• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to header navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

RecipeTin Eats

Fast Prep, Big Flavours

Small book

My cookbook "Dinner" now available!

  • My RecipeTin
  • My cookbook!
  • Recipes
  • Recipes By Category
    • Christmas ⭐️
      • Starters
      • Mains
      • Sides: Warm & Hearty
      • Sides: Light & Fresh
      • Desserts
      • Breads
      • Christmas Leftovers
    • Iconic + cult classics
    • Mains
      • Chicken
        • Chicken mince
      • Beef Recipes
        • Ground Beef (Mince)
      • Pork
      • Lamb
      • Turkey
      • Shrimp / Prawns
      • Salmon
      • Fish recipes
      • Salad Meals
    • Quick and Easy
    • Soups
    • One Pot
    • Stews
    • Slow Cooker
    • Sides
      • All
      • Salads & veg
      • Show Off Salads
      • Rice (all)
      • Fried rice recipes
      • Rice (plain)
      • Potato
    • Pasta
      • All
      • Pasta bakes
      • Pasta salads
    • Sweet
      • Cakes
      • Candy
      • Cheesecakes
      • Cupcakes & Muffins
      • Cookies
      • Puddings & Cosy Desserts
      • Bite Size
      • Pies
      • Slices & Bars
      • Frosting & Icing
      • Ice cream
    • Cuisine
      • Asian
        • All
        • Stir fries
        • Noodles
        • Soups
        • Chinese
        • Japanese
        • Korean
        • Thai
        • Vietnamese
      • French
      • Greek
      • Indian
      • Italian
      • Mediterranean
      • Mexican
      • Middle Eastern
      • South American
    • Dietary
      • Gluten Free
      • Low Calorie
      • Vegetarian
    • Other Categories
      • BBQ
      • Breakfast
      • Burgers
      • Cocktails
      • Party Foods
      • Rice Recipes
      • Roasts
      • Sandwiches & Sliders
    • Cookbook recipes
  • Collections
  • About
    • Me
    • RecipeTin Meals
    • Free Recipe Books
    • Contact
    • Nitty Gritty
      • Policy: Use of Recipes & Images
      • Privacy & Disclosure
Home Breakfast

Ricotta Pancakes

By:Nagi
Published:12 May '23Updated:12 May '23
122 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

Ricotta pancakes are special because they are extra soft and fluffy inside. These are based on Bill Granger’s ricotta hotcakes recipe from his bistro Bills, a breakfast institution in Sydney. Time to up your pancake game!

Pouring maple syrup over Ricotta pancakes

Ricotta Pancakes

Don’t get me wrong – I LOVE traditional pancakes. But sometimes it’s nice to make a wee bit of an effort to make ricotta pancakes which are extra special.

Super moist inside with a flavour that is almost a bit cheesecakey. Even if you don’t know you’re eating a ricotta pancake, you know it’s different to normal pancakes! Which is why they’re a favourite among trendy bistros as a breakfast menu item. Like Bills. Any Sydney-siders fond of Bill Granger’s ricotta hotcakes? No need to battle the traffic into the city on weekends, not to mention the queue for a table or the cost. Just make these at home! 🙂

Freshly cooked Ricotta pancakes

Here’s a nice close up for you. Fluffy. With little bits of ricotta curds studded throughout. Liberally doused with maple syrup. YES!

Inside of Ricotta pancakes

Ingredients in ricotta pancakes

Other than ricotta, there’s nothing in these that you probably don’t already have in your pantry!

Ricotta pancakes ingredients
  • Ricotta – Use full fat, not low fat (it lacks flavour and creaminess, and thus the two things it adds to the pancakes!). Standard ricotta, not whipped or spreadable or any other such variation.

    TIP: Get one in a basket sealed in vac packs or over the deli counter. My favourite brand is Paesanella – comes in both forms. Avoid Perfect Italiano in tubs (mainstream Australian grocery store brand.) It’s bizarrely powdery and just not pleasant.

  • Baking powder AND baking soda/bi-carb – These make the pancakes rise. In my classic pancakes, I only use baking powder as that’s all that’s needed to make them fluffy. Ricotta weighs down the batter so we need the extra rising boost from a touch of baking soda (which is approximately 3x stronger).

    Don’t worry if you don’t have bi-carb, just use extra baking powder. The difference is only minor. 🙂

  • Vinegar (or lemon juice) – I know this looks weird, but trust me! Vinegar/acid activates the baking soda to give it a kick start. You see iterations of this in most of my baking recipes, whether it’s a touch of vinegar or yogurt or sour cream (which serve the same purpose).

