yogurt as a baking substitution. Note: you can freeze buttermilk if you have extra.

neutral oil – You can use melted butter for richer pancakes, but a neutral oil like avocado is just as good.

eggs – You’ll need two eggs for these. If you’re out of eggs, you can use a Flaxseed Meal Egg Substitute. The texture won’t be quite the same, but the pancakes will still be delicious. If you’re interested in avoiding eggs, be sure to try my Eggless Pancakes.

lemon zest – Lemon is a great accent to blueberries. You can use dehydrated lemon zest from the spice aisle or zest a fresh lemon yourself. Remember you can freeze lemons, both the zest and the juice.

blueberries – You can use fresh or frozen blueberries. If the latter, be sure not to thaw them. Just add them at the very end so as not to turn the batter too purple. Got leftover blueberries? Try them in Easy Blueberry Pie or Blueberry Muffins with Buttermilk.

Take the lemon flavor over the top with Lemon Sauce as a pancake topping!

Step-by-Step Instructions

Here’s how to make Blueberry Lemon Pancakes:

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flours, cornmeal, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, whisking to combine.

2. In another mixing bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and lemon zest. Whisk well to combine.

3. Add the dry mixture to the wet ingredients as well as the blueberries. Stir just until mixed. Some lumps are okay.

4. Oil a griddle or skillet lightly and heat until a few droplets of water dance on the surface. Scoop the pancake batter in scant ¼ cup portions onto the hot griddle. Once small bubbles form and pop on the surface of the pancake, flip and continue cooking until golden brown.

Serve the pancakes with butter and syrup if desired or enjoy out of hand on the go.

Make-Ahead Instructions

To meal prep pancakes: Cool the pancakes on a wire rack. Once cooled, transfer to meal prep containers. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Reheat in the microwave, oven, toaster, or air fryer. Consume within four days.

To make as a mix: Take a large ziptop bag or container and label it with the wet ingredients to add later as well as the baking instructions. Measure out the dry ingredients into the bag. Seal and store until ready to use.

To make pancakes to freeze: you can freeze cooked and cooled pancakes. Just wrap short stacks in plastic wrap and place in a ziptop freezer bag.

More Great Breakfasts

This post was originally published on October 18, 2010. It has been updated for content and clarity.