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Super soft and fluffy Lemon Ricotta Pancakes made from scratch! These lemon pancakes are bursting with flavor and always a hit for breakfast or brunch! Bonus: This recipe is freezer friendly.
Easy Lemon Ricotta Pancakes
Lemon Ricotta Pancakes Recipe
Good morning and happy Sunday! If you’ve been reading my blog for a while now, you probably already know my feelings for pancakes is no fleeting love affair. Over the past 5 years (where does the time go?!) I’ve shared classic recipes like the blueberry pancakes of your dreams and my favorite buttermilk pancakes, as well as crazier combinations like malted chocolate chip banana pancakes and HEALTHY Greek yogurt zucchini pancakes. So many of you have made these pancakes and sing their praises, letting me know I’m not alone in this pancake addiction 😉 ← Thank you for that!
And today, we get a new pancake recipe for the breakfast archive: Lemon Ricotta Pancakes! Each bite is light as air and perfectly flavored with fresh lemon and just a hint of vanilla.
Basically, they’re the breakfast of your dreams ♥♥♥
So let’s get down to business. To make these Lemon Ricotta Pancakes you’ll need all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, fresh lemon juice and zest, eggs, ricotta cheese, milk, and vanilla extract. You’ll also need fresh whipped cream and/or maple syrup for serving. As you can see from my photos, I went the whipped cream route. I also served the pancakes with fresh blueberries for a pop of color, but any berry would be delicious paired with these pancakes.
The batter comes together in just minutes. Due to the nature of ricotta cheese, it will be quite thick, but don’t fret over this. Because once the batter hits the hot griddle, it will puff up and morph into fat, fluffy lemon ricotta pancakes. YUM.
TIP: If you cannot find ricotta cheese where you live, try making your own with my homemade ricotta cheese recipe! It’s surprisingly simple and sooooo delicious. And if you have any leftover, you can always use it to make a blueberry ricotta crumb cake. #winning
How to Keep Lemon Pancakes Warm
My secret for keeping pancakes warm while I cook them all is to preheat the oven to lowest setting and place a large baking sheet inside. As the pancakes are cooked, I transfer them onto the baking sheet. Be sure to use a potholder when removing the pan as it will be very hot!
Freezing Pancakes
Completely cool the pancakes, then place them between layers of waxed paper, then place them in a freezer-safe plastic bag, and pop them in the freezer! They will keep in the freezer for 2 months!
How to Reheat Pancakes
There are two ways you can do this! There’s the microwave method in which you’ll place the frozen pancakes on a microwave-safe plate and heat them in the microwave, uncovered, for 1 to 2 minutes, or until they’re heated through. Then there’s the conventional oven method, in which you’ll arrange the frozen pancakes in a single layer on a cookie sheet, cover with foil, and bake at 375 degrees (F) for 5 to 6 minutes, or until they’re hot and heated through.
Can you think of a better way to wake up?! ↓
More Pancake Recipes:
- Light and Fluffy Chocolate Chip Pancakes
- Fluffy Pumpkin Pancakes
- Eggnog Pancakes
- Banana Blueberry Pancakes
- Cranberry Orange Pancakes
If you try this recipe for Lemon Ricotta Pancakes, let me know what you think! Leave a comment below, and don’t forget to snap a pic and tag it #bakerbynature on instagram!
Lemon Ricotta Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup full-fat ricotta cheese
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoon lemon zest
- Maple syrup or fresh whipped cream, for serving
Instructions
- In a large bowl add the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; whisk well to combine. In a separate bowl add the eggs and lightly beat them with a whisk. Add in the milk, ricotta, and vanilla and beat until well combined. Stir this wet mixture into the dry ingredients, stirring just until everything is combined. Quickly fold in the lemon juice and zest, stirring until evenly combined. Be careful not to over mix the batter.
- Pour batter by 1/3 cupfuls onto a buttered hot pan or griddle, adding only a few at a time so that they do not blend together. Cook for about 3 minutes before flipping them over, or until small bubbles form on top. Cook on the second side until golden brown, about 1-2 minutes. Repeat with all pancake batter. Serve pancakes warm, with syrup or whipped cream. See notes for freezing options.