    We only use 1 teaspoon so it doesn’t make the pancakes taste vinegary. Use any clear vinegar or lemon juice.

  • Flour – Just plain/all-purpose flour. Works better to use flour + baking powder + bi-carb that just self raising flour (which has baking powder pre-mixed) which never rises as well.

  • Sugar – Just 3 tablespoons. We don’t want these sweet because we will DOUSE them with maple syrup!!

  • Eggs – 3 large ones which are 55g/2 ounces each. No need to bring them to room temperature, fridge cold is fine.

  • Milk – Full fat best, though low fat and non-dairy will work too.

  • Vanilla – For flavour.

  • Salt – Just a pinch, to bring out the other flavours in the pancakes. Standard baking practice!

Making Ricotta pancakes
Making Ricotta pancakes

How to make ricotta pancakes

The batter part is super easy – whisk the wet ingredients, then whisk in the dry ingredients. We can do that half asleep. But you do need to be awake and alert when you cook them! Aim for 3 minutes on the stove with golden brown surfaces. It might take a bit of stove adjusting to get it right!

How to make fluffy ricotta pancakes
  1. Whisk wet ingredients – Whisk the Wet ingredients in a bowl. Be vigorous to break up the ricotta! You will end up with little ricotta curd bits all throughout but no clumps of ricotta.

  2. Whisk in dry ingredients – Scatter the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt across the surface. Then whisk just until the flour is incorporated and the batter is lump free.

How to make fluffy ricotta pancakes
  1. Heat pan (I use 2 pans because I’m impatient) – Using a good non-stick pan, heat it on medium. Then either brush lightly with a bit of melted butter, or melt a little dab of butter then wipe the excess off with a paper towel. Why? Because otherwise the excess butter will burn when cooking the pancake, leaving unsightly dark brown patches and a burnt flavour. It’s a common mistake! We just want to use the bare minimum so the pancake doesn’t get stuck on the pan.

    PERFECT GOLDEN BROWN – Also, using minimum butter is how you can make the pancakes a beautiful even golden brown all across the surface, like pictured below, instead of splotchy – like pictured above in the step photo 4. If you use even just a little too much butter in the pan, they come out with golden splotches. It’s not a big deal, just a visual thing! With the added benefit that you’re cooking with less butter which means you can put more butter ON your pancakes… 😈

To make pancakes a perfect golden brown like this, wipe the pan clean of melted butter (butter = splotchy surface, like pictured in the step photos and video). Visual difference only!
  1. Dollop batter – Pour 1/4 cup batter in the middle of the pan. I use an ice cream scoop, one of my favourite kitchen tools. So handy for pancakes, muffins, cupcakes, fritters, meatballs….

    It should pretty much spread into an even-round by itself but may need a bit of coaxing. Don’t spread it too thin, we want ricotta pancakes nice and thick!

How to make fluffy ricotta pancakes
  1. Cook 3 minutes – Cook the first side for 1 1/2 minutes or until golden brown. The sides and surface should be just about set so the pancake holds its shape when you flip.

    Flip, then cook the other side for 1 1/2 minutes until golden. Adjust the stove heat as needed to ensure they don’t brown too fast. You really need the pancakes to cook for 3 minutes and be golden brown to ensure they are fully cooked inside.

  2. Remove pancakes and continue cooking. If you want the perfect golden brown surface like pictured in this post, either do not any more butter at all OR just brush the pan very lightly with butter.

    Stack the pancakes up so they keep each other warm. I use 2 pans so it takes me around 12 minutes to cook the whole batch. If you’re only using one pan, you might want to keep them warm in a low oven, or just microwave briefly before serving (they reheat 100% perfectly).

Pouring syrup over Ricotta pancakes

Matters of ricotta pancakes

Cooking part done, let’s chat serving!

Toppings – Lovely just served with butter and maple syrup, but I figure if I’m making the effort, I may as well go all the way. By “all the way”, it just involves sprinkling halved strawberries with sugar and leaving them to sweat for a bit to soften the strawberries and extract some of the juice. The fancy word for this is “macerated strawberries”, but really, all it means is that the strawberries are softened slightly.

It’s also a neat trick to improve under-ripe strawberries when they are out of season, like now. 🙂

Making ahead – Ricotta Pancakes hold up quite well made ahead too. Because they are so moist, they don’t suffer as much as ordinary pancakes which become stale relatively quickly. Whereas reheated ricotta pancakes are pretty similar to freshly made!

So this weekend, why not stay in for brunch? Flop around in your daggy slippers, stay in your PJ’s, no need to comb your hair. The coffee refills are free and nothing – nothing – beats a good homemade meal!

