These blueberry sourdough pancakes are the ultimate weekend breakfast - make ahead friendly, healthy, and they turn out fluffy even with whole wheat!
I've been meaning to share my favorite pancakes with you for quite some time now. Since I started making these Overnight Blueberry Sourdough Pancakes around three years ago, I have hardly made any other pancakes. I love these ones because I can mostly make the batter the night before, pop it in the fridge and it's almost ready to go in the morning.
I also love that they're super fluffy even with the addition of whole wheat flour. So why haven't I shared with you yet? I have a very good reason...
More often than not, my pancakes look like this ⬇⬇⬇. And trust me, this was not the only one out of the batch that turned out like this. I can maybe manage to get most of them flipped successfully if I keep them very small, but anything medium and bigger turns into a broken mess.
Seriously, any tips here? I have no idea how they get those perfectly round, plate sized pancakes in restaurants. Maybe practice makes perfect. Anyway, it took me three years to be able turn out enough semi round pancakes out of a batch to make a decent sized stack to photograph.
After all these years of pancake making, there is one thing I learned. The temperature of your skillet or griddle is very important.
At least for me, with my stove and cookware, it takes a long time to get the temperature just right. I usually end up heating my cast iron griddle over medium heat for quite awhile while I'm getting ready to cook.
Then just before I spoon my batter on, I reduce the heat slightly. Sometimes I'll need to adjust from there, either up or down. Either way, if your pancakes are getting too dark too quickly, or aren't browning enough, adjust temperature as needed.
Another reason I hesitated to share this recipe is that it requires sourdough starter - something few people are likely to have hanging around.
However, if you've ever considered getting a sourdough starter, I highly encourage you to try it out. They are relatively easy to maintain - all you need is flour and water, and the payoff is huge. I'd keep mine just for these pancakes, but you also get the benefits of homemade sourdough bread, pizza crust and even a fizzy drink!
If you know anyone that already has sourdough starter available, just take a little of theirs (I'm happy to share mine with any of my local friends!), order online, or, if you're willing to invest a little more time, try making your own.
And of course, while this is the recipe that my family loves, it can be totally customized. Use more or less whole wheat flour. If you like your pancakes plain, skip the blueberries. If your family loves chocolate, use chocolate chips instead. Or sliced bananas. Or raspberries.
And don't even worry if they don't turn out round and perfect. They will still taste great. Trust me - I know from experience!
Overnight Blueberry Sourdough Pancake Nutrition Notes:
The above nutrition information is for a medium sized pancake (the recipe makes roughly 12 medium pancakes). The calculated nutrition info is for a pancake with no added maple syrup, and using 2 cups of blueberries in the recipe. Any additional toppings you add to your pancakes will be extra.
Overnight Blueberry Sourdough Pancakes
Ingredients
- 2 cups sourdough starter, recently fed and bubbly
- 1 cup milk (use your favorite Non-Dairy milk to make this recipe Dairy Free)
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 Tablespoons butter, melted (use Dairy Free butter alternative to make this recipe Dairy Free)
- 2 Tablespoons canola oil
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- ¾ cup whole wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- Fresh or frozen blueberries (if frozen do not thaw)
- Maple syrup
Instructions
- Pour sourdough starter into a large glass or plastic bowl. Whisk in milk vigorously until frothy. Stir in eggs, butter, oil, sugar, flours and salt. DO NOT add baking powder and soda yet. Cover and refrigerate batter overnight.
- In the morning, heat griddle or a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add oil to griddle or skillet and wipe most of it away with a bunched up paper towel.
- Immediately before you're ready to cook pancakes, stir baking powder and baking soda into batter. It will become bubbly. Pour small amounts (¼ cup to ⅓ cup depending on how large you want your pancakes) of batter into skillet using a ladle or small measuring cup. Make sure you don't place batter too close together or pancakes will run together and become difficult to flip. Drop desired amount of blueberries on top of the batter. Cook until batter starts to become firm at the edges, bubbles rise to the top of the batter and the bottom is golden, 3-5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low if pancakes brown too quickly. Flip pancake and continue to cook until bottom is golden brown and pancake is cooked through, about 3 more minutes.
- Serve immediately with maple syrup or keep warm in a 200°F oven. Pancakes can be completely cooled and frozen in a freezer bag. Reheat in microwave.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer: I try my best to make sure the nutrition information I provide is accurate to provide you with the best information possible. However, due to ingredient discrepancies and other factors, the above nutrition information should be considered an estimation only.
Darryl Alder
Loved this recipe but as to plate sized cakes traditionally sourdough dough pancakes are measured as silver dollar size ( see this from Wikipedia: “ Sourdough was used by prospectors and pioneers to make pancakes without having to buy yeast. Prospectors would carry a pot of sourdough to make pancakes and bread, as it could last indefinitely, needing only flour and water to replenish it.[53] Sourdough pancakes are now a particular speciality in Alaska.[54] They are also found in many American pancake houses and restaurants elsewhere in America.
“A silver dollar pancake refers to a pancake about two to three inches (5 to 7 cm) in diameter, or just a bit bigger than the pre-1979 silver dollar coins in the United States. This is usually made by frying a small spoonful of the same batter as any other pancake. One serving usually consists of five to ten silver dollar pancakes.”
Carissa
Yes, you are certainly welcome to make your pancakes any size you like. I make mine larger because it's less flipping that way 🙂