These easy Applesauce Pancakes take just 15 minutes to make and are the ideal fall breakfast. I especially love them topped with sautéed apples, but they’re incredibly delicious with just a drizzle of maple syrup on top.
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Applesauce pancakes are exactly what you want when the leaves begin to change colors and it’s a little crisp outside. They smell just like fall!
This recipe is based on my buttermilk pancakes, but I added a fall twist and included a cup of applesauce. If you’ve never thought of applesauce for pancakes before, you’re in for a treat: It adds so much moisture and flavor. You can use store-bought applesauce or whip up Slow Cooker Applesauce from scratch. (Homemade applesauce is the best!)
I love serving these cinnamon applesauce pancakes with even more apples by making sautéed apples for the topping. It’s totally optional, but also totally delicious. I’ll include instructions for the sautéed apples below!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- They’re super quick. These applesauce pancakes are ready in just 15 minutes.
- They’re packed with fall flavor. Applesauce and cinnamon make these pancakes a fantastic fall breakfast.
- Leftovers can be reheated. You can easily reheat leftover pancakes in the microwave, toaster or toaster oven for breakfast the next day or even a snack.
- All-purpose flour: Flour gives the pancakes structure. If you’re gluten-free, try swapping in Cup4Cup Multipurpose Flour for the all-purpose flour.
- Ground cinnamon: One of my favorite spices for adding fall flavor! You could use ground nutmeg instead.
- Light brown sugar: A couple of tablespoons of sugar adds just a little bit of sweetness.
- Applesauce: Applesauce is not only for apple flavor but also for moisture.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk the dry ingredients (flour, cinnamon, baking powder and brown sugar) together.
- Whisk together the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk the wet ingredients (milk, applesauce, egg, vegetable oil and vanilla extract) together.
- Combine the dry and wet ingredients. Add the wet to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined (it should still be lumpy!).
- Cook the pancakes. On a hot nonstick pan or griddle, cook the pancakes on medium-low heat. Flip the pancakes once bubbles form on the top, then cook 1 to 2 minutes more.
- Make the (optional!) topping. If you’re making sautéed apples, do so while the pancakes are cooking so the apples are still warm!
Pro Tip: Use a 1/4-cup measuring cup (or a ladle!) to measure the pancake batter. That way you’ll have evenly-sized pancakes!
- Don’t Overmix: Do not overmix the batter or the pancakes will be dense and flat rather than light and fluffy.
- Add Sautéed Apples: As an optional topping, add 2 tablespoons unsalted butter and 3 tablespoons brown sugar to a sauté pan set over medium-low heat. Once the butter has melted, add sliced apples and cook, stirring, until the apples have softened slightly. The apples are great with easy applesauce pancakes, but also on top of oatmeal or yogurt!
You can store leftover pancakes in an airtight container in the fridge. To reheat the pancakes, you can do so in the microwave, toaster or toaster oven.
Frequently Asked Questions
My Cinnamon Applesauce Pancakes contain just a bit of oil and a full cup of applesauce for added fiber. If you top your pancakes with sautéed apples, that’s even more fruit and fiber!
Because applesauce adds moisture, you can use applesauce to replace eggs. About ¼ cup of applesauce is the equivalent of an egg.
One of my favorite pancake tips is to avoid overmixing pancake batter, which will keep the pancakes light and fluffy. The batter should still be lumpy!
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Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 Tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup applesauce
- 1 large egg
- 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and brown sugar.
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the milk, applesauce, egg, vegetable oil and vanilla extract.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. (The batter should be lumpy.)
- Place a nonstick pan or griddle over medium-low heat. Drop dollops of the batter onto the hot pan. Once bubbles form, flip the pancakes once and continue cooking 1 to 2 more minutes until the pancakes are cooked throughout. Serve immediately with maple syrup or other toppings.
Kelly’s Notes
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- Don’t Overmix: Do not overmix the batter or the pancakes will be dense and flat rather than light and fluffy.
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- Add Sautéed Apples: As an optional topping, add 2 tablespoons unsalted butter and 3 tablespoons brown sugar to a sauté pan set over medium-low heat. Once the butter has melted, add sliced apples and cook, stirring, until the apples have softened slightly. The apples are great with easy applesauce pancakes, but also on top of oatmeal or yogurt!
- ★ Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Nutrition
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Recipe by Kelly Senyei of Just a Taste. Please do not reprint this recipe without my permission. If you'd like to feature this recipe on your site, please rewrite the method of preparation and link to this post as the original source.
I made the cinnamon pancakes with the apples. They were delicious. Every few weeks a make pancake and I like to try different types.
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Jacquie!
These are wonderful. I had some pears that didn’t ripen well, so I made pear sauce out of them and used it instead of applesauce. And I substituted gluten free flour because I have celiac, it worked well. I would add a pinch of salt next time.
Love your swaps, Joan!
My daughter and I loved it!! Quick, easy and delicious. My kind of recipe. Thanks!
YESSSS! I’m so glad to read this, Lauren!
Loved the pancakes. My granddaughter said they are now her favourite pancakes.
Yay! I’m so thrilled to read this, Darlene!
Best pancakes ever ! They are so delicious!
