You guys, get ready to party. Sopapilla style.
All of the sudden I had this idea to make mini cinnamon pancakes, and decided to execute last weekend. Pancakes + cinnamon = happiness, I was convinced.
I wanted to make them vegan, of course, and although I was half-tempted to make them gluten free, I was really really in the mood for something familiar, and fluffy. So out the window that idea went. I can only do so much accommodating in the pancake department. Breakfast is serious business, after all.
These cakes are dreamy. The batter is thick and light and they cook up all soft and fluffy, golden brown, and bursting with cinnamon aroma.
I was keeping my stack warm in the oven while the rest finished cooking and each time I opened the door I got hit with an intense cinnamon donut scent – just like a sopapilla! That’s when it dawned on me: These are no ordinary cinnamon pancakes, they are fluffy and sweet and doughy just like a sopapilla, begging to be doused in honey (or maple syrup!).
What is a Sopapilla?
Never tried a sopapilla? You’re missing out! The version we’re most familiar with is a buttery, cinnamon-infused pastry dough that’s fried and gets puffy and hollow inside. And then it’s topped with powdered sugar and honey. Swoon! This version is believed to have originated in New Mexico over 200 years ago, influenced by Native American frybread and Spanish language and culture.
Sopapillas are also popular in many regions of Latin America, including Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay. And both sweet and savory versions exist.
These pancakes aren’t traditional sopapillas, but remind us of the flavors. You can find a more traditional sopapilla recipe here.
These pancakes are PHENOMENAL. I know I could say this every time I make pancakes, but these are seriously some of my favorite to date!
They’d be great for entertaining or brunch as they’re easy for guests to snag one or two of and pair with something more substantial. They’d also be fun for kids because they’re minis + totally ideal for eating with your hands. Not that I tried or anything…
But really, if it’s just you and you’re dying for a sopapilla but don’t want to fry anything, this will satisfy that craving. There’s practically no Mexican dessert desire that these little super fluffy cinnamon pancakes doused with butter + honey (or maple syrup) can’t fulfill.
What you need to know about these pancakes is they:
Aresuper easy to make.
Take less than 30 minutes from start to finish.
Require 1 bowl, 1 measuring cup + a whisk.
Have 8 ingredients.
Taste just like a sopapilla.
Are light, fluffy, and bursting with cinnamon flavor.
Pair perfectly with a hot cup of coffee.
What more do you need to know? Get to pancaking!
Note: These cakes are vegan friendly if you top with maple syrup instead of honey.
Mini Sopapilla Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1 cup flour (i.e. whole-wheat pastry or all-purpose)
- 1 heaping Tbsp sugar
- 1 scant Tbsp (yes Tablespoon) baking powder
- 1 pinch salt
- 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or sub soy or coconut)
- 2 Tbsp melted non-dairy butter (such as Earth Balance // plus more for topping)
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Whisk dry ingredients in a large bowl.
- Measure out milk in a large liquid measuring cup. Then add vanilla and melted butter and whisk.
- Add wet to dry and gently, slowly whisk until just combined. Small lumps are fine – don’t overmix.
- Let set for 5 minutes while you preheat your griddle to medium-low heat. You want it warm but not screaming hot – definitely on the low-side of medium.
- Once hot scoop scant 1/4 cup measurements onto a griddle or pan lightly greased with non-stick spray. Should make ~10 pancakes (as original recipe is written). Flip when bubbles appear on top – 2-3 minutes. Cook for another 2 more minutes on the other side.
- Place on a large plate and keep warm in a 200-degree F (93 C) oven until ready for serving.
- Top with vegan butter, cinnamon sugar, and a drizzle of warm maple syrup or honey. I went with honey because it's what I had on hand + it made it feel like a true sopapilla experience. However, to keep these vegan, serve with agave or maple syrup.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container or bag in the fridge to keep fresh, or the freezer for longterm storage. However, these are best when fresh.
Notes
*This recipe is vegan besides the honey, which I highly recommend using to get the true sopapilla effect. However, if vegan simply sub agave or maple syrup instead.
Mandy says
Easily the fastest and easiest pancakes I’ve ever made, and absolutely delicious. I *will* be making these again. I will say that I took the “You want it warm but not screaming hot – definitely on the low-side of medium” a little more seriously than I should have, because I had some trouble getting them to cook in the middle, but they turned out delightfully once I turned the burner up a little bit. Recommending this to all pancake-lovers I know.
