Apple Pancakes are great for baby-led weaning, as a finger food or for toddler's breakfast or snack. Easy, delicious and nutritious.
Pancakes may well be the easiest and simplest snack that I make for my son. And often my husband and I sneak a few for ourselves. So really it's a great family meal that we not only enjoy at home but also take with us on outings.
Since I make them so often (especially the banana oat pancakes) I really wanted to add variety to them so I've been experimenting lately with different ingredients and batters.
And my newest and favorite one are these Apple Pancakes. I love the fact that in just 15 minutes and with minimal ingredients I can have a healthy and delicious toddler breakfast or snack idea. Just add toppings or spreads of choice!
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Nutrition And Ingredients
Wholewheat Flour
- Wholegrain spelt flour because is far more digestible than regular wheat flour, especially for babies and toddlers. But since it is not as readily available, use wholewheat flour instead
- Wholewheat flour contains far more nutrients (such as iron, magnesium and manganese but also complex carbohydrates and fiber) than regular white flour
Egg
- Choose either organic or free-range so you can be sure that the chickens have not been treated with any hormones, antibiotics or preservatives
- A great source of B vitamins (especially choline), and protein
Apple
- My choice for this recipe is sweeter apple varieties (e.g. Fuji or Gala). The recipe doesn't contain any other sweet ingredients so the sweeter your apples, the sweeter the pancakes
- If you are making for a really small baby (6 - 8 months) I would advise to peel off the skin because their digestive systems might not be able to digest the skin. The reason for this is high fiber content in the apple skin and the fact that the baby's bowels are just getting used to solid food
- Apples are a wonderful source of nutrients of which fiber and vitamin C are the highest
- If you are looking for more ways to add apple to your child's diet check the our Applesauce Oatmeal Cookies recipe
Rolled Oats
- Rolled oats are a great ingredient to use for baking because besides from using them in the original form when blended they can form a really nice oat flour that contributes well to the whole nutritional content of the meal
- Contain a good amount of essential minerals such as potassium and magnesium and are also a great source of fiber and complex carbohydrates
Whole Milk
- As I've been making this recipes for my 22-month old, I used whole cow’s milk due to it’s calorie and nutrition content (this recipe has also been tested with whole goat's milk)
- It is high in protein, fat, calcium and calories so a great ingredient to use when needing to boost up the calorie and nutrition content of toddler meals
How To Make Apple Pancakes for Baby & Toddler
Prepare the batter. Peel the apple, cut it into smaller pieces and place in a blender. Add all the other ingredients and blend until a smooth batter is formed.
Prepare the pan. Heat a pancake pan over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add a bit of olive oil so that it barely greases the pan.
Making and baking the pancakes. Using a tablespoon, scoop the batter from the blender and place over the pan. Repeat until you have the full pan covered. I usually can make 4 pancakes at a time. When you see the batter firming around the edges and lifting a bit of the pan, flip them over. Bake for another minute or two, based on the strength of the heat.
Cool and serve. Transfer to a plate to cool before serving.
Tips And Tricks For The Perfect Pancakes
Choose the perfect pan. If possible, make sure you are using a non-sticky (and non-toxic) pancake pan for these pancakes. This way you will only need a minimum amount of oil to grease the pan and the pancakes will bake more quickly and evenly. And be easier to turn.
Know your pancake size. You want to make sure to make the pancakes just as big and thin enough so that they are perfectly baked from the inside but not overbrowning on the outside. I've found with this batter that the perfect amount is taking one tablespoon and carefully arranging on a pan – evenly and as thinly as you can. You get small pancakes which are perfect for babies and toddlers to hold.
Don't overuse the oil. If you have a perfect pancake pan, you will only need a slight amount of oil to grease it. I've recently switched to using olive oil for baby and toddler pancakes because I only use small amounts and you can't really taste or smell it. But the health benefits are far better than of coconut oil. And I only need a small amount. If you add too much oil the pancakes will be too greasy and sometimes even soggy and there is a large possibility you child won't want to eat them. However, you can use coconut oil if you prefer.
How To Serve To Babies and Toddlers?
Babies
- 6-9 month old – cut the pancakes in length and width of your index finger
- 9 month+ or pincer grasp – you can cut into smaller bite size pieces, the size of your pinky fingernail
- Pancakes can be served with a thin smear of nut butter (nut butters are a choking hazard for babies, so spread thinly) and fruit mashed or cut up age appropriately.
