Light, fluffy, and super delicious, these German Pancake Muffins are a delightful spin on your classic breakfast pancakes. Think of them as a cross between a souffle and an omelet, and packing in the perfect sweetness of your favorite pancakes. You only need a few minutes and a handful of pantry staples to put them together, and they’re customizable too!
We’re a pancake-loving household, so of course, I love to keep trying and experimenting with new pancake recipes every now and then.
My fruity pebbles pancakes, classic banana pancakes, and chocolate banana pancake pops have been the most popular, but I really felt like trying something different, but nothing too fancy and time-consuming.
And that’s when I thought of this recipe, a simple pancake batter fluffed up, poured into muffin tins, and baked until golden brown.
Why You’ll Love This German Pancake Muffins Recipe
- Customizable: These classic mini pancakes give you lots of flexibility with the toppings and mix-ins.
- Family-friendly: Simple and delicious, they’re sure to be a total hit with everyone in the house.
- Quick recipe: With just 5-6 basic ingredients and a few minutes of kitchen time, you’ll be able to make these mini German pancakes.
- Fun breakfast: Since they come together so quickly, they’re great to make on holidays and special occasions too!
Ingredients
- Eggs: I used large eggs here. Lots of eggs, because they’re what will make these mini pancake muffins fluffy!
- Flour: Just your regular all-purpose flour.
- Milk: To loosen the batter and for that rich, creamy flavor.
- Vanilla: For that delightful flavor and dash of sweetness.
- Butter: Use salted butter to lend the muffin mixture that bit of moisture. If you’re using unsalted butter, add a pinch of salt to the muffin batter.
- Toppings: Get creative and choose from toppings like fresh fruit, whipped cream, honey, maple syrup, icing sugar, and even chocolate.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations
- Gluten-free: Use brown rice flour, tapioca flour, or any other gluten-free flour of your choice instead of your regular flour.
- Zesty: Love the zesty, fruity flavors of summer? Add some lemon or orange zest to the pancake batter!
- Fall-inspired: Add a dash of cinnamon powder or pumpkin pie spice into the batter to make these muffin tin pancakes fall-inspired.
- Chocolate-y: To make chocolatey pancake muffins, add some semisweet chocolate chips into the batter, or drizzle some Nutella (I love using my homemade chocolate hazelnut spread) or just some classic chocolate syrup on the top.
How to Make German Pancake Muffins
Start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees and greasing your muffin pan with cooking spray or butter.
Step 1: Prepare pancake mixture. Combine eggs, flour, milk, salt, and vanilla in a large bowl.
Step 2: Drop in the butter. Into the mixture, little by little, add the butter and keep whisking until you get a smooth mixture.
Step 3: Pour-pour. Pour this runny batter into the muffin pan sections until they’re just around halfway full.
Step 4: Bake and top. Bake for around 15 minutes or until they’re golden brown and fluffy.
Hint: Make sure you preheat the oven before you add to the muffin tray. The batter should ideally hit high temperatures quickly, which is what will help it rise.
If you love recipes like this, you may also enjoy my Chocolate German Pancake and our new Fluffy Cloud Eggs recipe!
Storage
- Storing: Store your leftovers in the refrigerator. Simply move them to an airtight container and pop them in. They should stay good for 2 days.
- Freezing: You can freeze these muffin tin pancakes if you want them to last longer. Simply wrap them in some plastic wrap, or transfer them to a freezer-safe container or bag, and freeze them for up to a month.
- Reheating: To reheat the German pancake muffins, simply get them out and let them rest until they’ve come to room temperature. Pop them on a baking sheet, cover them loosely with tin foil, and then bake in a preheated oven for around 10 minutes.
Serving Suggestions
These German pancakes are a total delight on their own when topped with chocolate, fresh fruit, or any other sweet toppings. If you need some inspiration about topping ideas, you might want to check out my detailed post about the best toppings for pancakes.
I personally love drizzling some of my pecan butter syrup or banana syrup over the top, and sometimes also sprinkle some crunchy chopped nuts. If you still need some ideas to pair these pancake mini muffins with, refer to my post about some good sides for pancakes.