Happy weekend everyone! – Nagi x


Watch how to make it

Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.

Pouring syrup over Ricotta pancakes

Fluffy Ricotta Pancakes

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats
Prep: 15 minutes mins
Cook: 30 minutes mins
Total: 45 minutes mins
Breakfast
Western
4.92 from 34 votes
Servings9 – 10 pancakes
Tap or hover to scale
Print
  • 136
Recipe video above. Ricotta pancakes are a step up from plain ones because they are extra soft and fluffy inside. Made famous by Australia's very own Bill Granger, a signature dish at his popular bistro Bills.
Stove control is key, because these are thicker than standard pancakes. Heat too low, and the pancakes will be raw batter inside or won't rise enough. Too high, and the pancakes will burn before the inside is cooked. Aim for 3 minutes and golden brown surfaces. It's fine to go over (they will still be moist inside) but if you go under 2 1/2 minutes, they will be raw inside.
9 – 10 pancakes (about 13cm/5" in diameter).

Ingredients

Wet ingredients

  • 3/4 cup ricotta cheese , full fat (Note 1)
  • 3 large eggs (55g/2oz each)
  • 3 tbsp caster sugar (superfine sugar)
  • 3/4 cup milk (full fat best but low fat fine)
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp white vinegar (or other clear or clear-ish vinegar, Note 2)

Dry ingredients

  • 1 1/3 cups plain/all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda (bi0carb) or 3/4 tsp extra baking powder (Note 3)
  • Pinch of salt

Serving/cooking

  • 1 tbsp (15g) butter , melted (Note 4)
  • 8 oz / 250g strawberries , halved or quartered
  • 1 tbsp caster/superfine sugar
  • Maple syrup , for dousing

Instructions

  • Whisk wet – Place the Wet ingredients in a bowl and whisk vigorously to combine. You should have little ricotta curd bits in it, but you don't want giant ricotta clumps.
  • Add dry – Scatter the Dry ingredients across the surface then whisk until combined. The batter is a little thicker than standard pancake batter.
  • Lightly butter pan – Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat until hot (I use 2 pans). Brush lightly with melted butter (or melt a bit then wipe off excess with paper towels – Note 4).
  • Batter – Pour in 1/4 cup batter – it should just about spread evenly into a round but may need a bit of coaxing. (I use an ice cream scoop – Note 5)
  • Cook 3 minutes – Cook the first side for 1 1/2 minutes or until golden brown (turn heat down if browning too fast). Flip then cook the other side for 1 1/2 minutes or until golden. Remove onto a plate.
  • Cook remaining – If your non-stick coating is good, you won't need more butter though a very light brush of melted butter every 2nd or 3rd pancake won't hurt. Continue cooking, lowering the heat as you go as the pan gets hotter. You should get 9 to 10 in total. Keep cooked pancakes stacked so they keep each other warm (or use a low 50C/125F oven).
  • Serve ricotta pancakes with macerated strawberries (below), softened butter and copious amounts of maple syrup!

Macerated strawberries (optional)

  • Toss together strawberries and sugar in a small bowl. Set aside for 20 minutes to allow them to sweat and soften slightly. (Even overnight in fridge is fine.) Serve on pancakes!

Recipe Notes:

1. Ricotta – Do not use whipped or creamed ricotta, they are too wet. Use standard ricotta. My favourite brand from grocery stores in Paesanella (sold in tubs). Type “ricotta” in the search bar for all the other recipes that you can use leftovers for!
2. Vinegar and other acidic things kick starts the rising effect of baking soda. 
3. Baking soda (bi-carb) and baking powder both make cakes etc rise but have different rising characteristics, with the main difference being that baking soda is more powerful. I found ricotta pancakes benefit from a bit of extra rise boost from baking soda because the batter is a little more dense.
4. Golden brown pancakes! The step either lightly brush the pan with melted butter or to melt then wipe off most of the butter is the secret to ensuring that the first pancake comes out beautifully evenly gold all over, rather than splotchy! Not an essential step, but I like to do this. It applies to normal pancakes too. Also means less butter required for cooking (which means you can put more ON your pancakes!)
Also, too much butter in the pan = burnt butter. So don’t go crazy with butter in your pan, save it for serving!
5. Ice cream scoop – Handy for dolloping pancake batter (as well as muffins, fritters, meatballs!). A 1/4 cup / 60 ml scoop is a great standard size to have.
6. Flipping/cooking – The key is to ensure each pancake cooks for at least 3 minutes to ensure they are cooked inside. Even up to 5 minutes is fine (it won’t dry out thanks to the ricotta), but 3 minutes is the sweet spot!
Because the batter is thicker than ordinary pancakes, you won’t get as many bubbles on the surface to indicate it is ready to flip. If you see the start of a few (but not yet bursting), that’s all that’s needed to indicate that it’s cooked inside. Or lift the edge to check the underside.
7. Leftovers will keep for 3 – 4 days in the fridge, or 3 months in the freezer. They reheat better than normal pancakes (which go quite stale the next day) because they are more moist.
Recipe credit – This recipe is based on Bill Granger’s famous ricotta pancakes served at his bistros. However, I found it a bit tricky to ensure the pancakes cook through properly without burning and the outcome is also rather sensitive to the creaminess of the ricotta which varies from brand to brand. So I tweaked to make the recipe “safer” by altering the batter slightly (details in post). 🙂
Nutrition per pancake, assuming 10 pancakes, toppings excluded.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 148cal (7%)Carbohydrates: 18g (6%)Protein: 6g (12%)Fat: 6g (9%)Saturated Fat: 3g (19%)Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 64mg (21%)Sodium: 51mg (2%)Potassium: 164mg (5%)Fiber: 0.5g (2%)Sugar: 5g (6%)Vitamin A: 219IU (4%)Calcium: 106mg (11%)Iron: 1mg (6%)
Keywords: ricotta pancakes
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @recipe_tin.

