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These Cottage Cheese Pancakes are such a delicious and satisfying breakfast. They’re super easy to make—with just 10 staple ingredients that get whipped up into a better in the blender. Serve them immediately or meal prep and stash them in the fridge or freezer for quick breakfasts all week.
I’ve been developing and tweaking this pancake recipe for yeas and I’ve honed in on the perfect method for creating delicious pancakes made with cottage cheese!
And, since the cottage cheese has to be blended anyway, the batter itself is made in the blender. Easy to whip up, easy to clean up.
If you’re worried about over-mixing, don’t be. These pancakes use whole-wheat flour, and the beauty of whole-wheat flour is it doesn’t form gluten readily. So the risk of over-mixing is minimal.
And lastly—this recipe is versatile. I’ve tested it with all kinds of dairy products, so if you don’t have enough cottage cheese just substitute with yogurt, sour cream or even Kefir (just pull back on the milk a bit).
If you’re like me and also enjoy baking with whole-wheat flour, I’ve got tons of great breakfast recipes to try! Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins, Whole-Wheat Cinnamon Rolls and my go-to Whole-Wheat Muffins are all recipes I make frequently.
This recipe article was originally published in March of 2023, it has since been updated with helpful tips, clearer instructions, step-by-step photos and a recipe video.
Reader Review
These were light with a lovely, delicate crust, and my picky eaters couldn’t tell they were made with whole wheat and gobbled them up. Thanks for another great recipe!
– Lainey
Reader Review
Really appreciated this recipe! This was even better than the regular pancakes i make. Very fluffy, soft, and no weird texture. Absolutely loved it!
– Abeer
Cottage Cheese Pancake Ingredients
Here is a quick rundown of what you’ll need for the recipe. For ingredient amounts, jump down to the recipe card.
- Cottage cheese: for the best flavor and texture, use whole milk cottage cheese. Low-fat cottage cheese won’t be as flavorful.
- Milk: you’ll also need whole milk for this cottage cheese pancake batter. I like the flavor and fat it adds. You can use a lower fat milk if you like, but avoid skim.
- Large Egg: helps to bind the batter together.
- Olive oil: I like to make pancakes with olive oil but you can use melted butter if you prefer.
- Maple Syrup: just a splash of pure maple syrup in the batter adds a touch of sweetness. Granulated sugar can be swapped in.
- Lemon: lemon zest is added for flavor while lemon juice is added to activate the baking soda—key for creating tender and fluffy pancakes.
- Vanilla: a splash adds nice depth of flavor. Almond extract, orange extract and lemon extract are all great options as well.
- Whole-wheat flour: white whole-wheat flour or regular will work here.
- Leaveners & salt: to make tall, fluffy pancakes you’ll need to use a combination of baking powder and baking soda. Then a pinch of salt enhances the other flavors in the batter.
Ingredient Tip
Use full fat cottage cheese for these pancakes to make the texture even better. The pancakes will also be more filling and flavorful.
How to Make Cottage Cheese Pancakes
Here is a quick rundown of what you’ll need for the recipe. For ingredient amounts, jump down to the recipe card.
- Blend the wet ingredients by combining the cottage cheese, milk, egg, oil, maple syrup, lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla in a blender. Process until it’s completely smooth. You want to make sure the cottage cheese is thoroughly blended!
- Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and blend just until the mixture is combined.
- Preheat a nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat. Brush with oil to coat.
- Cook the pancakes. Pour batter onto hot skillet and cook until bubbles form on top, pop and don’t refill with batter. This is when you know they are ready to flip.
- Flip the cottage cheese pancakes and cook until the second side is golden brown.
- Keep them warm in a 200ºF oven while you cook the remaining pancakes.
Expert Tips
- Adequately preheat the nonstick skillet or griddle. This ensures the batter will begin to cook the moment it hits the pan which will keep the batter from spreading too much and forming a large, thin pancake.
- Avoid gooey insides: If your pan is too hot, the exterior of the pancakes will brown too quickly, not giving the center of the pancakes enough time to cook through.
- Don’t touch the pancakes while they cook! Let them cook without moving, until bubbles form on the surface, pop, and don’t refill with batter. This is the sign they are ready to be flipped. Flip the pancakes and again, do not touch until the bottom side is nicely browned.
- Avoid pressing on the pancake with the spatula. If you press down you squash all of the height we’ve achieved!
How to Store Cottage Cheese Pancakes
As you cook the pancakes, keep them warm on wire rack set inside a baking sheet in a 200ºF oven until ready to serve.
Store any leftovers in the fridge in a resealable zipper-lock bag for up to two days.
