Whole Wheat Pancakes
These whole wheat pancakes are delicious and fluffy, with a hint of cinnamon. They’re naturally sweetened with maple syrup instead of sugar. So good!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 30, 2024
Somehow, I’ve neglected to share a basic whole wheat pancake recipe. I’m remedying that today with these delightfully light and fluffy, 100 percent whole wheat pancakes!
If you’re looking for a go-to pancake recipe, this is it. Drizzle these cakes with maple syrup or go wild with toppings. They’re great either way.
These made-from-scratch pancakes put Bisquick pancakes to shame. Plus, these pancakes don’t send my blood sugar for a loop like regular pancakes made with all-purpose flour, especially when I top them with a dab of protein-rich peanut butter or almond butter.
I know that whole wheat flour has a reputation for producing bitter baked goods, but here’s the deal—if your whole wheat goods taste bitter, it’s because your flour has gone bad. Whole wheat flour is more apt to go rancid than all-purpose because it contains the good-for-you, naturally-occurring oil present in whole grains.
Fresh whole wheat flour is mildly nutty in flavor and delicious. I’ll spare you my spiel about the industrial revolution and how flour mills advanced to produce all-purpose flour that had a longer shelf life more suitable for slow railway transportation across the United States. Pancakes for dinner, anyone?
Whole Wheat Pancake Tips
For an undetectable “whole wheat” taste, use white whole wheat flour, which is simply made from wheat berries that are even more mild in flavor. I’m usually able to find white whole wheat flour in decently stocked grocery stores these days.
To prolong your whole wheat flour’s shelf life, store it in an air-tight container in a dark, dry place (or even the refrigerator or freezer).
Always make pancakes by hand (not with an electric mixer). Over-mixing the batter yields rubbery pancakes. Simply combine the wet and dry ingredients as instructed. Stir them together with a big spoon until no big powdery lumps remain.
If you’re cooking on the stovetop, you may need to dial back the heat a bit over time. Your temperature is too high if the pancakes are golden on the outside but still raw on the inside.
Lightly coat your griddle or skillet with butter or coconut oil in between batches. Be sure to wipe off the excess butter/oil with a paper towel so it doesn’t burn.
The pancakes are ready to flip when about 1/2-inch of the perimeter has turned from glossy to matte. If you’re uncertain, it’s best to wait a little too long than to end up with a doughy mess.
Watch How to Make Whole Wheat Pancakes
More 100% Whole Wheat Pancakes to Try
- Banana Pancakes
- Gingerbread Pancakes
- Pancake Mix: A bulk option for these pancakes!
- Pumpkin Pancakes
- Super Simple Vegan Pancakes
Please let me know how your pancakes turn out in the comments! I love hearing from you. View all of my pancakes here.
Whole Wheat Pancakes
These whole wheat pancakes are delicious and fluffy, with a hint of cinnamon. They’re naturally sweetened with maple syrup instead of sugar. I like to serve mine with almond butter and sliced bananas on top. This recipe yields 6 to 7 medium pancakes, enough for 2 to 3 servings (multiply as necessary).
Ingredients
- 1 cup milk of choice
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or distilled white vinegar
- 1 cup white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a 2-cup liquid measuring cup, combine the milk and vinegar. Stir to combine and let this homemade “buttermilk” mixture rest until it is lightly curdled, at least 5 minutes.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
- To the buttermilk mixture, add the egg, melted butter, maple syrup, and vanilla. Whisk until thoroughly blended.
- Pour the liquid mixture into the flour mixture. Stir just until combined (a few small lumps are okay). Let the batter rest for 5 minutes so your pancakes will be nice and fluffy.
- Meanwhile, if you are using an electric skillet, preheat it to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Otherwise, heat a heavy cast iron skillet or nonstick griddle over medium-low heat. You’re ready to start cooking pancakes once a drop of water sizzles on contact with the hot surface. If necessary, lightly oil the cooking surface with additional butter, oil, or cooking spray (nonstick surfaces likely won’t require any oil).
- Gently stir the batter one last time, in case the liquid has separated. Using a ⅓-cup measuring cup, scoop batter onto the warm skillet, leaving a couple of inches around each pancake for expansion.
- Cook until small bubbles form on the surface of the pancakes, 2 to 3 minutes (you’ll know it’s ready to flip when about ½-inch of the perimeter is matte instead of glossy). Flip the pancakes, then cook until lightly golden on both sides, 1 to 2 minutes more.