Thank you for all your helpful tips! I made these this morning with great results. So fluffy and light as air. I served with rasberries and whipped cream.
Hi Many! So happy these pancakes were a success for you. And thanks for letting us know how you served them – sounds so delicious!
I MAKE these all the time, but I use cottage cheese instead,and a sugar substitute. They turn out great.
Hi – can this recipe be halved? Trying to use up leftovers and I am low on eggs – was hoping to use 1 egg. Thanks!
I liberally halve and double recipes with no problem! I’d say yes.
thanks for the question and answer! There’s only 1 of me and sometimes “halved” recipes just don’t work out well!
Tomorrow’s breakfast!
I halved the recipe today because I was down to my last egg and it turned out great. The only adjustment I would make is add a little more lemon…I love lemon though!
I did and they were great!
The best pancake recipe ever! We serve these with fresh blueberry compote. My middle daughter refuses to eat anything else. And my picky 1 year old loves them just as much as she loves the blueberry compote. They freeze really well, so I don’t have any problem making multiple batches. Thanks for such an awesome recipe!
How many pancakes does it makes?
Ricotta cheese in this dish taste out of the world, Ashley! I think that the way we freeze this pancakes is very good to preserve the ricotta cheese ingredient in that dish!
I want to make these a day a head and grill the the next morning can this be done?
Thanks
Soo good. Pinned!!
These pancakes look so tasty!!
I love trying different pancake recipes! I will have to try this one soon!
These are such beautiful pancakes! Yum!
These are absolutely delicious! My new favorite pancake.
The pancakes looked so good, I want to try them.
I doni only have cottage cheese right now , can I use this instead of ricotta cheese? Thanks.
These were really delicious! I paired them with homemade blueberry syrup and it was to die for.
Can you use coconut or almond flour in place of regular flour >
I am wondering the same thing! I am thinking almond flour would be a better bet because coconut flour is iffy sometimes
I am making it for brekky this morning and I loved the recipe! Thank you for sharing
The texture of these pancakes is the so good. We used the zest of a 2 complete lemons rather than 2 teaspoons! I can’t imagine you would taste the lemon with maple syrup otherwise. Looked for this recipe because we had them at a restaurant where they were served with fresh sliced strawberries – what a treat!
We made a lot more than 10 pancakes, making them about 5-6″ diameter, I think 12-16.
I made these at 7000′ with half the baking powder, 1/4 cup of extra flour, and extra milk until it “looked” right.
Lemon ricotta pancakes – love them! got to use the last of my week’s fresh from the farm ricotta. a keeper/go to recipe now for sure. Thanks Ashley
These are delicious! I didn’t have lemons to use the zest but with only lemon juice they were the perfect amount of lemony. Toddler and adult approved! Thanks for the recipe.
These pancakes are outrageously delicious! I topped them with homemade lemon curd, mixed berries, chopped pecans and maple syrup…to die for!
Mixed these up last night for my “boys” to fix for us all this Mother’s Day morning. They were absolutely delish!! Love the wonderful lemony flavor! We ate them with maple syrup and strawberries. Will definitely be keeping it handy for future pancake mornings!
These are my favorite pancakes! I make them whenever we have lemons on hand and I have been known to go out and buy Ricotta just to have an excuse to make these. I love them with berries and a drizzle of syrup. Such a fantastic brunch recipe!
I made this recipe using gluten free flours, whipped the egg whites separately and folded them in at the end. Added blueberries to some. Delicious!
These were good, such an easy recipe. thanks!
Thank you so much for this wonderfull recipe! I think i’m addicted!
I made these last week for my 3 year old and he’s been asking for them (and eating them without any fuss!) every day since then! I’ve served them with a variety of seasonal fruit / berries. Thank you for such a wonderful recipe! This was the first recipe I tried. Next up, we’re trying the marble loaf cake!
I made these this morning and they are soo good! My new favorite. We put blueberries in some and some without & both are delicious. Since we served them with maple syrup they were a little on the sweet side, so when I make them next I’ll probably half the sugar so that they’re not too sweet with maple syrup. But as is they’re super delicious & sweet enough to be eaten plain as a snack. Yum!
