Santa Pancakes

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These adorable Santa pancakes have the perfect sweetness of fresh strawberries, bananas, and fluffy pancakes! If you’re looking for some fun and simple Christmas pancake ideas, these are exactly what you need!

What’s more festive than Santa Claus pancakes? With the hustle and bustle of Christmas morning, the perfect in-between treat and activity are making these easy Santa pancakes. The fresh fruit and banana beard make this a healthy and fun Christmas breakfast for both kids and adults!

Special holiday season brunches are made even more memorable by the addition of this favorite pancake recipe. These pancakes are vegan and plant-based, but still easy to make and fun for the whole family.

These Santa pancakes with strawberries and bananas are naturally sweet and tasty, and takes ordinary pancakes to a whole new level! Kids will love that they can decorate their breakfast themselves. If you’re looking for easy Christmas pancakes, this recipe is for you!

👩‍🍳 Why You’ll Love Santa Pancakes

• Simple Yet Creative: These pancakes are a blank canvas for all different types of Santa’s to be made. These easy Christmas pancakes are tasty and straightforward so there’s no hassle and clean up is a breeze.
• Fun Christmas Morning Breakfast Idea: This Santa breakfast idea is the perfect festive way to start the day on Christmas morning! The creative design goes deliciously well with the soft golden-brown pancakes. Both parents and kids alike will enjoy designing their fun breakfast treat.
• Topping Options Are Endless: These toppings are fruity and flavorful, but they’re also easily interchangeable with other tasty fruits and ingredients you may have around the house.
• Whole Grains: These adorable Christmas pancakes are also healthy! These whole-grain pancakes will keep bellies full and bodies energized for the rest of the holiday festivities. The whole grain flour is a great pairing for the delicious berries and bananas.
• Naturally Sweet: Holiday cheer doesn’t have to come with artificial sweets. This Santa pancake recipe calls for coconut sugar instead of white sugar and is topped with fruit instead of other sugar-laden toppings.

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🥘 Ingredients

These fruity Santa hat pancakes are made with a simple pancake batter to create healthy and fluffy pancakes. Read on to see what you’ll need. For the full recipe and exact ingredient amounts, see the recipe card below!

Pancake Ingredients

• White Whole Wheat Flour: The base of the dry ingredients for heavenly round pancakes. Whole wheat flour has added nutritional value to set you and your family up for high energy without the sugar crash. 
• Baking Powder: To ensure soft and fluffy pancakes that will melt in your mouth.
• Salt: Just a touch of salt enhances all of the classic pancake flavors.
• Coconut Sugar: To keep this healthy Santa pancakes recipe lightly sweetened.
• Olive Oil: To keep these jolly Santa pancakes moist. Be mindful of olive oil that may be expired as that will change the flavor profile of the pancakes. 
• Unsweetened Almond Milk: A great blank slate for moist non-dairy pancakes.
• Vanilla Extract: For added depth of flavor in these fun Santa pancakes. For the best flavor, use pure vanilla extract.

Topping Ingredients

• Strawberries: Tart strawberry slices to create Santa’s red hat and to complete Santa’s rosy red nose.
• Bananas: Ripe banana slices for Santa’s beard and the tip of his hat.
• Candy Eyes: A fun way to add an animated sweet treat for these festive Santa pancakes.

🍲 Ingredient Substitutions

• Oil: Depending on what you have available, you can substitute olive oil with canola oil or coconut oil. However, take note that this will affect the nutritional value.
• Milk: Use any non-dairy milk you like (soy milk, oat milk, or full-fat coconut milk) or swap for whole milk if you aren’t concerned about the dairy.
• Santa Eyes: If you cannot find candy eyes, chocolate chips will do the trick for Santa’s eyes.
• Santa Beard: If you’re going for extra sweet and fluffy, create a whipped cream beard.
• Dry Ingredients: Instead of mixing the dry ingredients from scratch, you can also use a pancake mix to save on prep time. Make sure to follow the directions on the boxed mix for making the pancakes, and then decorate following the instructions below.

