Snowman Pancakes Recipe

The holidays are a time filled with everyone's favorite traditions. Whether they are old customs with family or new ones with friends, coming together with loved ones and enjoying delicious and festive food and drinks is often at the core. These adorable snowman pancakes from recipe developer and registered dietitian nutritionist Kristen Carli are perfect for starting a new holiday brunch tradition! This pancake recipe is made from scratch yet remains quick and easy to whip up. As for the assembly, everyone will have fun constructing the cutest snowmen.

They are sure to be just as big of a hit at your big family brunch as they are for an after-school snack. These could also make for an awesome holiday activity to involve the kids in the process. They're sure to be excited about building their snowmen exactly to their taste. These pancakes will definitely be a crowd-pleaser — you'll want to keep them on repeat all winter long!

To make these cute-as-can-be snowmen, start by gathering up pancake batter ingredients. You'll need flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, whole milk, melted butter, and eggs. You'll want to keep coming back to this classic pancake recipe over and over again, so to make this process even easier, Carli advises to "mix a big batch of the dry ingredients ahead of time so you can scoop 2 cups and add the wet ingredients just like you would with your favorite boxed pancake mix." A few extra ingredients set these pancakes aside from the ordinary. You'll need chocolate chips, blueberries, strawberries, bacon, and powdered sugar to complete the look. 

Once you've gathered all of your ingredients, grab a large bowl and a whisk. Add all of the batter ingredients into the bowl, dry and wet. Whisk until everything is just combined, being careful to avoid over-mixing. Pancakes as well as many other batters and doughs for baked goods can be ruined by over-zealous mixing. You'll know you've gone too far if the pancakes are extra chewy and tough instead of light and fluffy.

With the batter prepared and ready to go, heat a large skillet on the stove over medium heat. Add the remaining tablespoon of butter to the skillet. Once the skillet is hot, use a ladle to scoop the batter and pour it into the skillet, in varying sizes. We're looking for three different sizes for the classic snowman shape. Once the batter starts to bubble on top, flip the pancakes. Continue to cook for about 2 minutes on the remaining side. Keep going with your three sizes of batter dollops until the rest of the batter is used up.

Heat a medium skillet over medium heat to prepare the bacon. Add the bacon slices and cook for about 5 minutes on each side or until they are crispy to your liking. Then, remove the bacon from the skillet and set it aside. Meanwhile, gather and prepare the rest of your snowmen's gear. Get your chocolate chips and powdered sugar ready. Wash your blueberries and strawberries, then remove the stems from the strawberries and slice them in half.

Start the snowman building process by placing your three sizes of pancakes, large, medium, and small, tiered on the plate in the shape of a snowman. Place two chocolate chips on the face for the eyes, three blueberries down the center for buttons, and half a strawberry on top for the hat. Slice or tear one piece of bacon to make a scarf around each snowman's neck. Your snowman is nearly complete and ready to eat!

Finish it off with a little something extra and cover your snowman with a light dusting of powdered sugar snow. You can do this by adding your powdered sugar to a fine-mesh strainer or a sifter to get the perfect light sprinkle of snow. Serve with a side of syrup or whatever else you need to top off your pancakes the way you like. Take a moment to admire your festive creation and snap a picture or two before digging in!