Whether you’re one of those people who think Pancake Day is just for the kids, or you’re tired of the same old recipes and toppings every year, how about a grown-up twist - boozy pancakes.
Alcohol is massively underrated as a cooking ingredient and great for pushing the boat out this Pancake Day. These mouthwatering recipes range in simplicity, but use beer, Baileys, Chambord, coffee, vodka, and orange liqueur for indulgent boozy twists on classic pancakes.
Beer Pancakes
It won’t be one that you think of straight away, but beer actually adds a really lovely malty, yeasty flavour to the batter. And on top of that, the carbonation creates a lighter, fluffier pancake. Once it’s done, you can take it in a savoury or sweet direction and because the small amount of alcohol cooks away, the kids can try it too. A good place to start would be with a Belgian fruit beer like cherry, and then using the same fruit as your toppings… but all your usual toppings will pair up nicely.
Ingredients (for 5):
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg (beaten)
250ml beer (light)
125g plain flour
50g caster sugar
30g butter
Method:
Mix together the dry ingredients first, so that’s sieved flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Next, whilst continuously whiskiberrng if possible, pour in egg, melted butter and your favourite beer, before stirring until smooth. Set this aside (ideally for an hour but it doesn’t matter too much) and get some medium heat into the pan with a little oil. For one pancake, use about 60ml of batter and cook for about 90 seconds on each side – or until it’s starting to turn a nice golden brown. The flip to show off is optional.
Baileys Pancakes
You just knew these would be included. The creamy profile of the country’s favourite liqueur is just begging to be used for Shrove Tuesday. A splash of Bailey’s gives mouth-watering fluffy pancakes with added indulgent richness and creaminess. These will exceed your expectations, trust us.
Ingredients (for 5):
3 tbsp unsalted butter
3/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1 large egg
150ml milk
125g self-raising flour
80ml Baileys Irish Cream
Method:
Nothing complicated here because you can just do as you would, except swapping some Baileys in for a portion of the milk. It’s best to mix the dry ingredients first, before whisking the liquids in until it forms a light and creamy batter. Fry in oil or butter for around 90 secs until golden. Toppings can be whatever you like but try white chocolate!
Chambord Pancakes
If you’re not familiar with Chambord, then you’ll probably recognise the glamorous royal bottle. It’s the original raspberry liqueur, a velvety smooth mix of not just raspberries, but blackberries, vanilla, citrus, honey, and a little cognac – now that sounds like pancake material to us. It’s a decadent, fruity twist that splits the Chambord into the batter mix, but also as an opulent drizzle. Nom.
Ingredients (for 5):
50g plain flour
100ml Chambord
75ml whole milk
40g dark chocolate
50ml double cream
Method:
Okay, so first mix flour, milk and 50ml of Chambord until smooth (watch the gorgeous purple colouring come to life). Coat a pan with a little butter or oil and pour 60ml of batter in. Like usual, cook for 90 seconds. In the meantime, melt chocolate in a bowl of boiling water. Combine this with double cream, and then the other 50ml of Chambord until it thickens slightly. Pour this over your pancakes for berry heaven. Be aware that some alcohol will remain in this one though!
Espresso Martini Pancakes
It was only a matter of time before coffee showed up. For adding a kick to your breakfast pancakes, how about combining them with the UK’s favourite cocktail, the Espresso Martini? It has similarities with a Tiramisu, with spongey, rich coffee flavour, and soft mascarpone on top. This one requires a little more effort, but if you need motivation then just read the ingredient list – delish.
Ingredients (for 5):
200g self-raising flour
1 tbsp coffee (optional dilution with 1 tbsp of water)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp golden caster sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
200ml milk
2 eggs
25g melted butter
For toppings:
100ml espresso
4 tbsp caster sugar
25ml coffee liqueur
130g mascarpone
70g zero fat Greek yoghurt
1 tbsp vodka
3 tbsp icing sugar
Chocolate shavings
Method:
First, the pancake. So, simmer your coffee with water (instant is fine) with the sugar and coffee liqueur in a pan until it thickens like syrup. Leave this to cool. Whisk all the pancake ingredients together until completely smooth and pourable. Again, 60ml ish of batter per pancake into the pan (depending on pan size and preferred thickness). For the topping, beat the mascarpone with the yoghurt, a splash of vodka and icing sugar until nicely mixed and smooth. Dollop this on top, alongside the coffee syrup you made earlier, and shave some chocolate. What a creation.
Orange Pancakes
Another tasty route to go down is zesty citrus. You could experiment with gin and lemon, but we think it might get overpowered so how about orange liqueur. Using either Grand Marnier (richer) or Cointreau (sweeter), you get a succulent, sunny pancake full of delicious orange. It might be a little light on its own, so we’ve paired it with double cream but ice cream would be delish too.
Ingredients (for 5):
5 regular plain pancakes
85g unsalted butter (softened)
25g golden caster sugar
3 tbsp Cointreau or Grand Marnier
½ orange (zested)
For toppings:
2 oranges (juiced)
1 lemon (zested)
175g golden caster sugar
3 tbsp Cointreau or Grand Marnier
200ml double cream (softly whipped)
Method:
Combine butter, sugar, liqueur, and orange zest in a bowl and spread over your plain pancakes. Heat in an ovenproof dish for 10 minutes on a medium heat. Meanwhile, make the sauce – add your zests, juice and sugar to a pan and heat through until syrupy. Add 2 tablespoons of liqueur and reduce the heat once it starts gently simmering. Let it cool. Then add a final tablespoon of orange liqueur, and drizzle over your heated pancakes with cream. Mouthwatering stuff.
If you’re planning a proper evening of pancakes and booze, then find out which drinks go best with pancakes here!