Sweet Cream Pancakes

Sweet cream pancakes are all kinds of delicious. If you’re a fan of cream in your coffee, or even half and half, you’ll know what a difference it makes. It’s a thick, luxuriously rich liquid that has a natural sweet taste to it.

If you’ve ever researched sweet cream pancakes, you may have noticed they were made popular by a restaurant chain in the U.S. called Bear Creek Diner, a community-oriented family restaurant that serves homestyle comfort meals. So, naturally, amazing breakfast items would be on the menu, including their famous sweet cream pancakes!

Tender Sweet Cream Pancakes

The perfect pancakes. This recipe uses basic pancake ingredients but replaces most of the milk or buttermilk with heavy cream. Add a good measure of sugar with a splash of vanilla and you’ve got the perfect pancake. Creamy, pillowy, and melt-in-your-mouth amazing!

Easy to make. The recipe isn’t at all difficult and it uses pretty ordinary ingredients. The only special thing you may have to buy is extra cream. It will take you about 15 minutes to make the batter, and about 5 minutes per batch to fry up.

Yields a big batch. This made-from-scratch pancake recipe yields a ton of pancakes, 24 pancakes, in fact, which is enough to feed a hungry crowd plus some to freeze for later.

Ingredient Notes

• All-purpose flour: I make this recipe with 3 cups of all-purpose flour. Be sure to measure it accurately. Use the right type of measuring cup and lightly spoon the flour into the measuring cup. Level it off with a flat edge (don’t shake the flour down to level it because it compacts the flour).
• Baking powder and soda: These pantry items are commonly used to leaven baked goods. They help give the sweet cream pancakes their fluffy texture.
• Salt: A typical ingredient used in pancakes and baking to enhance a recipe’s flavor.
• Eggs: It’s not a deal-breaker if you forget, but if you remember, let the eggs sit on the counter at room temperature before you start the recipe. Room temperature eggs hold more air when beaten.
• Heavy cream and milk: You can decide to use all cream but I’ve found that the combination of 2% milk and heavy cream is actually better. The addition of milk thins the batter a bit so you don’t end up with super-thick pancakes.
• Sugar: Normally, pancakes have very little sugar in the batter but these ultra-luxurious pancakes splurge with a sweeter taste.
• Pure Vanilla Extract: Vanilla adds warm flavor and is commonly added to baked goods. For something a little different, try almond extract, or half almond extract, half vanilla.

How to Make Sweet Cream Pancakes

Mix dry ingredients. Whisk the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt) in a medium-size mixing bowl. (I know, sugar is a dry ingredient but it goes in the next bowl!)

Mix wet ingredients. In a larger mixing bowl, or a batter bowl with a pouring spout, whisk the eggs until combined. Add the heavy cream, milk, sugar, and vanilla; mix until completely smooth and combined.

Combine. Add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl containing the wet ingredients; mix just until combined. Don’t overmix the batter. You shouldn’t see dry clumps of flour but a few lumps are okay.

Fry the pancakes. Heat a nonstick griddle over medium heat and grease with butter, oil, or nonstick cooking spray, if needed. A light coating of oil or butter does give the pancakes a nice crisp exterior. Pour the batter onto the griddle by ¼ cupfuls, or however large or small you want to make them.

Serve. Plate and serve your sweet cream pancakes warm with all of your favorite toppings.

Possible Recipe Variations

• Go all in on the cream. Skip the milk and just use heavy cream for a thicker batter which will make thick cake-like pancakes. You may need to use the back of a spoon to spread the batter on the griddle a bit if you do this.
• Lighten them up. Use half-and-half instead of cream for a slightly lighter texture. You can also experiment with different ratios of milk to cream, or simply using whole milk instead of the combination of cream and milk. Each variation will yield slightly different results but feel free to find the one that pleases you most.
• Add mix-ins. Fold chocolate chips, diced apples, blueberries, or any of your favorite pancake mix-ins into the batter.

Serving Suggestions

Refrigerator: This sweet cream pancake recipe makes about 24 average-sized pancakes. If you have pancakes leftover, keep them in the fridge for up to 4 days in an airtight container.

Freezer: Transfer the sweet cream pancakes to the freezer for up to 2 months if not eaten by then. I recommend either freezing them on a parchment-lined baking sheet then transferring them to a freezer bag or airtight container, or freezing them in a bag or container with parchment paper separating each pancake.

Reheat: My recommendation is to reheat pancakes in the toaster or toaster oven because they crisp up a bit. You can also warm them in the microwave for 20 second intervals. They reheat very quickly. If you’re reheating several pancakes, the best way is to reheat them in the oven at 250ºF until warmed through. This is a good way to keep pancakes warm before serving them, too. I like to place them on a wire rack for good air circulation.

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt. Set aside.

  3 cups all purpose flour, 3 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt

• In a large mixing bowl, whisk eggs until combined. Add cream, milk, sugar, and vanilla; whisk until smooth and well-combined.

  2 large eggs, 2 cups heavy cream, 1 cup milk, ½ cup granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

• Add dry ingredients to the bowl of wet ingredients. Mix until just combined. Don’t overmix the batter; you shouldn’t see dry clumps of flour but a few lumps may remain.

• Heat a griddle over medium heat. If desired, grease with butter, oil, or nonstick cooking spray.

• Add batter by about ¼ cup scoops. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until bubbles appear on the surface and don’t disappear. With a large spatula, carefully flip the pancakes over, and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.

• Serve immediately or keep warm on a wire rack in a warm oven (250ºF) until ready to serve.

• Cream/milk ratio: Use all cream and skip the milk if you like. The pancakes will be thicker and more cake-like. You may have to smooth them out with the back of a spoon on the griddle. If you prefer, make the pancakes lighter by using half-and-half instead of heavy cream. Try different ratios of milk to cream, or use whole milk instead of the combination of cream and milk. Each variation will yield slightly different results; find the one that pleases you most. 
• Add-ins: This is a great base recipe that tastes terrific with ½ to ¾ cup of chopped fruit, berries, or chocolate chips added to the batter.
• Storage: Store leftover pancakes in a covered container for up to 4 days in the refrigerator; they can be frozen for up to 2 months. There’s no need to thaw them before reheating.

Serving: 3pancakes, Calories: 459kcal, Carbohydrates: 52g, Protein: 9g, Fat: 24g, Saturated Fat: 15g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 6g, Trans Fat: 0.03g, Cholesterol: 116mg, Sodium: 490mg, Potassium: 168mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 16g, Vitamin A: 972IU, Vitamin C: 0.4mg, Calcium: 177mg, Iron: 3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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