Whoop! We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Mandy. Thank you for sharing your experience! xo
Lilja says
These are wonderful! I used all whole wheat flour and they turned out lovely. Definitely make sure you grease your pan as mine wanted to stick a bit, but not bad. When topped with honey, these little pancakes were wonderfully cinnamony and sweet!
Amazing! Thank you for sharing, Lilja! xo
Brenda says
These are now my new favorite vegan pancakes! I love how the pancakes puff up in the skillet and their pillowy interior and crunchy exterior! YUM YUM YUM! The best part of all is the recipe’s simplicity; I was able to make it on a weekday morning before work. What a treat!
Yay! We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Brenda! Thanks for the lovely review! xo
Eliana says
Can you sub almond flour?
Hi Eliana! We haven’t tried these pancakes with almond flour and we aren’t sure it would work. Perhaps a combination of oat, gluten free blend, and almond would work, but we have not tried it! Let us know how it goes if you try a gluten free version. xo
Stacy says
So, so good! You have the best pancakes recipes! Will be making these regularly.
Thanks, Stacy!
Christine says
Would oatmilk work instead of almond or coconut?
Hi Christine! We haven’t tried these with oat milk but it should work! Let us know how it goes. xo
Mandy says
Old comment, but for anyone with the same question, I made these with plain oat milk and they were a dream. I added a smidge more vanilla extract to make up for the plant milk not being vanilla.
Adrianne says
Love these! Thank you!
xo!
Yuri says
Hi! What would you recommend to substitute baking powder for if allergic to corn??
We haven’t tried it, but we’ve heard that a combination of baking soda and cream of tartar can work as a baking powder substitute.
Ashlee Johns says
I just tried these topped with cinnamon & [fake] sugar, like a hot cinnamon donut! Will definitely be making again thank you :)
Yum! Thanks so much for the review, Ashlee!
Hannah Steffey says
So delicious!!! Love the cinnamon. I clearly did something wrong because mine turned out much more crepe-like than pancakey. Any ideas what went wrong?
Thanks for sharing! Did you modify anything? Were your leavening ingredients fresh?
Hannah says
I didn’t modify anything and my baking soda is pretty darn new! They were still so delicious, I would just love to make them fluffier next time!
Right. I’d say add a little baking powder next time, and make sure your batter is on the thicker vs thinner side (add a bit more flour!).
Robyn says
I made these with coconut milk (Chaokoh brand is the best) and they were AMAZING!
Xxoo mahalo!
Wendy Bussiere says
Delish!! I used 1/2 ww pastry flour and 1/2 all purpose. Not as fluffy as in your pics but seriously yummy. i’ll Definitely make these again. Love that you use everyday ingredients. So easy! Thank you!
Tabitha says
Still making these three years later ?????
Lisa says
I love these pancakes – we make them every week and I freeze for my kiddos to munch on for breakfast throughout the week. I do add quite a bit more almond milk into the recipe and find that helps me make a thinner mixture, but pancakes still come out fluffy. Reheat beautifully as well!
Leanne Bridges says
These are the best pancakes I have ever made/eaten. Every omnivore I have made them for asks for the recipe. I add a little more milk because I like them thinner, but the fluffy pillows of delicious the recipe results in are incredible too.
Thank you for sharing
Gabrielle says
Hi I was just wondering if I freeze these for later how do I reheat them? I’ve made them several times and love them but never thought to freeze them. Would I just reheat them in the oven?
Hi Gabrielle! Thanks for reaching out. You can either reheat them in the oven, or you can even just pop them in the toaster and toast them if you’re in a pinch for time.
Riz says
Absolutely yummy! I used ground rolled oats for the flour. Best vegan pancakes I made. :)
Kelsey Johnson says
A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! I’m breastfeeding and my baby is allergic to most foods and my normally vegetarian self was forced to become a vegan plus no soy. I’m never ever ever going back. Thank you minimalist baker!
Nancy says
Just made these for my family, they all love them. We ate them with fresh strawberries and honey.
Thank you for another wonderful vegan option.
Rebecca says
I have now made this recipe over a dozen times and also jarred the dry ingredients to give to relatives as Christmas presents. They are the best consistency for vegan pancakes! Fluffy and not dense or moist. If you add new vegan butter into the pan before each round of pancakes they get this beautiful crispiness on the edges from the butter. You wouldn’t believe they are vegan. You did it again Dana!
