This thick and fluffy pancake casserole is filled with blueberries and topped with a brown sugar crumble. This is a great way to make pancakes for a crowd, and it’s a great meal prep dish (it reheats beautifully).
This is one of my most popular recipes – and for good reason. This recipe is easy, delicious, and it’s always met with rave reviews. Think of it as a mashup between pancakes and coffee cake.
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Why you’ll love this recipe
Flavor: Buttermilk pancakes with a touch of vanilla, lemon, blueberries, and maple syrup.
Texture: Imagine a super thick and fluffy pancake filled with juicy blueberries and a crunchy crumb topping.
Ease: Although this recipe has several steps, it is super easy. No special equipment or techniques needed.
Feed a crowd: If you don’t feel like standing over the stove flipping individual pancakes for a crowd this is a great alternative. I often make this dish for holiday breakfast/brunch.
Great leftover: Reheat individual servings in the microwave, this casserole reheats beautifully.
Pancake casserole recipe overview
*Full recipe below in recipe card*
Crumb topping:
Combine flour, sugars, cinnamon, salt, and melted butter. Pop the topping into the fridge while you proceed with the pancake batter.
Pancake batter:
- Combine dry ingredients in one bowl.
- Combine wet ingredients in another bowl.
- Combine wet and dry.
- Be careful not to overmix (it will be lumpy).
Add the batter to a greased 9×13 pan. Top with blueberries and crumb topping.
Bake!
Make ahead options
Can this be made ahead?
I highly recommend serving this right after baking but you can do most of the prep in advance. Note: individual leftovers reheat well in the microwave but I do not bake and reheat the whole dish.
Use this method to prep ahead and you will only have a couple of “hands-on” minutes in the morning:
- Prepare the crumb topping and refrigerate until ready to use (up to 1 day in advance). It will firm up quite a bit as the butter chills in the fridge. Let it sit at room temp for an hour (if you have time), or just use your fingers to break the crumb topping into chunks as you scatter it over the pancake batter.
- Pancake batter: combine all of the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda) in a large bowl and tightly cover at room temp overnight.
- Pancake batter: in a large glass measuring cup or bowl, whisk the eggs, buttermilk, milk, lemon zest and vanilla (all of the wet ingredients except the melted butter). Tightly cover and refrigerate overnight.
- In the morning: Preheat the oven, whisk 4 tablespoons melted butter into the wet ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, stir well, pour into a prepared casserole dish. Top with blueberries and the refrigerated crumb topping and bake!
Can you use pancake mix?
I have tried swapping the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, salt and leaveners) in place of 2 ½ cups of pancake mix. It did work, but I found that the packaged pancake mix puffed up really high, which made the blueberries and crumb topping sink in. It tasted fine, but I prefer this recipe made the way it is written.
Can you use frozen blueberries?
YES! Swap the fresh blueberries for frozen blueberries (without thawing them). Note: You might need to increase the bake time by a couple minutes, and the blueberry color will bleed into the pancake batter a little more than it does with fresh blueberries. It will still taste fine.
Psst: If you absolutely LOVE blueberries (like my family does), you can top this Pancake Casserole with Blueberry Sauce.
Serving and storage
Serve warm topped with maple syrup. Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
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Recipe
Blueberry Buttermilk Pancake Casserole
Ingredients
Crumb topping:
- ½ cup flour
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Pancake:
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour, see note
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups buttermilk
- ½ cup milk, I used skim milk
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1-2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
- 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 ⅔ cups blueberries
- maple syrup, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Thoroughly grease a 9×13 baking dish and set aside.
Crumb topping:
- In a medium bowl combine flour, sugars, cinnamon, and salt. Add melted butter and stir until fully incorporated. Cover and refrigerate while you prepare the pancake batter.
Pancake:
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
- In a separate bowl, combine eggs, buttermilk, milk, melted butter, lemon zest, and vanilla extract (the butter might clump from the chill of the cold ingredients- that’s ok). Whisk wet ingredients until well combined. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and use a rubber spatula to stir until combined. The batter will be lumpy; do not over mix.
- Pour the batter into the greased baking dish. Sprinkle the blueberries over the top. Remove the crumb topping from the fridge and crumble over the top of the blueberries and batter. Bake for about 35-45 minutes, until puffed and light golden brown (check the center for doneness). Serve warm with maple syrup.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Information is an estimate based on third-party calculations and may vary based on products used and serving sizes.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and rating below!
Valerie
A great recipe!! Super easy to put together & turned out delicious! My “go to” for guests or large family gatherings. It saves me from flipping pancakes all morning and allows everyone to eat at one time.
Vivianne
Can this be made ahead and frozen, then heated?
Allison
Hi! See here: https://celebratingsweets.com/blueberry-buttermilk-pancake-casserole/#make-ahead-options
Rachael A.
This is my go-to recipe for meal trains. This is so good! Definitely a favorite of my family and any others we make this for!
Allison
Great idea! I’m glad you enjoyed it. 🙂
Tory
I don’t usually leave comments, but I made 2 of these casseroles and took them to
our church Coffee Hour and they were a HUGE success. I prepped them the night before according to the directions and I baked them at home and they looked beautiful. However, I covered them and put them on heat packs to stay warm
until church was over and unfortunately it softened up the crumb topping. I tried
putting them under the broiler for a few minutes to crisp the crumb topping back up and that did help, but it wasn’t as pretty as when I originally took them out of the oven.
Entirely my fault, but it didn’t detract from the taste at all. There was a bottle of maple syrup offered with the casserole, but few people took it, they liked the taste as it
was without any additional topping. I may make the blueberry sauce next time, I know
that would be appreciated. Thank you so much for listing this recipe, it was absolutely
delicious.
Allison
Thanks for the kind review. I’m glad it was a hit. 🙂
Phyllis
Could I substitute Bisquick and leave off the baking powder and soda?
Allison
https://celebratingsweets.com/blueberry-buttermilk-pancake-casserole/#can-you-use-pancake-mix
Sue DeBoer
I think this casserole sounds perfect for my PotLuck Breakfast next week. Since it’s December I’m going to reduce the blueberries & add frozen cranberries for a holiday twist! Thank you for the recipe. Merry Christmas🎄
Allison
Great idea! Enjoy!
Rhonda
Have you tried this with GLUTEN FREE FLOUR?
LOVE YOUR SITE….Thanks for sharing!
Allison
I have not, but you might want to check the comments, someone else might have tried it.
Terri
Want to make this for a church breakfast to feed many. Could you pour the batter onto a cookie sheet, or would it leave the casserole too thin?
Allison
Hi, Terri. It would be too thin. I’d recommend just making multiple 9×13’s.
DD Akin
Just made for a church brunch, followed the recipe as written. Welcome addition to the brunch table, very moist and delicious along w warmed maple syrup, #crowdfavorite #wontdisappoint
Allison
Thanks for the kind review. 🙂
Amy
Very nice and not overly sweet!
Allison
I’m glad you enjoyed it! 🙂