Carrot Cake Pancakes with Cream Cheese Syrup

Carrot Cake Pancakes topped with Maple Cream Cheese Syrup, just the name is enough to make me grin. This was a real breakfast treat.

Carrot Cake Pancakes

These pancakes truly deserve their decadent name. With spicy notes from cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger, these taste surprisingly like carrot cake. I didn’t expect that much of the carrot flavor to shine through, but it does.

They’re fantastic with the cream cheese syrup included in the recipe below and they’re also wonderful when topped with my grandmother’s waffle sauce.

I enjoy these pancakes every bit as much as I enjoy the Zucchini Waffles we make all summer. These pancakes have been a win for the entire family.

My baby managed to eat three of these pancakes while I was making the rest of our breakfast. (Edited to add: That little baby will be turning 13 in a few months, so you can tell these are a LONG time favorite.)

When I first made these, I was doing a lot of baking with whole wheat flour. And while I enjoyed the pancakes when we made with wheat flour, if I’m being honest, I like them even better now when they’re made a little bit lighter and fluffier with all-purpose flour.

You could even split the difference and make them 50/50 with half whole wheat flour. Whether you choose to make them with regular flour, whole wheat, or a mix of both, I can promise you they’ll be delicious.

Carrot Cake Pancake

Pancake making is a pretty straightforward process. It has become so routine for me I do the same basic steps every time. Whisk together your dry ingredients.

Combine the wet ingredients in a separate bowl and whisk them together as well. Add wet to dry and whisk – but don’t over mix.

I always add my mix-ins, carrots in this case, last. Stir just until combined. After mixing wet and dry ingredients for pancakes the baking soda starts working right away so be careful not to disturb that process by overmixing.

The pancakes are ready for the griddle after the batter has rested for 5-10 minutes. It can vary but just watch for the top of the batter to be coated in little bubbles, this help ensure the fluffiest pancakes.

For another fun breakfast filled with carrot cake flavors, try Carrot Cake Oatmeal next.

Homemade Pancake Supplies

If you make pancakes often, nothing beats a great electric griddle for streamlining the cooking process. A few years ago, when my 15-year-old griddle finally died, I tested every single griddle I could get my hands on.

When I finally tried this extra large electric griddle, I knew I’d found THE ONE. It’s a little on the spendy side, but I am telling you now, it beats all the others hands-down.

This nylon flexible turner is a pancake-making must-have, as is a dough whisk. If you aren’t familiar with the awesomeness that is a dough whisk for pancakes and waffles, you are missing out. It’s a crazy-looking tool, but it stirs the batter just enough without overmixing it.

I’ve tried pretty much all of the nifty pancake-pouring gadgets out there, and I stand by a good old measuring cup as the easiest way to make pancakes. I use the ¼ or ⅓ cup sizes for most pancake making – this set that I use every day will allow you to improvise for all kinds of sizes.

Carrot Pancakes

Pancake Ingredients

• all purpose flour
• baking powder
• sugar
• cinnamon
• nutmeg
• ginger
• kosher salt
• buttermilk
• eggs
• shredded carrots 
• vegetable oil or butter

Cream Cheese Syrup Ingredients

• cream cheese room
• maple syrup 
• heavy cream 

Pancake Instructions

1. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt in a small bowl. Whisk together the buttermilk and eggs in a larger bowl.
2. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir just to combine. Fold in the shredded carrots, being careful not to over mix. 
3. Heat a griddle or skillet and warm just a bit of butter or oil in it. Pour the batter onto the griddle in ¼ cup portions. Cook on medium heat, just until the surface starts to bubble. Flip the pancakes and continue cooking until the second side is golden.

Syrup Instructions

1. In a medium-sized bowl, beat the room-temperature cream cheese until smooth. Add the syrup and beat again to combine. Taste and add syrup until the desired sweetness is achieved.
2. Add a splash or two of cream to the bowl and beat again, until the syrup reaches a pourable consistency. If you prefer the syrup to be a little sweeter, you may not need any cream, as it may already be thin enough to pour.
3. Serve the pancakes warm with syrup and a sprinkling of cinnamon on top.

Cream Cheese Syrup

As much of a purist as I am and as much as I love real maple syrup on pancakes, I also love a variety of flavorful sauces or syrups that complement the flavor of the pancake.

Cream cheese icing is a must for me on carrot cake so it only made sense to create cream cheese maple syrup for these carrot cake pancakes. Whip together cream cheese and maple syrup, it really is that easy.

I mentioned my grandma’s vanilla sauce which is amazing on waffles but some of our other favorites include Brown Sugar Butter Syrup on Apple Sauce Pancakes. Buttermilk Syrup adds a delicious caramel-like sweetness to pecan pancakes.

Sweet Orange Sauce has been a favorite part of our weekend breakfasts for as long as I can remember. My grandmother always served this sauce over her German Pancakes and over crepes.

{originally published 9/20/11 – recipe notes and photos updated 1/17/23}