Fall is apple season, and our Cozy Fall Recipes collection wouldn’t be complete without at least one apple offering. But in a twist from the usual dessert recipes, why not use them in a breakfast dish? These Caramelized Apple Sour Cream Pancakes are rich and a little bit crunchy, but it’s the sticky caramelized apples that elevate your breakfast to a special occasion.

Caramelized Apple Sour Cream Pancakes

They say we eat with our eyes first, and these fluffy pancakes, studded with jewel-like gold and amber caramelized apples, are beautiful to behold. And they’re even better to eat!

The sour cream makes the pancakes rich — buttery even — to the point that I’d eaten a few bites before realizing I’d forgotten to put butter on them. No need; I ate them without. A drizzle of maple syrup, though … that’s something I never forget. The cornmeal adds a pleasing hint of crunch, but it’s the sticky, soft apples, bronzed to a luscious caramel, that are the real stars here. Finding a bite of one is like a little gift.

Caramelized Apple Sour Cream Pancakes are definitely in my collection of recipes that make apples shine.

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Caramelized Apple Sour Cream Pancakes

Pancakes filled with luscious, sticky caramelized apple slices make breakfast a special occasion.

Category: Breakfast, Brunch

Keyword: apple pancakes, pancakes

Author: © Marlene Cornelis/Urban Cottage Life.com 2016

Ingredients

For the Pancake Batter

• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp cornmeal
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2/3 cup milk
• 2 tbsp canola oil
• 2 tbsp maple syrup

For the Caramelized Apples

• 1 tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 medium apple (McIintosh, Empire, etc.)
• pinch salt
• 1 tbsp maple syrup

How To Make This Recipe

For the Pancake Batter

1. Start by making the pancake batter. Mix the dry ingredients in a small bowl and set aside. In a larger bowl, mix together the egg, sour cream, milk, oil and syrup. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix well with a whisk (stir, but don’t whip it, to avoid incorporating air). The batter doesn’t need to be completely smooth.

2. Set the batter aside while you heat the griddle and prepare the caramelized apples.
   

For the Caramelized Apples

1. Sprinkle the sugar evenly in a small skillet and set it on medium high heat. While it goes to work and the sugar starts to melt, peel and core the apple and cut it into slices about 1/4-inch thick. When the sugar has melted and darkened and is starting to take on that burnt-sugar aroma, add the apples to the pan as evenly as you can. Once they've browned on the first side, turn them, add the pinch of salt and maple syrup, and continue to cook them until the syrup has cooked down. The apples will be caramelized and sticky, and fairly soft. Let them cool for a couple of minutes, then gently stir them into the batter.

Make the Pancakes

1. Lightly oil the griddle, then use a large ice cream scoop or spoon to ladle on the batter. Make sure there are some pieces of apple in every scoop! When air bubbles have dimpled top of the pancakes more or less evenly, gingerly flip them over. Remove to a warm plate when cooked through. Remember, the first one is never the best, but it makes a fine cook’s treat!
   

More Ideas to #ONAppleaDay

By the way, if you’re looking for more ways to enjoy apples, why not check out the Ontario Apple Growers e-cookbook 30+ Ways to Enjoy #ONAppleaDay? Just so you know, I was the editor for this book, but was not asked to promote it.

Looking for More Pancake Goodness?

Oh, I do love playing with pancakes, and by playing, I mean coming up with new recipes for them. If you like beer you’ll definitely want to try these Porter Beer Pancakes, with beer in the pancakes and the sauce! My family clamours for these Chocolate Buckwheat Pancakes, which are actually nutritious. And these Cornmeal Raspberry Pancakes will have you going back for seconds and possibly thirds if you can find the room.

^{First Published 2016 11 13
Republished 2019 03 30
Republished 2026 10 19}