There’s no better way to start the day than cinnamon roll pancakes.
Homemade batter with a sweet swirl of cinnamon cooked right in, and topped with a cream cheese frosting.
You’ll Love Cinnamon Roll Pancakes Because…
- It’s perfect for a special birthday or holiday celebration. Don’t forget the colorful sprinkles!
- Cinnamon roll pancakes freeze beautifully! Keep a stack or two on hand for quick and tasty breakfasts.
- They are fun to make, fun to eat, and the topping options are endless!
Ingredients For Cinnamon Roll Pancakes
Pancake Mix: Homemade pancake mix is something you’ll want to keep on hand. Use the easy blend in this recipe, or try my bulk mix recipe and make pancakes any time. A boxed mix can be used too.
Cinnamon Swirl: This easy swirl is ready in seconds! Brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon create that warm and cozy flavor everyone loves.
Frosting: Totally optional, but totally worth it! This cream cheese glaze is a rich and smooth blend of softened cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt, creating a perfectly sweet and tangy topping for your pancakes.
Variations and Toppings
- Add some pumpkin pie spice or some apple pie spice to the cinnamon swirl for a fragrant and cozy Fall flavor!
- Pop a few blueberries or sliced strawberries onto each pancake in Step 1.
- Some cocoa, chocolate shavings, or peanut butter can also be added to the batter before cooking.
- Besides the optional frosting, cinnamon roll pancakes can be topped with maple syrup, fudge sauce, cinnamon sugar, or a luscious strawberry sauce.
How to Make Cinnamon Roll Pancakes
Cinnamon Roll Pancakes are the bistro brunch sweet treat that will have everyone raving.
- Prepare pancake batter, cinnamon swirl ingredients, and frosting (recipe below).
- On a griddle, pour the pancake batter. Once bubbles, top with a swirl of cinnamon sugar onto each pancake.
- Flip pancakes and cook until lightly browned. Top with frosting and serve warm.
Storing and Reheating
Make cinnamon roll pancakes ahead and store them between sheets of parchment paper in the refrigerator until ready to reheat on a dry skillet or in the microwave. Freeze them the same way and place them in zippered bags in the freezer for up to one month.
Sweet on Cinnamon?
Easy Cinnamon Bread (No Yeast)
Baked Apple Slices
Cinnamon Toast Cake
Did your family love these Cinnamon Roll Pancakes? Leave a rating and a comment below.
Cinnamon Roll Pancakes
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Pancakes
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ cups milk more if needed
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Cinnamon Swirl
- 2 ½ tablespoons melted unsalted butter
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
For the Frosting (Optional)
- 2 ounces cream cheese softened
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon milk may not need all of it
Instructions
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To make the pancakes, in a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together milk, eggs, 2 tablespoons melted butter, and vanilla.
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Create a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients. Stir with a spoon just until moistened, the batter should be lumpy.
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To make the cinnamon swirl, combine the butter, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and 3 tablespoons of the prepared pancake batter. Mix well and transfer to a piping bag with a thin tip or freezer bag and snip off the corner.
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To make the frosting, mix cream cheese & butter with a hand-mixer on high until fluffy. Add in powdered sugar 1/4 cup at a time until mixed in. Mix in vanilla and salt. Add the milk a little bit at a time to reach desired consistency.
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To cook the pancakes, heat a lightly oiled non-stick skillet or griddle to medium heat (350℉). Scoop ¼ cup portions of batter onto the griddle. Gently squeeze a swirl of the sugar mixture into each pancake.
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Once the bottom of the pancake is golden and bubbles on the top side begin to pop, flip the pancakes and cook for an additional two to three minutes or until cooked through. Wipe the skillet with a damp paper towel between batches.
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Top with frosting and serve warm.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
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Adapted from Recipe Girl
I made this recipe for my grandkids. I didn’t think little humans could eat that much. They absolutely loved it and so did the grown-ups. I have a good feeling about Christmas this year… for me! Thanks for all the incredible recipes. I’m a man by the way and everyone was pretty impressed with Grandpa’s cooking skills.
So glad your family loved these!
All my kids loved this !!!!!
And said it was a keeper❤️
Glad everyone loved them!
How would you adapt this to your sheet pan pancake recipe?
I haven’t tried this as a sheetpan recipe but if I were to try it, I would follow the recipe for the sheet pan pancakes and add the swirl from this recipe. Let us know how it goes!
For the pancakes, you list 3 T. of melted butter, but to make the batter you state use only 2 T. of the melted butter. I don’t see anywhere else where that last 1 T. of melted butter is used? Am I missing something in the recipe? I just don’t want to add too much or too little butter. Thanks – I just LOVE your website and have tried numerous recipes. They are great!!
Hi Kelly, we use 2 tablespoons of melted butter in the pancake batter and an additional 2 ½ tablespoons of melted butter in the cinnamon swirl portion. I hope that helps.
Hello Holly:
What is done with the Cinnamon swirl and when? Says mix and put in a piping bag…
Thanks
Jenn
In step 5, it is added to the pancakes.
Gently squeeze a swirl of the sugar mixture into each pancake.
It does get a little bit runny and kind of creates craters in the pancakes. You could try adding a little bit less butter next time if you would like it to be thicker. :)