Thick & Fluffy Pumpkin Pancakes with Pancake Mix
Pumpkin Pancakes with pancake mix are super light, thick, and fluffy thanks to a few simple tricks. Packed with all the warm and cozy flavors of fall, they're a delicious breakfast or breakfast for dinner idea.
They're incredible topped with Pumpkin Syrup, Blueberry Compote, and Brown Sugar Cinnamon Whipped Cream.
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Jump to:
- ✅At a Glance: Fluffy Pumpkin Pancake Recipe with Pancake Mix
- 👩🍳What Readers are Saying
- 🎃Ingredients
- 💡My Three Secret Tips for Extra Fluffy Pancakes
- 🥣How to Make Pumpkin Pancakes with Pancake Mix
- 🥞Tips For Pumpkin Pancakes from Mix
- 🧊Make Ahead Instructions: Storage, Freezing & Reheating
- 🍁What to serve with Pumpkin Pancakes from Mix
- ♻️Don't Let Your Ingredients Go To Waste
- ❓FAQs
- More Delicious Pumpkin Recipes
- 💌Let's Stay in Touch
- 📖 Recipe
✅At a Glance: Fluffy Pumpkin Pancake Recipe with Pancake Mix
- Cozy homemade flavors with the convenience of a mix
- Simple ingredients. Pancake mix (Bisquick or just-add-water types), baking powder, pumpkin spice, egg, pumpkin puree, maple syrup, milk
- Soft, thick, and fluffy. I'll show you my tricks!
- Bonus recipe for brown sugar caramelized bananas
- Freezer-friendly. Make them ahead and reheat leftovers in minutes on busy weekday mornings
👩🍳What Readers are Saying
- Light and fluffy! Sharleen says these were lighter and fluffier than another pumpkin pancake recipe she tried.
- David threw in the whole egg, without whipping the whites, and said his pancakes still turned out great.
- "Restaurant quality!" Kelly made them for brinner, and even her pumpkin-spice-hating kid loved them.
After plenty of testing (and tasting!), I landed on three easy little tricks that make pumpkin pancakes with pancake mix soft, thick, and fluffy.
So keep reading, and I'll share them all, plus my bonus recipe for caramelized banana topping.
Round out your fall breakfast or holiday brunch with Easy Cheesy Sausage Egg Bake, Egg & Sausage Biscuit Muffins, Crock Pot Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal, and fresh fruit.
🎃Ingredients
See the recipe card for the full list of ingredients.
- Your favorite pancake mix. You can make this shortcut recipe for pancake mix pumpkin pancakes using Bisquick pancake mix, Heart Smart Bisquick, or "just add water" complete mix like Krusteaz or Hungry Jack.
- Baking powder. A little baking powder helps fluff up these pumpkin pancakes.
- Pumpkin pie spice. Pumpkin spice transforms pancake mix into pumpkin pie pancakes! If you don't have this spice blend, use ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ginger, ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg, and ⅛ teaspoon cloves. Or make your own jar of my homemade pumpkin spice.
- Egg. Separating the egg makes the most of both parts of the egg. The egg yolk adds richness to the batter, and the whipped egg white adds fluffiness.
- Pumpkin puree. Canned pumpkin keeps these pancakes nice and moist. Be careful that you don't grab a can of pumpkin pie filling by accident. You can also use fresh pumpkin puree.
- Real maple syrup. A little natural maple syrup adds sweetness and rich flavor.
- Mix-in variations. If you're adding nuts, chocolate chips, or blueberries, pour the plain batter onto the pan, then sprinkle them on top. This helps keep them from sinking or burning on the hot skillet.
💡My Three Secret Tips for Extra Fluffy Pancakes
- Adding a little more baking powder to the mix puffs up the pancakes and gives them more loft.
- Whipping the egg whites makes them extra light and airy.
- Letting the batter rest for 5-10 minutes allows it to absorb the liquid, prevents pancakes from being pasty, and makes them taller, fluffier, and more tender.
🥣How to Make Pumpkin Pancakes with Pancake Mix
Step 1: In a large bowl, whisk the pancake mix, baking powder, and pumpkin pie spice together.
Push the dry ingredients to the sides of the bowl to make a well in the center for the wet ingredients.
Step 2: Separate the egg yolk and egg white and drop the yolk into the well. See FAQs below for how to separate an egg.
In a small bowl, whip the egg white with a whisk or mixer until light and fluffy and soft peaks form.
Step 3: Add the pumpkin puree, maple syrup, and milk to the well in the dry ingredients.
Whisk the wet ingredients together, then incorporate them into the dry ingredients until just combined. There should still be lumps.
Step 4: Fold the beaten egg white into the pancake batter with a spatula until just combined. The batter will be thick. Let the batter rest for 5-10 minutes.
Step 5: Heat a large cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium-low to medium heat. Lightly coat the skillet with butter.
Drop ⅓ cup of pumpkin pancake batter onto the hot skillet. Cook until the edges of the pancakes are slightly dry, and small bubbles just start to form and pop on the surface, 3-4 minutes.
Step 6: Flip and cook the second side for 1-2 minutes or until cooked through.
Add a thin layer of butter to the skillet between batches.
This recipe makes six to seven 5-inch fluffy pumpkin pancakes.
🥞Tips For Pumpkin Pancakes from Mix
- Don't overmix the batter; it should be a little lumpy.
- A cast iron skillet or nonstick pan works best for making pancakes.
- Be careful not to overheat the skillet. If your first pancake turns brown before it's ready to flip, adjust the heat down.
- This pancake batter is thick. To know when it's time to flip, watch for dry edges and a few small bubbles that form and pop around the edges.
- To check for doneness, poke the center of a pancake with a toothpick. If it comes out clean, the pancake is done.
