Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes
Jump to Recipe
Make these refined sugar free lemon poppyseed pancakes a part of your weekend brunch rotation! A super zingy and delightful twist on regular American-style pancakes, these fluffy beauties are loaded up with poppy seeds and fresh lemon flavour and naturally sweetened with honey. You’ll love them stacked with layers of homemade lemon curd, fluffy whipped cream, and fresh blueberries!
Table of Contents
- A healthier twist on lemon poppyseed pancakes
- Main ingredients in lemon poppyseed pancakes
- How to make lemon poppyseed pancakes
- Do you cook pancakes on a high or low heat?
- Why aren’t my pancakes fluffy?
- How to store lemon poppyseed pancakes
- Tips for making this recipe perfectly
- More refined sugar free brunch ideas for spring
Grab the Ultimate Guide to Natural Sweeteners Substitutions for FREE!
By subscribing you agree to our privacy policy
No spam ever – that's a promise!
A healthier twist on lemon poppyseed pancakes
There’s a 5-year long battle of the pancakes going on in my home. On one side, there’s me: lover of fluffy, cloud-like pancakes that hail from North America. Usually topped with a few slices of crispy bacon and a pool of maple syrup.
On the other side there’s my partner, Chris: he prefers buttery, thin, European crepe-style pancakes, preferably sprinkled with sugar and lemon.
So these lemon poppyseed pancakes right here? This is what we call an armistice. A meeting of the minds, if you will. These babies are incredibly fluffy and cake-like and feature that zippy-sweet tang synonymous with lemon poppyseed.
To make this decadent brunch a bit healthier, these pancakes are naturally sweetened with honey instead of refined sugar, and are completely butter-free. Instead, we’re using Greek yoghurt and coconut oil to provide the fat content and keep them light!
Main ingredients in lemon poppyseed pancakes
- Flour: We’re using plain flour for these lemon poppyseed pancakes because it makes them super light and fluffy. However, I’ve also had great success using half whole wheat and half plain, if that’s more your style.
- Milk: Like all the wet ingredients, milk helps the flour to dissolve and provide the liquid structure of the pancakes. Cow’s milk will give the pancakes better flavour and a softer texture because it has the extra fat content, but plant-based milk will also work. They may not be as tender.
- Eggs: Large free-range eggs provide the main structure for our pancakes to allow them to rise. The yolk of the eggs also gives the pancakes a little extra richness and flavour.
- Lemon: Couldn’t have lemon poppyseed pancakes without lemon, could we? We’re using both the zest and juice for optimum zing!
- Poppy seeds: These little guys are just plain fun and had a lovely flavour to the pancakes.
Other Ingredients
While those are the main ingredients in our pancakes, we also need the following few things to finish them:
- Honey
- Greek yoghurt
- Coconut oil
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Sea salt
- Refined Sugar Free Lemon Curd
- Refined Sugar Free Whipped Cream
- Fresh blueberries
How to make lemon poppyseed pancakes
Making these healthier lemon poppyseed pancakes is easy as pie! Here’s how to get super zippy and fluffy pancakes:
- Whisk together the wet ingredients in a medium bowl.
- Sift in the dry ingredients and whisk until all the flour disappears, but it’s still a little lumpy. Let the batter sit for 5-10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat a large non-stick skillet heating on the hob. Once the batter is ready and the pan is hot, drop a ladle of batter into the pan. Allow them to cook for a minute on the first side or until bubbly on top and golden underneath. Flip the pancake and let it cook until golden.
- Set the pancake aside and repeat the process for the rest of the batter.
Full details are in the recipe card at the end of this post.
Do you cook pancakes on a high or low heat?
Ideally you want the temperature to be around 190°C (375°F). This will result in fluffy pancakes – cook them too low and they will be tough, too high and they will burn. If you don’t have a temperature controlled griddle, it’s always best to start out on a medium-high heat and adjust from there.
Grab the Ultimate Guide to Natural Sweeteners Substitutions for FREE!
By subscribing you agree to our privacy policy
No spam ever – that's a promise!
Why aren’t my pancakes fluffy?
Flat pancakes could result from many things, but here are the most common mistakes:
- Your baking powder/soda was out of date. Always check the date on the container and test it to make sure it’s still active.