- Repeat the process with the remaining batter, adding more oil and adjusting the heat as necessary. Serve the pancakes immediately with toppings of your choosing, or keep them warm in a 200 degree Fahrenheit oven.
- Leftover pancakes can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or frozen* for up to 2 months. To reheat, stack leftover pancakes and wrap them in a paper towel before gently reheating in the microwave.
Notes
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
The best whole wheat pancake I’ve come across so far! Others have been dry and flavorless, not so with this one. It’s moist and has the right amount of flavoring that we ate them plain right as they were coming out of the pan. Although one recipe of this doesn’t make a lot, you could easily double it. I did this recipe exactly and it turned out beautifully. Definitely using this again. Thanks for sharing!
That’s awesome! I’m glad this met your expectations and you will make this one again. Enjoy!
They were delicious. Added chopped walnuts and blueberries. Very proud of myself! Thank You for great recipe
Sounds delicious, Alan! Thanks for your comment.
Lightest, fluffiest pancakes ever!!
I agree! Thanks for your comment, Stephanie.
These pancakes are awesome! I have EXTREMELY PICKY eaters. I dared not tell them that it was a new recipe (from scratch, not from a box!)! I called them to come down for breakfast and they DEVOURED them!! Thank you so much!!
That’s a win! Thanks, Kelley for sharing!
hands down my new favorite pancake recipe. i used whole foods organic whole wheat flour. they came out fluffy and so delicious. thank you!
I love to hear you got such a fluffy result, Dani! Thanks for sharing.
LOVE IT. It’s a keeper.
Thank you so much for sharing!
You’re welcome, Gabriela! I’m happy you liked it.
I haven’t made pancakes in a really long time. I just don’t eat them anymore. So when my 2 little granddaughters wanted pancakes for breakfast I decided I would look up a healthy recipe and hope for the best. I tried yours because I had already tried one of your muffin and chocolate chip cookie recipes and they were really really good. Anyway these are probably the best pancakes I’ve ever made or had for that matter. We added chocolate chips to the pancakes after we had poured them onto the pan to create designs. Next time I will add blueberries to the batter and a lemon curd to pour onto cooked pancakes.
I’m glad you loved them! Thank you for your review, Elizabeth.
wow!! I used spelt flour and they came out absolutely perfect, so fluffy and delicious! Thank you for the great recipe! :)
Hooray! I love that, Isabella!
Awesome as always! I added walnuts and blueberries to mine. Thanks Cookie and Kate!
Thanks for sharing, Shannon! I bet walnuts were a nice touch.
I make a lot of pancakes so I was excited to try these. I made these this morning. The flavor is great, and I love that they use whole wheat flour and oats. I think the flavor is spot on. The texture isn’t so great though. I let them rest while my griddle heated up, which takes about 10-15 minutes, which is about the normal rest that I do when making pancakes. I think either the ratio of liquid is a little off (too little), or the oats start soaking up the liquid during the rest, because while they were quite risen and fluffy, they were to the point of being too much – the texture was more bread-y than pancake-y. The batter was thick, and did thicken during the rest, which the recipe called for. I honestly think the oats are what caused them to be so thick. My kid gobbled them up, and they were worth a try, but I don’t think I’ll repeat them.
I’m sorry you didn’t love these. Thanks for your feedback, Vida.
I’ve made a lot of whole wheat pancakes over the past month or so trying to find a recipe that hits the mark. This is it. Delicious! My batter seemed a bit too runny so I added a touch more flour. The flavor, texture, fluffiness – all perfect. The search is over; this is the only whole wheat pancake recipe I’ll use moving forward. Thank you!
I’m sorry it seemed runny to you! I’m glad it ended working out.
These were so good. The flavor was awesome, I liked the milk/apple cider trick too! This one is going into my favorites list.
Love that this is a new favorite. Thanks for sharing, Scott!
If you sub flaxseed for the egg, are you just mixing it in dry and not making an “egg”?
You will want it to be the mixture with the water. You can either make your own, or buy them at the grocery store. I hope that helps!
This is my first time visiting your site and I’m so impressed with this recipe. I couldn’t find my all purpose flour and had a new bottle of maple syrup I was dying to crack, so I got down to making this – hardly took and time and it was honestly so so yummy. Didn’t think whole wheat pancakes could taste this good! The maple syrup, vanilla essence and butter really added a lot of flavour and moisture.