🧊Make Ahead Instructions: Storage, Freezing & Reheating
- Store leftover pancakes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- To freeze, let the pancakes cool completely on a wire rack. Place them in a zip-top freezer bag with paper towels or parchment paper between the pancakes to keep them from sticking together. Thaw in the refrigerator or warm them up from frozen.
- To reheat, microwave frozen pancakes on high for 60-90 seconds, or until warmed through. You can also thaw them first on a plate in the microwave, uncovered, for 1-2 minutes.
🍁What to serve with Pumpkin Pancakes from Mix
These easy pumpkin pancakes are perfectly delicious with a little butter and maple syrup. But where's the fun in that? Try my bonus recipe for Caramelized Banana Pancake Topping or serve with one of these:
- Serve them alongside Cinnamon Baked Apples, Gingerbread Overnight Oats, Oven-Cooked Bacon, and fresh fruit.
- Top your pancakes with 3-Ingredient Pumpkin Maple Syrup, Caramel Sauce without Cream, or this luscious Caramel Whipped Cream, or Cinnamon Honey Butter.
Caramelized Banana Topping for Pancakes
For an extra special treat, serve your pumpkin pancakes with bananas caramelized in butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and toasted pecans.
- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of brown sugar together over medium heat in a skillet.
- Add ½ teaspoon of cinnamon and stir it all together.
- When the mixture is bubbly, add 2 sliced bananas and stir them around in the sauce for a minute or two, until the sauce is thickened and the bananas are evenly coated.
- Remove the bananas from the heat. Spoon the bananas over the pancakes and sprinkle with toasted pecans.
♻️Don't Let Your Ingredients Go To Waste
- Wondering how to use up leftover pumpkin puree? Try my creamy Pumpkin Pudding, Pumpkin Angel Food Cake, Pumpkin Spice Layer Bars, or Pumpkin Cake with Yellow Cake Mix.
- Pancake mix only lasts about 6 months. After that, the leaveners weaken. Use it up in this easy Pancake in a Mug recipe, Banana Bread with Pancake Mix, and Fluffy Banana Pancakes.
❓FAQs
Yes, you can. I recommend adding a few extra steps to keep them from being too dense and heavy. For light, airy pumpkin pancakes, I add a little more baking powder, whip the egg whites and fold them in, then let the batter rest for 5-10 minutes.
I found that by pouring pancake batter from a round measuring cup, the pancakes came out perfectly round every time. When I poured the batter from an oval-shaped ladle, my pancakes came out oval-shaped. Go figure.
Yes! Let the pancakes cool in a single layer on a wire rack, then place them in a ziptop freezer bag separated with paper towels or parchment paper.
Thaw frozen pancakes on a plate, uncovered, in the microwave for a minute or two until hot.
The easiest way to reheat frozen pancakes is to warm them in the microwave on high for 60-90 seconds or until warm and heated through.
The easiest methods are:
With the shells. Crack the egg and gently transfer the yolk back and forth between the two shell halves, letting the white drip into a bowl.
With your hands. Crack the egg into your hand over a bowl. Hold the yolk in your fingers and let the white slip through into the bowl.
You can also use an egg separator, which is a spiral-shaped kitchen gadget that mimics the hand method.
More Delicious Pumpkin Recipes
💌Let's Stay in Touch
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📖 Recipe
Thick & Fluffy Pumpkin Pancakes with Pancake Mix
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups pancake mix works with regular or Heart Smart Bisquick or "just add water" pancake mix
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice
- 1 egg separated
- ¾ cup pumpkin puree
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- ¾ cup milk
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the pancake mix, baking powder, and pumpkin pie spice together. Push the dry ingredients to the sides of the bowl, making a well in the center.
- Separate the egg, letting the whites fall into a separate small bowl. Place the yolk in the well in the dry ingredients. Beat the egg white until light and fluffy and soft peaks form.
- Add the pumpkin puree, maple syrup, and milk to the well in the dry ingredients. Whisk the wet ingredients together in the center of the bowl, then whisk them into the dry ingredients until just combined. There will still be lumps, and that's okay.
- With a spatula, fold the beaten egg white into the pancake batter until just incorporated. Let the pancake batter rest for 5-10 minutes.
- Heat a cast iron skillet or nonstick skillet over medium-low to medium heat until a sprinkle of water sizzles on the surface.
- With a folded paper towel or pastry brush, coat the pan with a thin layer of butter. Repeat this step between batches. Drop about ⅓ cup of batter onto the pan. When the edges are dry and small bubbles start to form and pop at the surface, it's time to flip, usually after 3-4 minutes.Cook the second side for another 1-2 minutes.
I just made this pumpkin pancake recipe and it was as you stated in your recipe. I had tried to make pumpkin pancakes using a different recipe and it came out really heavy. These were light and fluffy due to the extra baking powder and whipping the egg white. I appreciate you posting this recipe.
Thank you, Sharleen, for letting me know how your pancakes turned out! I'm so glad you enjoyed them :). Cara
Hi,
What is the benefit of whipping the egg white. I just threw the whole egg in and it turned out great. Sorry, I’m just a regular guy, not a baker.
Hi, David, that's a great question! Whipping the egg white and gently folding it into the batter is what makes them super thick and fluffy. But like you found out, they'll still taste great if you don't whip the egg white. Hope that helps! Glad you enjoyed the pancakes :). Cara
Made these tonight for dinner (brinner). Turned out great! Husband said they were restaurant quality. Kids loved them. Even my youngest loved them even though she hates pretty much anything with pumpkin spice flavor.
Thank you!
Hi, Kelly, we too love a good brinner (great word, btw!) and I'm so glad you all enjoyed the pumpkin pancakes! It means so much that you came back here to share your family's feedback for others. Thanks you, Cara :).