For longer storage, stash them in the freezer. Arrange the cooled pancakes on a small baking sheet in a single layer and freeze until solid. Once frozen, transfer the pancakes to a resealable zipper-lock bag and store in the freezer for up to 4 months.
The best way to reheat pancakes is to pop them in the toaster or toaster oven. Toast the frozen pancakes until thawed, warmed through, and slightly crisp on the outside.
Be careful not to overheat the pancakes or they may become dry and tough. I don’t recommend reheating in the microwave as this makes the pancakes tough and rubbery.
What to Serve with Cottage Cheese Pancakes
Round out the meal and serve these pancakes with our Crustless Quiche Lorraine or Cheesy Fried Eggs. Candied Bacon is a favorite of mine, as is this unique Grape Salad!
My favorite way to serve these pancakes is to stack them high, top them in good salted butter and fresh blueberries and shower them with pure maple syrup. But here are some other topping ideas:
- nut butter of any kind is delicious, but have you tried easy Homemade Nutella?
- Maple syrup-sweetened butter + chopped pecans.
- Greek yogurt and berries.
- Homemade Peach Jam or Cherry Jam (both are freezer jams so they’re easy to make!)
Egg Recipes
Easy Crustless Quiche Recipe
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Grape Salad Recipe
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Whole-Wheat Cottage Cheese Pancakes Recipe
Description
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Ingredients
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons (147g) whole milk
- ½ cup (115g) whole milk cottage cheese
- 1 large egg (~50g)
- 2 tablespoons (24g) olive oil + more for cooking
- 1 tablespoons (20g) pure maple syrup or sugar
- 1 lemon, zested and juiced
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla, optional
- 1 cup (122g) white whole-wheat flour
- 1 teaspoons (5g) baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon (2g) baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon (2g) kosher salt
- optional toppings: butter, lemon zest, berries, pure maple syrup
Instructions
- In a blender, combine milk, cottage cheese, egg, oil, maple syrup, 2 teaspoons lemon zest, 1 ½ teaspoons lemon juice, and vanilla; blend until smooth, about 30 seconds.
- Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; blend just to combine.
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 200ºF (93ºC). Set a wire rack inside a rimmed baking sheet; place in oven.
- Heat ½ teaspoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Brush oil around pan with pastry brush. Carefully wipe out oil using a paper towel but leave a thin film on bottom of pan.
- Spoon batter by 3 tablespoons or scant ¼-cup (or #24 scoop) into pan in 2 places. Barely spread each portion into 3 to 3½-inch round. Cook until edges are set, first side is golden brown, and bubbles on surface are beginning to break an not fill in, about 2 minutes.
- Using a thin, wide spatula, flip pancakes and continue to cook until second side is golden brown, about 2 minutes more. Repeat cooking process with remaining batter (adding an additional splash of oil about halfway through batches).
- Serve pancakes immediately or transfer to wire rack in oven to keep warm.
Notes
Nutrition
These were light with a lovely, delicate crust, and my picky eaters couldn’t tell they were made with whole wheat and gobbled them up. I love that they’re healthyish with whole wheat and extra protein from the cottage cheese. Thanks for another great recipe!
Turned out beautifully. My daughter cleaned her plate up! Thank you for sharing it!❤️
Yay! So happy to hear they were delicious and your daughter liked them. Such a win!
Such a keeper.
I always have these ingredients on hand and started getting bored of cottage cheese. Made this recipe a few times already playing around with toppings (pistachio spread, tahini with maple syrup for a halva like brunch). Thank you for sharing!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these pancakes Maya! I agree—cottage cheese can get boring on it’s own!
Came out pretty good. I may have blended the dry ingredients a bit too much. But still came out very good. Next time should be a bit more fluffy. The white whole wheat flour is a game changer.
I’m glad they still came out even with a bit of over-mixing. The beauty of ww flour is you can over-mix a bit and it doesn’t ruin the end result!
Really appreciated this recipe! This was even better than the regular pancakes i make. Very fluffy, soft, and no weird texture while still maintaining high protein.
Absolutely loved it <3
Yay! Glad they came out fluffy and soft! 🙂
My last few pancakes were significantly flatter than my first. Does that just mean I need to blend the mixture better after adding the baking soda/powder so that it spreads more evenly throughout?
Hey Cyd, are you using double acting baking powder? If not, it is likely because the baking powder and acid were activated (by the lemon juice) when blended. And then as it sat, those bubbles deflated. If you are using double acting baking powder, then this isn’t the problem.
In that case, next time I would skip the baking soda and use 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder instead. I hope this helps!