Welcome, Caroline! Thanks for your feedback. I appreciate the review!
Mine turned out a little flat – not as fluffy as I’d like but still ok. We found them too sweet, though. Wondering if I can cut the honey to 1 tbsp and have them turn out well?
I’m sorry they didn’t turn out perfect! Make sure you let them cook long enough before you flip them. That should be ok! Let me know how it goes when you try it.
I made these this morning for my 7 month old baby and they were a hit (note: I enjoyed them as much as she did)! I added blueberries and left out the honey/maple syrup. Looking forward to leftovers tomorrow and will definitely make them again and again and again (we might have a new Sunday morning pancake tradition on our hands).
Great to hear! Thanks for your review, Daphne.
I’m not a huge pancake fan but for some reason wanted pancakes this morning so naturally I turned to you. I had some blueberries that I added and they were so delicious, so light and fluffy.
I’m glad you loved these, Sandra!
I make pancakes quite frequently for my family and these are just awesome! I have tried many many pancake recipes but was just never truly impressed. I can see I am impressed by these! So good! Especially with some chocolate chips or blueberries!
I’m so happy you loved them, Audrey! Thanks for sharing.
This has become my go to pancake recipe. My family loves it, all four kids and husband included as well as grandparents, aunts, uncles and sleepover friends. Easy and delicious, what more could you ask for?
Great to hear, Sarah! Thanks for your review.
Best pancake recipe I have tried. Like this even better than buckwheat pancakes. Even my hubby who hates pancakes asked for seconds. Added blueberries and raspberries…YUMMY!! Will definitely make again and share….
I’m happy to hear he even loved them! Thanks for sharing, Melonie.
Thank you for the recipe-texture was great but I found it tasted a bit like baking soda. If I make them again I will only use the baking powder
Hi Michelle, I’m sorry you didn’t love these. Did you use fresh and aluminum free?
So I’m usually a waffle person if I’m going to have stuff like this for breakfast – but OMG I LOVE THESE!!!
I’ve made these 3 days in a row for my kids and we are obsessed. I love that there is no sugar in them! We’ve experimented a bit with the recipe using coconut oil instead of butter and almond milk. I like it best with regular milk but coconut oil works just fine.
Thanks for the great recipe Kate!
Hooray!! You’re welcome, Trilby!
Would it work to add chocolate chips?
Awesome pancake recipe that I’ve used with gluten free flour as well as regular and whole wheat! I even substituted water for the milk the other day (ran out of milk) and they came out excellent! Sometimes I also add pumpkin or banana. Very versatile recipe!
We just finished breakfast and I couldn’t wait to tell you…these are amazingly delicious! I used coconut oil instead of butter and used almond milk with apple cider vinegar. Halfway through we added tiny, fresh Maine blueberries. Thank you for offering this healthier alternative to one of our favorite breakfast treats.
Marlene
Hello,
Another brilliant healthy recipe from your website. I have tried so many pancakes with only whole wheat flour or mixing all purpose flour and whole wheat flour , and only white flour ones. But none of them are as fluffy and good as these!! Love love love ! And when we don’t have buttermilk easily available every time ..you have solved that problem too!! This will be my go to recipe for my pancake hungry kids ! Just one question- though every ingredient here is Super healthy but is there any substitute for baking powder and baking soda here? Are they ok for kids? Kindly let me know if there is. Thanks and grateful ❤️
Hi Kriti! I’m so happy you like them. I don’t see why kiddos can’t enjoy these. I’m not a doctor or nutritionist to speak directly to your question, but I know several kids who love these!
I just made these this morning, and they were great. Fluffy, not too sweet, and guilt-free with the healthy and all-natural ingredients. Thank you!
Yum! I made these for my toddler when he demanded pancakes this morning after days of having a tummy bug and YUM!
I have made this recipe several times and we made waffles instead of pancakes in my waffle maker. My whole family including young kids loves it and I make the bulk recipe of the dry mix and we make a double recipe so I can have some for a few days and we reheat then in my toaster. It’s so easy and the kids love them! My next attempt will be with the vegan substitutions, as we are trying to change over. So, I am excited to see how that goes! Great recipe and works great as waffles as well!
I’m happy to hear that, Kerri! Thank you for sharing. I love the toaster idea!
Delicious!! We used flax meal as an egg substitute because I didn’t have any – 1 TBS Flax Meal + 3 TBS water (stir and let sit alongside the milk + vinegar for 5 minutes before combining). These pancakes are so fluffy and light for whole wheat! Love them.