Originally published in March 2016. Republished May 2023 with improved recipe, brand spanking new photos and a video added!

Pancakes, pancakes, pancakes

Stack of the best easy soft, fluffy pancakes
Pancakes – fluffy, quick, no fail
Stack of Fluffy Blueberry Pancakes dripping with maple syrup and melted butter
Extra Fluffy Blueberry Pancakes
Easy and fast to make, these are sure to become a family favourite! www.recipetineats.com
Pikelets
Nutella Stuffed Pancakes - frozen Nutella discs makes it a breeze to make the Nutella stuffed pancakes!
Nutella Stuffed Pancakes
Giant Pancakes

Life of Dozer

Then and now – when Dozer saw a table full of this……

Ricotta Pancakes - So much more moist than ordinary pancakes - and so easy to make!

….here was his reaction back in 2016 on the original publication date…

Dozer_pancakes

….and 7 years on, today, on the re-publication date. NOTHING HAS CHANGED!

A stray strawberry and a huge hunk of pancake may have fallen his way….. 😉

Previous Post
Crunchy crumbed chicken drumsticks
Next Post
15 minute Spicy Korean Noodle Soup

Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!

Read More

Free Recipe eBooks

Join my free email list to receive THREE free cookbooks!

Related Posts

Freshly cooked Homemade pork sausage patties

Homemade Pork Sausage Patties

Overhead photo of freshly cooked Waffles

Waffles

Freshly made Ham and Cheese Omelette

Ham and cheese omelette

More Breakfast

Reader Interactions

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Cooked this? Rate this recipe!




122 Comments

  1. Crystal says

    November 20, 2023 at 12:40 pm

    5 stars
    Love this recipe. Only thing I did different was spread the batter in a 12×17 pan and baked for 6 min at 400 degrees. I freeze them for a quick breakfast for my kids during the school week.

    Reply
  2. Heather says

    October 15, 2023 at 12:55 pm

    4 stars
    Made these for brunch this morning, and they were definitely fluffy! I got 10 from the mixture. Mine weren’t so beautifully round like Nagi’s, probably because I didn’t use an ice-cream scoop. We had them with blueberries and maple syrup, and three was a hearty serving, though ‘himself’ ate 6! Next time I’ll mash the ricotta with a fork first as I found it hard to get the big lumps out.

    Reply
  3. Mina says

    September 2, 2023 at 9:20 pm

    5 stars
    Delicious pancakes, so much better than standard pancakes!

    Reply
  4. Beyonce says

    August 23, 2023 at 6:31 pm

    5 stars
    5 stars all around!! This recipe was amaze! I always struggle with getting thick fluffy pancakes and these turned out exactly how I wanted. They were not sweet so I could put whatever I wanted on top.

    Reply
  5. Avi Halberthal says

    August 12, 2023 at 7:02 am

    Is there an option to replace the flour with any gluten free flour? thanks !!

    Reply
  6. Trudy says

    July 5, 2023 at 12:47 am

    Another awesome recipe! I’m in Canada and our ricotta cheese is slightly different from the one described. Didn’t make a difference to the quality and taste.
    Thank You, Nagi. You’re the best!

    Reply
  7. Tam F says

    June 9, 2023 at 10:51 am

    Nagi you’ve come through once again
    ….I wish I can post pics on here….I made these for the first time. Can I just say..Divine!! You are spectacular!

