Years ago, when Maggiano’s still served brunch, I fell in love with their light and heavenly lemon ricotta pancakes. My first attempt at recreating them resulted in thin, dense pancakes—nothing like the fluffy perfection from the restaurant. After much trial and error, I finally crafted a recipe that comes close!
I like a good punch of lemon flavor in these pancakes, but if you prefer them less lemony, feel free to reduce the lemon zest by ½ tablespoon.
Also, keep in mind that I live at nearly 6,000 feet above sea level, so you may need to make adjustments if you’re at a lower elevation.
Ingredients
- 1½ C all-purpose flour
- 3 T sugar
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 1 C buttermilk can substitute with whole milk
- 3 lg. eggs at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla or same amount of vanilla paste
- 2 T butter, melted
- 1/4 C fresh lemon juice about 1 medium-sized lemon
- 2 T lemon zest about 1 medium-sized lemon
Instructions
- Preheat your griddle to medium heat or 275° - 300°℉. (see note)
- Whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder and soda, and salt.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, ricotta, eggs, vanilla, lemon juice and butter until combined.
- Combine the milk mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Fold in the lemon zest.
- Using a ¼ - ⅓ C measuring cup, pour the batter onto the skillet. Cook until bubbles start to appear and then gently flip over and cook until golden. Serve with a sprinkle of powdered sugar if desired. To keep any cooked pancakes warm before serving, place them in a 200℉ oven until ready to serve.
Notes
All griddles are different, but I prefer to keep the heat slightly lower for these pancakes than I would for regular ones.
