My classic sourdough pancakes are one of the most popular recipes on the blog! They're light, tangy and absolutely delicious! So I decided to dress them up a bit and make these lemon poppy seed sourdough pancakes with a lemon icing drizzled on top. The tangy sourdough discard pairs beautifully with the bright lemon flavor! These would be the perfect brunch pancakes!
Don’t have a sourdough starter? Never fear! Just check out my Sourdough Guide for all my tips and tricks!
For all of my sourdough recipes, I measure the ingredients in grams. If you don't have a kitchen scale*, I highly recommend getting one! They have tons of super affordable ones on Amazon that work great!
You can whip up the batter whenever you feel like having pancakes, but you can also make the batter the night before for even more flavorful pancakes. I personally prefer the overnight method, but I’ve also made them the morning of and they still taste great!
overnight option
The night before you want to to make pancakes, mix together the sourdough discard, flour, sugar, and buttermilk in a large bowl. Cover and let rest at room temperature overnight.
In the morning, whisk together the eggs, melted butter, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Add to the flour mixture. Add in the poppy seeds, baking soda and salt and mix until combined.
Tip: if you want your pancakes to have even more sourdough flavor, let the batter ferment in the fridge overnight!
same day option
Mix together the sourdough discard, flour, sugar, and buttermilk in a large bowl. Cover and let rest for 30-60 minutes to give the flour time to hydrate.
Whisk together the eggs, melted butter, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Add to the flour mixture. Add in the poppy seeds, baking soda and salt and mix until combined.
Heat a lightly greased* griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Scoop about ¼ cup of batter onto the griddle and cook until the surface has several bubbles (1-2 minutes). Then flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
*I like to grease my pan with coconut oil because of the flavor it adds. But you can also use butter or cooking spray.
I have a ton of sourdough breakfast recipes on the blog that you might also like!
- Sourdough Crepes
- Sourdough Buttermilk Biscuits
- Sourdough Waffles
- Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls
- Sourdough Bagels
More Brunch Recipes!
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Recipe Card
Lemon Poppy Seed Sourdough Pancakes
Ingredients
Sourdough Pancakes
- 227 grams sourdough starter discard
- 241 grams all purpose flour
- 454 grams buttermilk , substitute whole milk
- 45 grams granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 60 grams unsalted butter, melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Lemon Icing
- 180 grams powdered sugar°
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, melted
- 1-3 tablespoons unsalted butter
Instructions
Overnight Batter
- The night before you want to to make pancakes, mix together the sourdough discard, flour, sugar, and buttermilk in a large bowl. Cover and let rest at room temperature overnight.
- In the morning, whisk together the eggs, melted butter, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Add to the flour mixture. Add in the poppy seeds, baking soda and salt and mix until combined.
Same Day Batter
- Mix together the sourdough discard, flour, sugar, and buttermilk in a large bowl. Cover and let rest for 30-60 minutes to give the flour time to hydrate.
- Whisk together the eggs, melted butter, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Add to the flour mixture. Add in the poppy seeds, baking soda and salt and mix until combined.
To Cook
- Heat a lightly greased griddle or frying pan over medium high heat.
- Scoop about ¼ cup of batter onto the griddle and cook until the surface has several bubbles (1-2 minutes). Then flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Repeat with the remaining batter.
- To make the icing, mix together the powdered sugar and melted butter in a small bowl. Add in the lemon juice one tablespoon at time until a thick but pourable consistency is reached.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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Heba says
Hi! I made the sourdough cinnamon rolls and they were delicious!! Now I want to try the pancakes!
How long do you think I can leave the sourdough discard, buttermilk, flour and sugar mixture in the fridge? In the recipe it says 24hours at room temperature and I was wondering if I can leave it for 2-3 days in the fridge and mix the remainder of the ingredients when I need it? Thank you!
Kyleigh Sage says
Yes absolutely!! I just wouldn’t do more than 3-4 days. Also, just know it will definitely yield a tangier flavor, the longer it’s in there.