Recipe Tips
- Grease well: Make sure you grease your non-stick muffin pans well. Use butter or cooking spray to ensure that the muffin batter doesn’t stick to the sides, and comes off easily.
- Choose sweet: Since we’re not using any sugar here to sweeten the actual pancake mix, you’ll want to choose toppings and mix-ins that have a bit of sweetness to them.
- Use a blender: To make things quicker, you can also choose to make the pancake mixture in a blender. Remember to avoid over-mixing the batter though.
- Top right: Make sure you wait for a few minutes and allow the muffins to deflate and cool down before you top them with the toppings of your choice. They should ideally be hot, but not warm when you’re adding the toppings.
Recipe FAQs
Look for the sides of the muffins around the 12-15 minute mark. They should look slightly golden brown, and the muffins should look fluffy.
It’s natural! These pancake muffins are bound to deflate once they cool down. They’re still delicious though!
More Delicious Breakfast Recipes
Mini German Pancake Video
We made a video so you could see just how easy they are to make.
Ready to get cooking? Remember that you can print this recipe if you would like.
Mini German Pancakes
Ingredients
- 6 large eggs
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup butter, melted
- butter or cooking spray
- any additional pancake toppings you can think of
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Prepare your 12 hole muffin pan with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large sized bowl combine eggs, flour, milk, salt and vanilla. Blend until totally smooth. Add butter a little at a time until incorporated. Make sure there are no lumps.
- Pour patter into each muffin hole until each is about ½ way full. Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden and puffed up.
- Fill each mini German pancake with jam, fresh fruit, syrup, chocolate chips and bananas or anything else you can think of. We also have a list of pancake topping ideas for you to investigate, if desired. And, if you need some inspiration, check out this what to serve with pancakes post!
Video
Notes
- Grease well: Make sure you grease your non-stick muffin pans well. Use butter or cooking spray to ensure that the muffin batter doesn’t stick to the sides, and comes off easily.
- Choose sweet: Since we’re not using any sugar here to sweeten the actual pancake mix, you’ll want to choose toppings and mix-ins that have a bit of sweetness to them.
- Use a blender: To make things quicker, you can also choose to make the pancake mixture in a blender. Remember to avoid overmixing the batter though.
- Top right: Make sure you wait for a few minutes and allow the muffins to deflate and cool down before you top them with the toppings of your choice. They should ideally be hot, but not warm when you’re adding the toppings.
Nutrition
This post was originally published in October 2017. It has been updated with new content and images.
C Gunz says
Can these be made ahead and frozen ?
Karin and Ken says
In my experience these pancakes are best served fresh, like so many things, and I always try to serve these fresh myself. That being said you can make them ahead of time and keep them in an airtight container inside your fridge for up to two days. When freezing I recommend wrapping each piece in plastic wrap and placing them all into an airtight container or resealable freezer bag, with as much air removed as possible, for up to a month. To reheat place the amount you need on your counter for at least 15 minutes to defrost or get to room temperature. Place them on to your baking sheet or in to your muffin pan and cover them loosely with tinfoil. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and bake for about 10 minutes or heated through. I don't recommend a microwave but it will work if it is a necessity. The pancakes will harden and have a funny texture fast if microwaved. I will add this to the post now. Thank you for bringing the lack of information to my attention. I am grateful and I hope you enjoy these pancakes as much as I do! All the best. Karin
Mary says
Kids loved making and eating these! Great idea. Thank you.
Karin and Ken says
They are perfect for kids! Also adults too. You made my day! Thanks for letting me know! I love to hear. Take care. Karin.
Mary says
This recipe is amazing. We filled the cups with canned fruit, whipped cream and syrup. Thank you for sharing.
Karin and Ken says
Great and easy combination! They are delicious! All the best. Karin
arline kay says
How many does this make - you give no indication!
Karin and Ken says
We are making this recipe again on Friday and will have to let you know then. I can’t remember. I used to make this recipe all the time but haven’t made it recently. I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. The video we are making will hopefully sort all of this out. Thanks and take care. Karin
Karin and Ken says
24! The video will be posted shortly! They are so tasty! No matter what you fill them with! All the best. Karin