Thank you for sharing, Jillian!
Delicious! Melt in your mouth good! Thought I was eating them in a breakfast house. Thanks for sharing.
I’ve been looking for a good whole wheat pancake recipe that turned out fluffy, and so many that we tried were duds. These were amazing! So light and fluffy, and the hint of cinnamon was delicious! Probably the best pancake recipe I’ve made, whole wheat or not.
Excellent recipe!!! Light and fluffy. I added chopped pecans and cubes of pear….amazing!
Sounds like a great idea! Thank you for sharing.
Delightful! I was thrown off by how fluffy the batter was, but my family and I think these are the best pancakes ever! Definitely make sure the griddle temp is med/low since they are thick and take a little longer to cook through than normal pancakes.
Thanks for sharing, Stacey!
I’m so happy I found your recipe; the pancakes were perfect! I’ve been trying to make all my baked goods using white whole wheat flour. Your recipe will fit in quite nicely ~ thank you!
so yummy! I have had these for brekkie everyday this week!
Just tried these for the first time, love the touch of cinnamon. Will definitely be my go to recipe. Most recipes I found used buttermilk, which I never have on hand, the milk/vinegar blend works great. I remember my mother always making that substitution for buttermilk.
I’m glad you found them and loved them, Mary! I appreciate your review and comment.
The taste of baking powder overwhelmed. I forgot to include sweetener in batter, perhaps that’s why? (I also used mostly heavy cream instead of milk in order to use it up. I usually make pancakes vegan and was excited to use a real egg and real butter and real dairy…nice and fluffy but not great flavor. )
Hi Gerorg, I’m sorry to hear that! The change in ingredients may have played a role. Did you use aluminum free baking powder?
Thanks for a good recipe. I liked the way the mix of grains ended up with a nutty tasting pancake. The pancakes were good and filling, and I felt like I was definitely eating a healthy meal.
AMAZING!!!
Thank you, Danielle!
My kids are devouring these right now! They turned out great! Thanks for another winner!
You’re welcome, Kina!
Absolutely delicious! My toddler, husband and I devoured a whole batch.
Great to hear, Katie!
Great recipe! Always looking for ways to use our whole wheat flour stash. This one is definitely a keeper. The cinnamon is a nice touch. I substituted canola oil for the butter and Truvia for the sweet; also used imitation vanilla (apologies to the purests among your readers). Thanks so much for making the recipe available on line.
These whole wheat pancakes were absolutely delicious.. probably the best I ever tasted. My husband would not even consider eating whole wheat pancakes in a restaurant. But he loved these. He was amazed at how light and fluffy they were. I used honey rather than syrup and apple cider vinegar in 2 percent milk. (Next time I will try almond milk which is what I prefer but did not want to push my luck with my husband). It’s such a simple recipe. Can’t wait to make them again with my daughter.
I have gone to internet recipes frequently and yours is the most complete I have ever read. You give all the tiny details of what to look for and the how to from beginning to end adding all the possible substitutions or changes anyone might want to make. Thank you for your efficiency.
Thank you, Ruthye!
I was out of regular flour so thought I’d give these a try. I’ve loved every Cookie and Kate recipe I’ve tried so far – and this one did not disappoint either. So delicious and fluffy! My 4 and 5 year old boys said these were the best pancakes ever – even better than any other I normally make them with regular ol’ white flour. I’ll definitely be making these again!
I just made these pancakes this morning and they were a hit! Thank you so much.
Thank you for sharing, Natalie! I’m happy they were a hit.
I have the pickiest eaters who can taste a gram of whole wheat from a mile away…. they loved these!!!! I made with what I had on hand—almond milk, coconut oil instead of butter, and mixed reg whole wheat flour with ww pastry flour. These were fluffy and light and delicious. They were a little flatter than the picture but 2 kids polished off the whole batch so I don’t think that affected anything! Thank you!!!
Kate, I am a true follower of yours. I love so many of your recipes. You not only make them consciously with healthy, wholesome ingredients, but you have the knack of bringing out flavor. This is what I feel is difficult for the average person like myself who enjoys cooking but needs a little extra guidance with flavors. Thank you SO much for what you do!
Hello Kate..
I have tried an eggless – whole wheat pancake recipe before but after trying your recipe i am big fan of these pancakes now. My kids loved them!!
They turned out to be so soft and fluffy.. loved them