🔪 How to Make Santa Pancakes

Mix Batter: Preheat a griddle or skillet over medium-high heat for a couple of minutes. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Set aside.

Whisk Wet Ingredients: In a separate bowl, beat together the oil, milk, and vanilla.

Add Wet & Dry Ingredients: Add the oil mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just combined.

Cook Pancakes: Use a ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop the batter onto the hot griddle. Cook until the pancakes begin to bubble, then flip the pancake and cook the other side for two to three minutes until they are golden brown. Continue cooking the batter until all the batter has been cooked.

Decorate Santa Face Pancakes: Allow the pancakes to cool slightly, then use the banana slices to create a beard on the bottom half of the pancake. Use the strawberry slices to make Santa’s hat on the top of the pancake. Decorate the top of the hat with a banana end and add a row of banana slices along the bottom of the hat. Use a strawberry end as Santa’s nose and add two candy eyes above the nose to complete Santa’s face.

💭 Expert Tips

• Don’t Over-Mix. When mixing the dry and wet ingredients, create a well in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. This prevents you from over-mixing the batter which results in a tough dense pancake.
• Let The Batter Rest. Allow the pancake batter to rest for 10-15 minutes before cooking. This allows the batter to hydrate and create those little fluffy bubbles we all love.
• Prepare The Griddle. Make sure your skillet is greased well for the perfectly browned pancakes that flip easily without sticking. You can use melted butter or olive oil.
• Consistent Pancakes. Use an ice cream scoop or measuring cup to dispense the batter. This results in even pancakes. For larger pancakes, leave the batter on the pan for 30 seconds to 1 minute longer. Furthermore, creating oval pancakes works best for Santa’s face.
• Look For Bubbling Pancakes. It’s a good thing when the batter starts to bubble. This tells you that it’s time to flip the pancakes.

📖 Variations

• Snowman Shape Pancakes: Scoop the pancakes onto the griddle in large, medium, and small scoops. Serve the pancakes in the shape of a snowman. Decorate with chocolate chips for the eyes, coco whip cream for the body, and wedges of orange for the nose! It’s a great way to use the remainder of the batter and another fun holiday breakfast!
• Candy Cane & Holiday Shapes: Experiment with other holiday-themed shapes. Candy canes, ornaments, wreaths, and Rudolph are a few of our favorites. Decorate with Christmas decorations, try out coloring the pancake dough with food coloring, and finish off with relevant sliced fruit and coconut whipped cream.
• Gluten-Free Pancake Christmas Breakast: For gluten-free pancakes, use gluten-free flour that’s made with xanthan gum which will ensure that the pancakes bind and raise well.

🍽 Serving Suggestions

These festive Santa pancakes go well with all things breakfast. Here are some great examples: 

• Toppings: Top with pure maple syrup or chocolate sauce for a classic breakfast experience. Or make it even more decadent by adding mini dark chocolate chips, a drizzle of vegan honey or strawberry simple syrup, a dollop of your favorite nut butter, pumpkin seed butter, pear compote, or fresh fruit preserves.
• Breakfast Sides: Enjoy with a side of sausage (vegan or pork), homemade hash browns (like this McDonald’s hash browns recipe, fried potatoes and onions, Christmas muffins, scrambled eggs, or this silken tofu scramble for a vegan option.
• Sweeter Sides: Make and serve with a cup of creamy hot cocoa (like this healthy hot chocolate), or alongside a bigger spread of sweet treats like these vegan chocolate chip muffins or Christmas muffins.

🫙 Storage Directions

• Refrigeration: Keep undecorated pancake leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5-7 days. Decorated pancakes and pancake decorations will only last for up to 1 day as the toppings will degrade.
• Reheating: Reheat these Santa breakfast pancakes in the microwave on medium heat for 30-60-second intervals until they are heated through.
• Freezing: Leftover pancakes can be frozen in a freezer-safe container or zip-top bag for up to 3 months.

🥞 More Delicious Pancake Recipes!

• Oat Milk Pancakes
• Mochi Pancakes
• Oat Flour Pancakes
• Easy Vegan Protein Pancakes

📋 Recipe Card