Chocolate Pancakes

Have dessert for breakfast with these fluffy Chocolate Pancakes! They’re chocolate chocolate chip pancakes made with rich cocoa and melty chocolate chips. Serve with maple whipped cream and fresh fruit.

As mentioned in my hash brown bowls post, I am not a morning person.

During the week before work, I eat some fruit then wonder why I’m starving by lunchtime.

However, on the weekends (usually Sundays) I have a *little* more time to make breakfast.

Usually I make my small batch pancakes with chocolate chips, but sometimes you need a little extra sweetness to get you through your morning.

That’s where a stack of these Chocolate Pancakes come into play!

They’re fluffy double chocolate pancakes for two that taste like you’re eating dessert for breakfast! Because let’s face it – you kinda are.

Although you can make them for any morning, they’re especially fun to wake up to for Christmas and Valentine’s Day.

This chocolate pancake recipe uses two types of chocolate: natural cocoa powder and chocolate chips.

I opted to serve maple whipped cream on top with fresh strawberries, but if you really wanted to go all in with the chocolate flavor, use chocolate whipped cream and hot fudge sauce.

Recipe makes 6 chocolate chocolate chip pancakes for your breakfast for two, but you can easily double the recipe.

Ingredients For Chocolate Pancakes

These small batch pancakes are made from scratch, meaning there’s no baking mix or Bisquick involved! You just need the following basic pantry ingredients:

• All-purpose flour: Helps thicken your batter.
• Cocoa powder: Gives the pancakes a rich, cocoa flavor
• Sugar: Adds sweetness to your batter to help balance the cocoa
• Baking powder: The key to making fluffy homemade pancakes. Yes it’s a lot, but trust the recipe.
• Espresso powder: Optional but helps bring out the chocolate flavor even more. You won’t even notice the coffee flavor
• Salt: No bland pancake batter here!
• Egg: Use 1 large egg at room temperature. Using a cold egg means they won’t rise as much.
• Milk: Whole milk is best because the extra fat ensures the pancakes stay moist.
• Vegetable oil: Use a neutral oil like vegetable or canola as olive oil may add an unwanted savory flavor. You can also substitute melted butter.
• Vanilla: Also enhances the chocolate flavor
• Chocolate chips: Can’t have chocolate pancakes without chocolate chips!

How To Make Chocolate Pancakes

To make your chocolate chocolate chip pancakes from scratch without Bisquick:

1. Whisk flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, espresso powder, and salt.
2. Beat egg, milk, oil/butter, and vanilla in a measuring cup or another bowl.
3. Add wet ingredients to dry then gently whisk until everything is moistened then stir in chocolate chips. Do not overmix! Lumps are ok but there should be no pockets of flour.
4. Rest batter for 5 minutes to allow the gluten to relax so the pancakes don’t toughen up while cooking. The batter will also thicken a little more because the flour absorbs the liquid. If you let it rest longer and the batter is too thick, whisk in a little more milk to loosen it.
5. Pour about 1/4 cup of batter into a hot skillet then cook until edges are set and bubbles form on top.
6. Flip then cook until second side is brown. Repeat with remaining batter.

Store any leftover pancakes in a freezer-safe plastic bag with a piece of parchment in between so they don’t stick. Refrigerate for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 3 months.

What To Serve With Chocolate Pancakes

As mentioned in the intro, I served my chocolate pancakes with maple whipped cream as a fun play on maple syrup.

But really chocolate is very versatile and pairs well with a lot of flavors.

Add some fresh fruit with strawberry sauce and strawberry whipped cream.

If you love peanut butter cups, try peanut butter whipped cream for a chocolate peanut butter combo.

And you can always go traditional with homemade whipped cream then drizzle maple syrup on top.

Homemade Pancake Tips

Not happy with how your chocolate chocolate chip pancakes turned out? Here are some tips to keep in mind:

• If your pancakes are too doughy and/or raw in the middle: They are too thick. Make sure they aren’t more than 1/4 inch thick in the skillet.
• If your pancakes are thin and didn’t rise: Make sure your skillet is hot before adding the batter; you need heat to react to the baking powder. If the pan is too cold, there is no heat. If there is no heat, the baking powder won’t rise properly.
• If your pancakes aren’t fluffy: You overmixed your batter. The more you stir your flour, the more the gluten develops. And overdeveloped gluten will result in chewy pancakes rather than fluffy. It’s ok if your batter is a little lumpy, as long as there are no dry spots of flour left.

More Breakfast Recipes

Enjoyed this chocolate pancake recipe? Here are more breakfast recipes you can make:

• Coconut Milk Pancakes
• Apple Pancakes
• Waffles For Two
• French Toast For Two
• Biscuits and Gravy For Two