Strawberry Cheesecake Pancakes are fluffy buttermilk pancakes with a cream cheese swirl inside and topped with strawberry syrup. Try my Chocolate Chip Pancakes for another sweet and delicious way to enjoy pancakes!
Strawberry Cheesecake Pancakes
Who says strawberry cheesecake has to be just for dessert? These pancakes give you that strawberry cheesecake flavor in a soft and fluffy pancake. And, it’s topped with homemade strawberry syrup and a dusting of confectioners’ sugar to really sweeten the deal! This recipe will be sure to make the rest of your day just as sweet.
Strawberry Cheesecake Pancakes Ingredients
There are three parts to this recipe, but they are each easy enough to get these pancakes on the breakfast table in no time! To save some time in the morning, hull and half the fresh strawberries the night before.
Strawberry Preserves: Preserves use the most fruit (as compared to jams and jellies). They are used a lot in baking because of the rich fruit flavor. You could get by with using the strawberry jam as well.
Strawberries: As mentioned, you can hull and slice the strawberries the night before. Simply remove the stems, cut them in half, and store them in a sealed container in the refrigerator.
Cream Cheese: Make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature and fully softened before using. To speed up the softening process, place the wrapped block of cream cheese in a bowl of warm water for about 15 minutes. Or, remove the wrapping, place the cream cheese on a microwave-safe plate, and cook in 15-second increments.
Buttermilk: If you don’t have buttermilk on hand to make the pancakes, make your own with this buttermilk recipe here.
How to Make Strawberry Syrup and Cream Cheese Swirl
The strawberry syrup will top the pancakes as a final touch, but you want to make it first. To make the syrup, simply add the preserves and halved strawberries to a saucepan. Heat to a low simmer over medium heat. Then, remove the syrup from the heat and set it aside.
The cream cheese swirl gives these pancakes their cheesecake name. To make the cream cheese mixture that will be swirled into each pancake, combine the softened cream cheese with the sugar, vanilla, and milk. Pour this into a pastry bag (or zipped plastic baggie) to pipe into the pancake batter.
Pancake Batter
With the syrup and cream cheese mixture ready to go, it’s time to get to the pancakes. To get started, stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar into a large bowl.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg, and butter. Pour this into the flour mixture and stir to combine. Don’t overmix the batter. If you overmix and break up all of the lumps you will have a rubbery pancake. The loose flour in the mixture (the lumps) gets inside of the air bubbles created by the baking powder/buttermilk combination. They spread out inside of the air pockets and help give the pancake a little strength so it can keep its shape.
How to Make Strawberry Cheesecake Pancakes
After the batter is mixed (but not too much), spray a skillet with cooking spray and heat it up over medium heat. When ready, pour about 1/3 cup of the pancake batter into the skillet. Spread the batter out to about a 4-inch diameter. Reduce the heat to medium-low.
As soon as the pancake starts to form bubbles around the edges, pipe in the cream cheese mixture. Start in the center and squeeze the mixture into the batter in a swirl. Again, you can use a zipped plastic bag with the corner cut off to pipe in the cream cheese swirl if you don’t have a pastry bag.
After adding the swirl, cook the pancake for 2-3 minutes. Bubbles should begin popping on top of the pancake and the bottom will be golden brown. Gently, but quickly, flip over the pancake. Cook another 2-3 minutes until the other side is golden brown as well.
Wipe out the skillet with a paper towel after each pancake, or pancakes are made. Continue with the remaining batter and cream cheese filling. I can get 6-7 pancakes out of this recipe. Once the pancakes are made, serve them topped with the strawberry syrup and sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar. Enjoy!
Looking for More Breakfast Favorites?
Raspberry Cream Cheese Sweet Rolls
Ingredients
Syrup
- ¾ cup strawberry preserves
- 8 ounces fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
Cream Cheese Swirl
- 4 ounces cream cheese, fully softened
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons milk
Pancakes
- 1½ cups (187.5g) all-purpose flour
- 3½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1¼ cups (306g) buttermilk
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
- confectioners’ sugar, for garnish
Instructions
Syrup
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In a small saucepan over medium heat, add preserves and strawberries. Heat to a low simmer.
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Remove from heat and set aside while you prepare the cream cheese swirl and pancakes.
Cream Cheese Swirl
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In a medium bowl, combine the softened cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and milk. Pour the contents into a pastry bag and set it aside. (You could also use a zipped plastic bag if you don't have a pastry bag.)
Pancakes
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In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
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In a medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, egg, and butter. Pour into the flour mixture and stir to combine.
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Spray a nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat.
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When hot, pour ⅓ cup of batter into the skillet. Spread the batter out more, if necessary, to about a 4-inch diameter.
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Reduce the heat to medium-low.
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When the pancake begins to form bubbles around the edges, pipe in the cream cheese filling. Starting in the center of the pancake, squeeze the filling on top of the pancake batter in a swirl.
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Cook the pancake 2-3 minutes or until the bubbles begin popping on top of the pancake and it is golden brown on the bottom.
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Gently, but quickly, flip over the pancake. Cook an additional 2-3 minutes (with the temperature still on medium-low) until the other side is also golden brown.
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Wipe out the pan with a paper towel, and repeat with the remaining pancake batter and cream cheese filling.
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Serve pancakes topped with strawberry syrup and a dusting of confectioners’ sugar.