Easy Shredded Apple Pancakes

My Apple Pancakes recipe, made with shredded apples and wholesome ingredients, is a delicious twist on your everyday breakfast or brunch dish! These babies taste great, and because of the apples, have lots of natural fiber that's good for you.

A stack of shredded apple pancakes with a diagonal piece cut out of it to display the inside.

I'm a girl who's picky about her pancakes - and these apple pancakes truly blow it out of the park! They're fluffy, with crispy edges, and a perfect balance of sweetness. And don't forget, the batter is made all in one bowl for easy cleanup!

Ingredients

Apples - The star of the show in apple pancakes, of course. I used Gala apples, but you can use your favorite type. Note that different apples have different levels of sweetness!
All-Purpose Flour - Our base is going to be good ole all-purpose flour. Bleached or unbleached is fine.
Baking Powder & Soda - The baking powder assists with giving a great rise to the pancakes. Baking soda helps with getting that perfect golden-brown color.
Almond Milk - My household doesn't use dairy milk, so almond or oat are what I've used in these pancakes.
Melted Butter - A bit of melted butter gives our batter the perfect amount of fat for flavor and moistness.

How to Make Pancakes with Shredded Apples

I'm a sucker for baked good recipes that only require ONE bowl. The key is to gently mix together the dry ingredients in a pile before incorporating everything towards the end. Check out my Instagram for step-by-step video instructions.

Start out by shredding your apples into a large mixing bowl. Note: the chemical reaction of cooking these pancakes turns the red apple skin green! The taste isn't affected, but if that weirds you out, just peel the apples before shredding.
Add in the remaining wet ingredients to the bowl like the melted butter, your choice of milk, water, large eggs, and vanilla extract.
In that same bowl, create a pile of the dry ingredients: the flour, sugar, baking soda and baking powder, and the salt.
Mix the dry ingredients together on that pile. This helps us avoid having to have an entire separate dirty dish for dry ingredients!
After that, gently fold the wet and dry ingredients together until you get a batter. The consistency will be a little runny; see the process pictures below.
Let the batter sit for 10 minutes, then you're ready to cook.
Use a ¼ cup measuring spoon to keep your pancakes the same size.
My secret to perfectly golden brown pancakes with that crispy edge? Cook them on medium heat with non-stick spray and a touch of butter.
Finally, when the pancakes have tons of bubbles on top, flip again. Only flip one time to keep the pancakes fluffy. That's it!

A silver mixing bowl with apple pancake batter inside.

The finished batter should be slightly runny and look like this.

A hand pouring pancake batter on a tan skillet.

Use a measuring cup for evenly-sized pancakes.

A black spatula flipping an apple pancake in a tan skillet.

Once the top of the pancake forms tons of bubbles, it's time to flip!

FAQs

Why does my first pancake always turn out pale and ugly?

We call this the "test pancake" or the "chef's tax". The first pancake should always be sacrificed so you can ensure the heat is correct for the remainder of your cooking time! You want to aim for medium-heat, and a cast-iron skillet will distribute the heat most evenly.

My apples turned green in my pancakes - what happened?!

So this is due to the chemical reaction of the red apple peels and the other ingredients of the pancakes, all being cooked at high heat.

The taste of your pancakes will be unaffected. However, you can avoid the kooky colors by just peeling your apples before shredding them into your batter.

How long can my batter sit out?

At room temperature, the FDA would recommend no longer than two hours at the maximum. This batter can sit in the refrigerator overnight, but the baking soda will begin losing its "power" so your flapjacks won't be as fluffy.

I personally recommend to just cook up all of your batter and then store your cooked pancakes.

Can I freeze apple pancakes?

Yes! These pancakes, when stored properly in a freezer-safe bag, can keep in the freezer for up to 3 months. To reheat, I'd defrost them in the fridge overnight and use a toaster oven or air fryer.

Other Sweet Breakfasts You'll Love!

Cream Cheese Danishes

Lemon Blueberry Cake

Classic Brown Butter Banana Bread

Easy Strawberry Muffins

Blueberry Drop Biscuits

Greek Yogurt Parfait

A stack of apple pancakes with chopped red apples and syrup on top.

Easy Apple Pancakes

Shani W.

Shredded apples provide extra flavor and fiber in this easy Apple Pancake recipe! These make a fantastic breakfast or snack option that's actually more healthy than you would think.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 30

Course Breakfast, Brunch

Servings 14

Ingredients

Wet Ingredients

1 ½ ct. red apples
3 tbsp. salted butter melted
1 ½ cups milk I used almond milk
½ cup water
2 ct. large eggs room temperature
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Dry Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. granulated white sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt

Instructions

Start by shredding your apples into a large bowl. You can keep the skin on for extra fiber, or peel before shredding.
Add the remaining wet ingredients: melted butter, milk, water, eggs, and vanilla extract. Stir well.
Create a pile in that same bowl with the dry ingredients: the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Mix together the dry ingredients in the pile on top of the bowl, then gently fold everything together to form your pancake batter. The batter should be more on the runny side.
Let the batter stand for 10 minutes.
Prep a griddle to medium heat with nonstick spray and a bit of butter.
Add ¼ cup of batter per pancake to the griddle, ensuring that you space out the pancakes to avoid them running together.
Flip the pancakes after lots of bubbles form on top.
Serve pancakes with extra butter, maple syrup, and chopped apples. Enjoy!