- You mixed the batter too much. Over-mixing the batter will develop the gluten in the flour and make your pancakes chewy, not fluffy. I find it’s best to stop whisking once the flour streaks have disappeared, but there are still a few lumps.
- Your pan wasn’t hot enough. Pancakes need a semi-high heat to activate the leaveners in the batter, so it’s usually better to start out higher and bring the temperature down.
How to store lemon poppyseed pancakes
These lemon poppyseed pancakes are best eaten the day they are made when they’re still warm. However, if you want to save some for another day, simply wrap the pancakes in a layer of foil and refrigerate them. They will keep for 2-3 days.
Tips for making this recipe perfectly
- Don’t over-mix your batter. Trust me when I say that lumps are a good thing! If you over-mix your batter, the gluten in the flour will develop too much and the pancakes will be flat and gummy.
- Let the batter sit. Letting the batter rest while you heat up the pan will allow the gluten to relax as well as let the baking soda have time to react with the lemon juice to produce more airy pancakes.
- Flip once you see bubbles. Ideally, you want to flip the pancakes the moment you start to see a bunch of bubbles forming on the top. Check the bottom at this point and if it’s golden, flip! If your pan is hot enough, the lemon poppyseed pancakes should only take about 90 seconds per cake to cook.
More refined sugar free brunch ideas for spring
Strawberry Porridge
Pesto Breakfast Hash with Prosciutto & Bocconcini
Cherry Almond Smoothie
Overnight Strawberry French Toast Bake
Blueberry Scones with Cardamom Glaze
Pesto Chicken Rolls
Mini Lemon Lavender Cakes
Green Pina Colada Smoothie
Almond Pancakes with Spiced Peach Syrup
Grab the Ultimate Guide to Natural Sweeteners Substitutions for FREE!
By subscribing you agree to our privacy policy
No spam ever – that's a promise!
If you make this recipe, let me know by snapping a picture and tagging me on Instagram @naturallysweet_kitchen. I love seeing your creations and sharing them in my Stories. Or let me know you love this lemon poppyseed pancakes recipe by leaving a comment and rating below!
Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes
Make these refined sugar free lemon poppyseed pancakes a part of your weekend brunch rotation! A super zingy and delightful twist on regular American-style pancakes, these fluffy beauties are loaded up with poppy seeds and fresh lemon flavour and naturally sweetened with honey. You’ll love them stacked with layers of homemade lemon curd, fluffy whipped cream, and fresh blueberries!
Ingredients
- 125 ml milk
- 60 g Greek yoghurt
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
- 1 ½ tbsp honey
- 1 ½ tbsp lemon juice (about ½ medium lemon)
- ½ tbsp lemon zest (about ½ medium lemon)
- 100 g plain flour
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ½ tbsp poppy seeds
- 1 batch Refined Sugar Free Lemon Curd, for serving (see notes for link)
- ½ batch Refined Sugar Free Whipped Cream, for serving (see notes for link)
- Fresh blueberries, for serving
Method
- Add the milk, yoghurt, egg, coconut oil, honey, lemon juice and zest to a bowl and whisk well to combine.
- Sift in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and poppy seeds. Whisk until all the flour disappears – it’s okay if the batter is a bit lumpy. Let the batter sit for 5-10 minutes to activate.
- Meanwhile, get a large non-stick skillet heating on the hob on a medium heat. Once the batter is ready and the pan is hot, drop 60ml (¼ cup) measures onto the pan. Allow them to cook for 30-60 seconds on the first side or until golden underneath and bubbles start to form on the top. Flip the pancake and let it cook another 15-30 seconds or until golden on the bottom.
- Set the pancake on a wire rack and repeat the process for the rest of the batter. It should make about 8 pancakes.
- Serve immediately with naturally sweetened Lemon Curd (see notes for recipe link), refined sugar free Whipped Cream (see notes for recipe link), and fresh blueberries.
Notes
- These pancakes are best served with Refined Sugar Free Lemon Curd for the best lemony flavour.
- Get the recipe for Refined Sugar Free Whipped Cream here.
- These pancakes are best eaten on the day they are made. However, leftovers will keep wrapped in aluminium foil and refrigerated for up to 3 days. Reheat in a 180°C (350°F) oven for 10 minutes or until hot throughout.