    Reply
  8. Megan says

    May 26, 2023 at 9:56 pm

    5 stars
    Just made my 3rd batch of these in as many weeks. The whole family loves them! (I just cut down the sugar by 1/3rd and still works great)

    Reply
  9. Carin says

    May 21, 2023 at 11:53 pm

    Gorgeous! I made these gluten free as my daughter has gluten intolerance and they worked a treat! I just swapped the flour for gluten free (and gluten free baking powder of course) and added a teaspoon of xantham gum. My batter did get rather too thick, but I put that down to the xantham gum, so I just added a bit more milk, worked very well. Will definitely be making these again! Went down a storm post Sunday swim with maple syrup as well as blueberry jam and cream, YUM!

    Reply
  10. IRENE says

    May 20, 2023 at 11:06 am

    5 stars
    I’m making these for breakfast now. My husband and children are already eating them and claiming that they are good. They are more fluffy than our usual pikelet.

    Reply
  11. Julie says

    May 20, 2023 at 9:43 am

    3 stars
    They tasted really egg-y, maybe I did something wrong

    Reply
  12. Connie Alexander says

    May 15, 2023 at 7:22 pm

    Made these for the fist time ever have never eaten riccota pancakes before. Made for my mum on mothers day, we all enjoyed them. Can’t wait to make them again.

    Reply
  13. TGlow says

    May 15, 2023 at 6:09 am

    5 stars
    fabulous!!! prior to seeing your recipe on Instagram. I used another one for a lemon ricotta pancakes and your recipe blows it out of the water!!!! served with sweetened strawberries and bacon on the side. Perfect for a Mother’s Day, brunch. Thank you, Nagi!

    Reply
  14. Meg Kelsey says

    May 15, 2023 at 4:50 am

    5 stars
    Never a fan of pancakes until now! Used ricotta made from a half litre of 10% rapidly approaching best before date. They were perfect and your tips are golden – just like the pancakes.

    Reply
  15. Alex says

    May 14, 2023 at 6:28 pm

    5 stars
    Thanks Nagi, made them for Mothers Day and they were perfect! Served with gently simmered blueberries and maple syrup. Delicious

    Reply
  16. Mary says

    May 14, 2023 at 10:55 am

    5 stars
    Wow! Came out exactly as the recipe stated. And soooo soft! Thanks Nagi ❣️as usual another winner. I brushed a little butter only before the first batter pour, after that didn’t need any butter either!!

    Reply
  17. Jasson says

    May 13, 2023 at 8:36 pm

    5 stars
    Very nice recipe chef 👍👌👏. I made ricotta last night and this morning I made the pancakes 😋😋. Thank you for your effort 🌹🌞😎 and HAPPY MOTHERS DAY 🌹🌹🌹☕🥞🌞😎 and for dozer 🥩

    Reply
  18. Kathy says

    May 13, 2023 at 7:27 pm

    5 stars
    Yum, just made myself an early Mother’s Day dinner! I used Coles homebrand ricotta, which was a bit grainy out of the tub, but the pancakes turned out perfectly smooth and lovely.

    Reply
  19. Sally says

    May 13, 2023 at 7:24 pm

    5 stars
    Yummy. I want to hear about your new house. Renovations planned? Will Dozer still be able to swim and socialize with his mates at the beach? Visit Jeff at the Dog Park? You have us all interested in Dozer’s and your life – don’t leave us hanging!

    Reply
  20. Gail says

    May 13, 2023 at 3:22 am

    Hi Nagi! We often have pancakes for dinner with bacon. This recipe is the one I’m making next. Thank you!

    Reply
Older Comments

Primary Sidebar

Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative! Read More

Free Recipe eBooks

Join my free email list to receive THREE free cookbooks!

Meet Dozer

Official taste tester of RecipeTin Eats! Meet Dozer
As Featured On
  • Goodfood
  • Food Network
  • Better Homes Gardens
  • Taste
  • Nine
  • Network 10
  • BuzzFeed
  • Daily Telegraph
  • Women's Day

Never miss a recipe!

Subscribe to my newsletter and receive 3 FREE ebooks!

Subscribe
Recipes
  • All Recipes
  • By Category
  • Collections
About
  • About Nagi
  • About Dozer
  • RecipeTin Meals
Related
  • RecipeTin Japan
  • Food Bloggers Central
Help
  • Contact
  • Image Use Policy
© RecipeTin Eats 2023
  • Privacy Policy & Terms
Site Credits
Maintained by Zao Designed by Melissa Rose Design Developed by Once Coupled
All Rights Reserved

Subscribe to my newsletter

Sign up and receive 3 FREE EBOOKS!