Fluffy Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

My devotion to pancakes runs deep. These light and fluffy lemon ricotta cakes are numero uno. They're easy to prepare too! No whipping egg whites or melting butter is involved. In fact, sometimes laziness completely takes over and I mix everything in one bowl. Swap the maple syrup for honey and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and you're in for an extra special treat. They're delicious with my quick honeyed-strawberry sauce too. If you love pancakes, I hope you give this recipe a try.

Fluffy Lemon Ricotta Pancakes Recipe

Makes About 12 Pancakes

Some Notes & Tips

***Some of you have written stating that you'd like to bump up the lemon flavor in these pancakes. You've seen these lemon ricotta pancakes appear on Pinterest boards, claiming they're a "Copycat Cheesecake Factory Recipe." This recipe isn't meant to be a copycat of the Cheesecake Factory pancakes. My recipe has a light lemon flavor. If you're looking for a pronounced lemon flavor then I suggest adding pure lemon extract or Lemon Powder  to the batter. Perhaps a lemon glaze, instead of honey might be nice too.  Although I haven't tried either of the additions of lemon extract or lemon powder, they may give you a more lemony result.*** 

Make sure your baking powder and baking soda are fresh (less than 6 months old) to ensure maximum fluffiness. The fresher the baking soda and powder, the better your pancakes will be. 

The best way to serve the pancakes is with a drizzle of honey and a squeeze of lemon juice or my honeyed strawberry sauce. 

I love a hot cup of French press brewed coffee with these pancakes. I also enjoy a good cuppa tea. My favorite teas are Grand Yunnan Imperial and Big Ben from the wonderful Palais Des Thes Company. The Grand Yunnan has a lovely honey flavor that's perfect with the cakes. 

Pancake Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup of cornmeal
• 2 tablespoons of sugar. I use my All Natural Vanilla Sugar.
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt. I use fine sea salt.
• 1/8 teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
• 1 cup of milk
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup of whole milk ricotta cheese
• 2 lemons
• 1 tablespoon of oil plus more for cooking. I use sunflower.

To Serve: butter, honey, lemon juice, strawberry sauce

Pancake Instructions

Mix the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and nutmeg (if using) in a medium bowl. Zest the lemon and juice half of it directly into another medium bowl. If your lemon is on the small side, juice all of it. To the zest and juice, add the milk, eggs, ricotta cheese and one tablespoon of oil and mix. Stir the wet ingredients with the dry. Don't overmix. Keep some of those annoying lumps in the batter. Heat a large fry pan or griddle on medium to medium-high heat with a little oil. Drop the pancake batter by 1/4 cups onto the pan. Cook until the edges are bubbly and the bottoms are golden brown. Flip and cook until golden brown on the other side. Serve with honey and lemon juice or my honeyed strawberry sauce.

Honeyed Strawberry Sauce   

Place a 12-ounce bag of frozen strawberries in a sauce pan with a pinch of salt, 1/3 cup of honey and 3 tablespoons of water. Cook on medium heat, mashing up the strawberries with the back of your spoon. Stir in a teaspoon or so of tapioca starch to thicken it. Turn off the heat and serve over the pancakes.  

Bon Appetit & Blessings!

xx ~ Jilly