Woohoo! I’m so thrilled you enjoyed the recipe, Stephanie!
We really like this pancake recipe. We make them at least a couple times a month.
We substitute almond milk for whole milk to make them dairy-free pancakes.
Love reading this, Tom! I’m so thrilled you’ve been enjoying the recipe!
I really enjoyed this recipe. I modified it slightly by using buttermilk and adding 1/2 a teaspoon baking soda. The pancakes came out great and were very good.
I’m thrilled you enjoyed the recipe, Ben!
I substituted oat flour and omitted the sugar because the apples were very sweet. Made applesauce with some over ripe Macintosh apples. Pancakes were delicious and we gobbled them up!
I’m so thrilled you enjoyed the recipe, Lucy!
These pancakes were delicious! Just what I was looking for.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Carol!
These pancakes were delicious! I halved the recipe and so I didn’t use as much oil because I still used the egg and they were some of the best pancakes I’ve had! super fluffy and a little apple-y!
and I am not a great chef!
I’m so thrilled you enjoyed the recipe, Kate!
I followed the recipe and instructions perfectly. The pancakes were close to tasteless and very flimsy. I was looking forward to them, but it’s a bummer of a recipe.
Hi Bob – I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy the recipe.
OMG these are delish, I used some of the Applesauce I made the other day. I did do some adjustments, I used 2c Flour and used 1tbls. Brown Sugar and 1tbls. White Sugar and I did add about 1/4c more milk.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Cara!
Amazing pancakes! I made the apple topping and it just added to the already wonderful pancakes. Thank you so much! My home smelled like downtown Disney. Lol.
Woohoo! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Jenny!
My grandkids love these as dessert. They are wonderfully light and fuffy and with our own maple syrup as a topping, who can ask for anything more. Delicious!
So thrilled to hear this, Aline!
I’ll never waste applesauce left over from baking again- and now I have a good excuse to make pancakes on the weekend! Thank you, these are good!
You are so welcome, Rob! I’m thrilled you enjoyed the recipe!
I modified the recipe some based on other applesauce pancake recipes. Add up to 1/2 cup more flour, decrease applesauce by half. Came out perfect. If you want more applesauce add a dollop in pancakes as they cook.
Thanks so much for your note, Kesha! I’m thrilled you enjoyed the pancakes!
Excellent recipe! These are the fluffiest applesauce pancakes I’ve ever eaten!
I didn’t add any sugar to my batter because I figured my applesauce was sweet enough, and I added a splash more milk than called for because, idk, it seemed a bit dry to me. I was scared of having burnt outsides and undercooked insides like other commenters mentioned, so I cooked it on real low heat and waited for all the bubbles to come up before flipping.
The end result was wonderful. The applesauce pancakes I’ve made in the past were quite dense and flat, but these were wonderfully light. Thank you so much for the recipe!
Amazing! I’m so thrilled you enjoyed the recipe!
Needed a recipe for my brother’s birthday and this looked like what I wanted. Since I already add cinnamon to almost everything I put in 3/4 tsp instead of a half. Also added chopped walnuts and they were delicious like that.
Some people commented that they weren’t done on the inside and it seemed that way to me too, so I turned the heat down a bit and waited to flip a while after the bubbles appeared on the top and then flipped again and this helped. If you still have a problem, put them in the microwave. But for me (and family) they were delicious. Did our own topping (maple syrup and/or fruit salad).
Thanks so much for your comment, Cheryl! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Tasty, but I am going to lesson the baking powder a little as I think it caused a bitter after taste. The batter was thick, so needed to cook the cakes on a cooler griddle so the insides were fully cooked. Husband really liked them!
I’m glad you and your husband enjoyed the recipe, Jennifer!
Same thing happened to me, cooked them on medium low until they were basically burnt but they were still gooey and raw on the inside. This batter is too wet imo
Hi Anna – I’m sorry you experienced this issue. We haven’t had this problem but we’ll test the recipe again.
Made these for my 4 kids tonight for dinner!! They LOVED them. Also made the sauteed apples!! It’s a keeper! Thanks for the recipe
Woohoo! Thrilled you enjoyed the recipe, Sarah!
Tasty pancakes! I think there might’ve been a little too much vanilla, but otherwise great! I used coconut milk instead of whole milk and buckwheat flour instead of flour and the recipe still tasted great.
Awesome! I’m thrilled you enjoyed the recipe, AJ!
These tasted okay but like they are missing something. I might try buttermilk or adding some lemon juice to the nilk next time.
Thanks for your comment, Hannah! Lemon juice (or zest) would be a great addition! Would love to hear your results if you give it a shot :)
I prepared these pancakes for the kids in the group home I work for. The kids love them and the turned out perfect. Thanks for the recipe
Thrilled the recipe was enjoyed by all! And thanks so much for rating it, Lester!
These were to gooey on the inside for my family. My husband and child thought they were raw. After completing them to burnt they still had the same inside texture. Sorry not for us.
Hi Brandy – I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy the recipe. Did you cook them at the temperature as specified?
Thanks so much for sharing your recipe, Kelly Sanyei.
My family love them
Thanks so much for rating the recipe, Jennifer! So glad you and your family enjoyed the recipe!