My Lemon Poppy Seed Pancakes are a lightened up version of your favorite breakfast ~ they’re perfect for a special occasion, a cozy weekend morning, or just any time you want to treat yourself!
lemon poppy seed pancakes burst with citrus flavor
So many lemon recipes suffer from the wimp factor. They add a tablespoon of lemon juice or the zest of one lemon and then have the nerve to call themselves a lemon this or a lemon that. It’s such a shame. When it comes to lemon, I say go big or go home. This recipe uses the zest of two lemons and plenty of fresh lemon juice to insure you’ll get the lemon message loud and clear.
poppy seeds add a lovely crunch to these fluffy lemon pancakes
And it’s the same thing with poppy seeds. People seems to think that a teaspoon or two entitles them to emblazon the words poppy seeds all over their recipe title. I assure you that these lemon poppy seed pancakes have earned their name fair and square with lots of poppy seed crunch.
what you’ll need
- lemons ~ you’ll use the juice and zest for extra flavor.
- poppy seeds
- yogurt ~ you can also use sour cream.
- buttermilk ~ you can make an acceptable substitute by mixing lemon juice with regular whole milk.
- butter
- egg
- vanilla extract
- flour ~ I use a combination of all purpose white and whole wheat, but you can use all white flour if you like.
- granulated sugar
- baking powder, baking soda, and salt
lemon poppy seed pancake making FAQs and tips
You can use regular milk, or make your own buttermilk substitute by adding a teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar to a cup of milk and let it sit on the counter for 15 minutes.
Be sure not to over beat your batter. Once you add flour to the bowl, gently fold it in until no dry streaks remain, then stop. Don’t worry about small lumps ~ they’re fine. And make sure your baking powder is fresh! It doesn’t last forever, so check your label and when in doubt, toss it and replace. You should be replacing it every 6 months.
Use a scoop or measuring cup (the size is up to you) to portion out your batter for equal sized pancakes. You can nudge the batter gently at the edges to ease it into a rounder shape.
You can add a drop of water to the pan ~ if it sizzles and ‘jumps’ around immediately, you’re good to go. I always do a test pancake to be sure.
I like to use oil because butter tends to burn at higher temps.
Some people like to soak poppy seeds in hot water before using on the idea that this makes them easier to digest. I don’t find that this is necessary.
Yes, all seeds have a relatively high oil content and can go rancid. If yours have been sitting around for more than 6 months, replace.
maple syrup + lemon? it’s fabulous!
In case you’re wondering, yes, maple syrup does go with the lemon, in fact the flavors complement each other beautifully. I’ve even gone on to make a Tangerine Poppy Seed Pancakes, which I love equally as much. Just be sure you buy real maple syrup, not the fake stuff.
let’s hear it for poppy seeds!
If you’re a fan of the delicate crunch that poppy seeds bring to a recipe, you’ve come to the right place. I’ve used them in lots of delicious ways:
- Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing
- Lemon Poppy Seed Zucchini Bread
- Lemon Layer Cake with Lemon Poppy Seed Frosting
- Banana Poppy Seed Cake with Lemon Buttercream
- Amaretto Poppy Seed ice Cream!
“I have made these for Mother’s Day the past couple years and they are always a huge hit! My mom LOVES them as do I. They are a very special treat for us every year, so thank you for sharing! We love them!!”
~ Natalie
Lemon Poppy Seed Pancakes
Ingredients
dry ingredients
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
wet ingredients
- 1/3 cup low fat buttermilk
- 3/4 cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
- zest of two lemons
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, about 2 lemons
- 3 Tbsp butter, melted
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup poppy seeds
Instructions
- Whisk together the dry ingredients.
- In a separate bowl, blend the wet ingredients together and fold in the poppy seeds.
- Add the wet to the dry and mix just until combined, don’t over mix, you want your pancakes to be fluffy! Lumps are fine.
- Cook on a lightly greased griddle until lightly golden on both sides.
- Serve hot with maple syrup.
Nutrition
With a big storm outside I had to make do with what I had. Evaporated milk instead of buttermilk and sunflower oil instead of butter. I’m alone and ate all the fluffy melt in your mouth monsters on my own then shared the recipe on Facebook. Wow wow wow
Haha, sorry about your storm, Karen, but so glad you enjoyed these. Evaporated milk can be a life saver 🙂
I have made this recipe twice now. I have a dairy allergy so I used almond milk and 1/2 each of large rime and coconut oil instead of the butter. They are fabulous!!! So good. Yum yum yum! We have a boysenberry syrup from Maple Grove Farms that pairs so beautifully with the pancakes. I cannot get enough of them. I have a two year old daughter who lives to help me cook and she adores making these with me so it doubles as a fun family activity as well. Thank you for such a delicious and fun recipe!
You’re so welcome, Carrie, and I’m now going to have to try these with boysenberry syrup 🙂
Doing a bit of an experiment with this recipe today. Pre-made the batter and packed it in the cooler to transport to a vacation cottage to be made tomorrow morning. The batter looked nice and thick and fluffy, so hoping it holds up!
Just wanted to say made the Lemon Poppyseed Pancakes this morning . We both loved them . My husband suggested that I only zest one lemon next time . I love love loved these , will be making these a lot , Thank You for sharing
Thanks so much Sharon, this recipe seems to work for some and not for others, so I appreciate your feedback and your suggestions. lately I’ve been skipping the lemon zest in my ‘lemon’ recipes so your husband’s suggestion makes sense to me. Thanks again 🙂
Your very welcome Sue . they were really good . I love trying different recipes and I love to cook , so thank you very much Sharon Dirr
Funny thing, I forgot to add the butter. Also I substituted almond flour for the wheat flour and I used just less than a 1/4 C of poppy seeds (still should use a little less). Had no problems with the cakes cooking on low heat (about 260 on the griddle). My family loved them as well as my teen-aged daughter’s friends. Me not so much.
Just made- and I will say :
Pros: flavor is good and I used powdered buttermilk and just all purpose flour
Cons: very thin-
Bad move on my part: I have been using my ninja single blender to mix ingredients lately -I think with the baking soda and not enough space-that led to a complete explosion of batter-however I spatulaed as much as I could up-lol
I agree with you Mindy. They were very thin. And I didn’t even add all the wet ingredients since it was looking thin. I also used powdered buttermilk and all A-P flour. And I only used 1 tablespoon poppy seeds, since 1/4 cup seemed like an awful lot. Next time, I will add 1/4 cup more flour and 1/4 cup less buttermilk.
These sound SO good! I love lemon poppy seed muffins, so why not make pancakes!
How many does this make/serve?
6 servings, depending on size.
Flavor very good. Consistency and texture, not good
Brilliant! You are a culinary genius!
Thanks Staci — you’ve just made my day!