Followed the recipe exactly this morning and they were great. We served with fresh raspberries and a dusting of powder sugar.
It was just two of us for breakfast this morning, so we are freezing the rest and looking forward to enjoying them later.
Not into food blogging at all, but holly s*ht these were PHENOMENAL. So light, flavorful, and pretty. I am saving this recipe cause I want to make these for my parents. Was hesitant about not whipping the egg whites but not necessary at all in the recipe. 10/10. Made with raspberries and cant wait to try with other berries.
We enjoyed this pancake recipe very much. The ricotta was a pleasant addition, although I can’t put a finger on how much it changes the texture relative to sour cream, which is what I normally use. The lemon was a lovely, fresh addition to the recipe. I loved adding both the zest and freshly squeezed juice. We served this with raspberry jam and whipped cream.
These pancakes are amazing, she is such an amazing cook. I made this without the ricotta and it was still delicious. They are light and fluffy. I sifted all the dry ingredients. I believe the fresh lemon juice and zest makes a world of a difference. I would even double the lemon zest next time. I halved this recipe and it made 5 good sized pancakes.
These are perfect pancakes and ideal #quarantinecuisine! I unfortunately had no lemon zest due to shopping conditions right now, but they were still amazing. The kind of “fixes everything” meal we all need right now. To die for texture!
These are probably the best pancakes I’ve had. The ricotta makes such a big difference in the texture of the cakes. These cakes are so light and fluffy, the perfect pancake. The lemon is refreshing and delicious. I halved this recipe and it produced 6 good sized pancakes. Thank you for this amazing recipe!
Light, fluffy, and full of flavor! I only had reduced fat milk but it worked just fine. Prepping takes less than 10 minutes and the whole process is just a work of art. Prep the pan on low heat as you prepare the ingredients so it’s a seamless process and keep that oven on low as suggested. We had our pancakes with a berry compote, which made felt like spring! Definitely making this recipe again for future events.
Very delicious!
These pancakes are amazing! I served them with brown butter maple syrup, strawberries, and vanilla whipped cream. So good!
Really good and easy to make! I doubled the amount of lemon zest and juice and used coconut milk instead of regular milk and these turned out great. My husband said they were the best pancakes he’s ever had.
I made these a few years ago & they were delicious. I am going to do them again tomorrow! I originally had lemon ricotta pancakes w/raspberry cream at a local diner (since closed). OMG so wonderful. I couldn’t find a recipe for the topping. I tried to come up w/a version but it was not the same. But the pancakes were great.
RICH at and yummy! Didnt have whole milk so i used 2%. Will make these for company.
Ashley thank you for this recipe…. SCRUMPTIOUS ❣️
These look amazing! Can I use boxed pancake mix and just add the ricotta and milk?
Omg, these are delicious!
I made these with orange zest and juice! So light and delicious!
Tasty but very flat. Didn’t fluff up.
Loved this recipe! The consistency is dense and fluffy at the same time and reminds me of NE diner pancakes that everyone loves. The lemon isn’t overpowering and gives a nice hint of flavor. These pancakes are definitely going into our breakfast rotation.
Fantastic pancakes!! Followed recipe exactly as written! Definitely a keeper!
Had to use up some extra ripe bananas so I switched out the lemon. Then realised the ricotta was too old to use… scrambled around the fridge and used Greek yoghurt instead. Oh em gee amazing!! So fluffy so light, a great recipe 🙂
was wondering what the caloric value for a single 8″ pancake might be for this recipe?
I really enjoyed these! They’re much fluffier than I thought they’d be.
I could do with a little less sugar, but maybe that’s from the maple syrup. I can experiment next time.
I think I’ll add more zest, maybe 2x as much for a more lemony flavor. Of course, that is based on personal preference.
Delicious! And so light!
QUEDTION:. Xan I make the dry ingrdients AHEAD of time and store in the fridge for future use?
O.M.G.!! MY TYPOS!!
Great pancakes!!
I love these pancakes, but I don’t understand why they do not come out light and fluffy? Any advice?
Hi Jan! Are they coming out thin? Or dense? Any additional information would help!
Can they be reheated in a toaster?