Toddlers
- Serve the pancakes in the the same way as you would for adults
- Add nut butter, fold them and make little pancake “sandwiches” so it is easier for them to grab
How to Store and Reheat?
Storage
- Fridge – in an airtight container for up to 3 days
- Freezer – if you think you will be defrosting them individually then place them one on top of the other and separate with parchment paper and then in an airtight container. I usually put mine in a Stasher Bag and reheat altogether. Once defrosted, use within 24 hours.
Reheating from frozen
- Reheat in the oven at 180°C / 350°F for about 5-10 min
- Reheat in toaster for 1 min on defrost setting
- Reheat in microwave for about 15 sec on defrost setting (depending on the microwave)
Possible Pancake Variations
Batter consistency. If the batter is too loose add a little bit more flour (spoon by spoon). The batter should be slightly thick, able to pour but not runny. The batter consistency will depend on the size and type of apple you are using.
Make them dairy-free. Instead of whole cow's milk, you can use always substitute with plant-based milk. I would recommend if serving to babies and toddlers to use calcium fortified plant-based milk just ensure that they are getting enough of that very important nutrient.
Use another flour. If you don't have (or want to use) wholewheat flour, you can always choose plain wheat flour or rye flour. I wouldn't recommend using fat-based flour such as coconut or almond because you'd need a carb-based one to make this batter perfect. I also wouldn't recommend substituting with rolled oats or oat flour because it simply isn't as thick and could cause your pancakes to burn easily from the outside.
Vary your apples. Although my recommendation is to use a sweeter apple variety such as Fuji or Gala you can really choose any you like. It all depends on whether you want your pancakes to be sweeter or not and what toppings or spreads (if any) you will be using to serve.
Other Pancakes Recipes
Apple Pancakes for Baby-led Weaning & Toddlers
Ingredients
- 1 apple medium-sized
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoon wholewheat flour
- 2 tablespoon rolled oats
- 2 tablespoon whole milk
- olive oil for cooking (or coconut oil)
Instructions
- Peel the apple, cut it into smaller pieces and place in a blender (you don't have to peel it for children older than 8 months).
- Add all the other ingredients and blend until a smooth batter is formed. If the batter is too loose add a little bit more flour (spoon by spoon). The batter should be slightly thick, able to pour but not runny.
- Heat a pancake pan over medium heat.
- Once the pan is hot, add a bit of olive oil so that it barely greases the pan.
- Using a tablespoon, scoop the batter from the blender and place over the pan. Repeat until you have the full pan covered (probably around 4 pancakes).
- When you see the batter firming around the edges and lifting a bit of the pan, flip them over (after about 2 minutes).
- Bake for another minute or two, based on the strength of the heat.
- Transfer to a plate to cool before serving.
Notes
- Fridge – in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Freezer – if you think you will be defrosting them individually then place them one on top of the other and separate with parchment paper and then in an airtight container. Once defrosted, use within 24 hours.
- Reheat in the oven at 180°C / 350°F for about 5-10 min
- Reheat in toaster for 1 min
- Reheat in microwave for about 15 sec (depending on the microwave)
Meghan
Maybe because of the Apple, but my pancakes wouldn’t solidify in the middle. They stayed kinds of batter-y no matter what.
Dora
Hi Meghan,
thanks for your comment. Yes, this can be because of the apple because apples can be in different sizes and types so they can make the batter a bit liquidy. If this is the case you can try thickening by adding flour spoon by spoon until you are satisfied with the batter. You can test the batter by trying to make a small pancake first until you are satisfied with the thickness.
Katerina
I really wanted to like this recipe but none of my pancakes cooked through. I want to make sure that everything is thoroughly cooked for my baby especially with egg in it. Unfortunately I only read the above comment when all of my pancake batter was done. I will try it again another time with your suggestion of adding in flour.
Ana
Hi Katerina,
Thanks for letting me know. It is probably that the batter was loose due to difference in ingredients. I will add a comment about adding the flour in the actual recipe.
Jess
nearly 3 yo and 10 month old both loved these, I added 1/2tsp cinnamon. The bite I had was good too 😋. Thanks!
Ana
Hi Jess, thanks for sharing! So glad to hear that.
Lynn
Can you use unsweetened applesauce and if so, how much and would the other ingredient measurements have to be altered? Thank you
Ana
Hi Lynn,
1 medium apple should give about 1/2 a cup of applesauce so you can use that much and see how it turns out. If the mixture is too runny use more flour, and if it is too dense add a little bit more milk. Let me know how they turned out.