Happy Friday everyone! We’ve been LOVING the spring weather around here, and I’m getting so excited for all the fun things we can do outside now that we’re not bundled up drinking hot chocolate all the time. We’ve spent time this week going on scavenger hunts, visiting the farm, and digging in the dirt…a lot.
One thing that I start to notice as the weather warms up and we are playing outside a lot more is that my boys get so hungry! To help them get a good start to the day, I’ve been bringing out some more hearty, protein-packed breakfasts in my arsenal. These mini German pancakes are a perfect fit.
Besides, who doesn’t love German pancakes? (If you don’t, don’t tell me. It will just make me sad for you.) The only problem with regular German pancakes is that they take FOREVER to cook, and my little guys just don’t want to wait that long for breakfast…for that matter, neither do I. These mini pancakes cook in half the time (about 15-20 minutes), and they are a perfect kid-sized option for breakfast. They take less than five minutes of prep, and by the time you have chopped some fresh fruit and whipped up some fresh cream to go on top, they’re ready to come out of the oven. 
By the way, can I just say that I am SO excited that strawberries are starting to surface in the grocery stores…I mean ones that actually taste like strawberries rather than the anemic-looking ones that they sell for five dollars a pound during the winter. I may have bought four pounds of strawberries this week in my excitement.
So, grab yourself some non-anemic strawberries (or whatever fruit you want…but, really, strawberries), and try out these mini German pancakes. They’re perfect for a weekend breakfast (or even a weekday if you’re craving them, like I often do). Enjoy!
Mini German Puff Pancakes
Note: I like options (read: I’m indecisive), so I’ve included cooking times for both mini German pancakes made in a traditional muffin tin, and for “micro” sized pancakes made in a mini-muffin tin. Both are great. We usually just make the cupcake sized ones, but I experimented with the “micro” German pancakes last time we had them and they were a hit, too! So, if you’ve got toddlers, or you want them to be more of an hors d’oeuvre size, try out the itty-bitty ones.
yield: about 18 “mini” (cupcake-sized) pancakes or 36 “micro” (mini-muffin-sized) pancakes
Ingredients:
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup milk
- 6 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ¼ cup melted butter
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Beat together all ingredients with a wire whisk (some recipes recommend using a blender, but I like the texture of the hand-beaten pancakes better). Make sure to get the batter as smooth as possible, without any large flour clumps.
- Pour into muffin tins, filling about half way. Bake 12-15 minutes for mini pancakes, and 15-18 minutes for normal, cupcake-sized pancakes. When they’re golden brown around the edges, they’re ready.
- Add your favorite toppings. We’ve used strawberries and whipped cream, classic maple syrup, bananas & Nutella, fruit compotes, and all sorts of other things. Use your imagination and let your taste buds be your guide!
Source: Adapted from Real Mom Kitchen.
Want more kid-sized food?
Mini blueberry muffins (healthy)
Here’s where I regularly link up.
Since it’s kid-sized, that means I can eat a lot more of them, right?! Seriously though, these look delicious. Thanks for sharing
Absolutely! It’s so easy to plow through the whole batch because they’re only 4 bites each…for better or worse. Thanks for stopping by!
What a fun idea! My kids are teenagers, but these will be great when my little nephews and nieces come to visit this summer!
Thanks for stopping by! Even for teens and adults, I like the mini ones because you get more puffy parts on each pancake than you do with a large pan where the middle trends to be denser.