Olivia says
These were absolutely delicious! I went a little less on the flour so I could add protein powder, and once I lowered the heat on the stove, they fluffed up so nicely!
Alexa says
Okay, these were freaking amazing. I added some chocolate chips and DEMOLISHED these pancakes for breakfast. The recipe was so easy that I think I’ve already memorized it so I can make these every weekend!
Britt says
These look delicious and I can’t wait to try them! I do have a question though.. To lessen the carbs, would you recommend using almond or coconut flour as a sub? I’m afraid coconut may make it too dry.
Gabrielle says
I made these tonight and they turned out amazing.
My only question would be, could I half the sugar and would they turn out correct?
Hi Gabrielle! That should work nicely. Good luck! :D
Lia Si says
I tried this recipe today and it was wonderful!
When the batter was in the frying pan I added a few blueberries and some chopped walnuts. And I topped it with some more vegan butter as well as a drizzle of agave.
It turned out absolutely splendid!
Thank you for sharing this recipe :)
colleen says
hi i don’t know why but my always turn out flat and not that great. they taste fine but every “fluffy” pancake recipe i’ve tried turns out flat and horrible, including these. any suggestions?
Hmm, overmixing? Or perhaps your baking powder is expired?
Colleen says
flour is new. ooh maybe overmixing, is it supposed to be pretty lumpy?
Yeah, lumps are good!
Elsie says
I just made these! I didn’t have a lot of ingredients to work with for breakfast this morning, so I looked for a vegan pancake recipe and found these! So good! Wonderful cakey texture. I bed you could turn these into a cinnamony layered birthday cake
Melissa Bowser says
These are by far the BEST vegan pancakes we have ever had! Even my 13 year old son (who is very picky) loved them. This is definitely my new go-to pancake recipe! Thank you so much!
Breanna says
Can I add unsweetened original almond milk, instead of vanilla?
That’s all I have on hand and I’m dying to try these! <3
Yes!
Gabrielle says
I make something very similar to this recipe. I use white whole wheat, soymilk, and replace the ‘butter’ with mashed banana. They are SO good! My mother, who is not vegan, loved them!
Melissa says
Made these for a brunch party and every one ravedddddd! I skipped the cinnamon and did confetti sprinkles for a funfetti effect.
I also made a brandy infused maple syrup so that upped the rating even more.
Knew I could count on you! Thanks!
Lisa says
Hi Dana, thanks for this recipe. The pancakes were super! I used King Arthur white whole wheat flour and only had regular almond milk, so I added an extra tsp. vanilla. My husband and I had a delightful Sunday breakfast (these cakes and soy sausage patties). Thanks again.
Allison says
This is honestly the BEST vegan pancake recipe I have ever made! (and I’ve tried soooo many) They are fluffy and buttery just like the non vegan pancakes I grew up eating. Even my non vegan mom loved them!! Thank you!!
Diana says
Hi Dana,
I made this recipe for breakfast! It was wonderful thank you.
The changes I made were to use half Kamut flour and half whole wheat pastry. Only because I wanted to use up the Kamut flour.
I had regular unsweetened almond milk not vanilla unsweetened. And it was still delicious!
I used a full 1/4c of batter to make the pancakes so I got 8 mini pancakes.
Thank you!
Bronte says
Made these for Sunday breakfast, they are so good! I’ve made a lot of vegan pancakes over the years, but these are so fluffy – new favourite
Melissa says
just made them with bob red mill gluten free pastry flour, they turn out just fine, fluffy, delicious, kids ask for more! thank you Dana for another perfect simple recipe :) this one made my day! PS I used coconut oil to fry them. It s a hit for the taste bud!
Elena says
Made these this morning with organic buckwheat flour: quick, easy and delicious:-)
Another great recipe Minimalist Baker, looking forward to the cookbook!
Meg says
These pancakes are actually the best vegan ones I’ve tasted. So fluffy and rich
Great news! thanks for sharing, Meg!
Angie says
These were so scrumptious and fluffy!! :> I didn’t even have vanilla on hand to add… Bet that would have put them over the top! I was able to get 3 5-inch pancakes out of this recipe, so next time I am definitely doubling it to make a pancake meal for two. :>
Anyway, thanks for the recipe! It’s the first of yours I’ve tried (I have about a dozen bookmarked at the moment) and I’m so excited to move on to the rest!! :D :D :D :D Love the theme and concept of your blog! Keep up the inspiring recipes! ^-^
Cathy says
I just made these with Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free flour and they were awesome. The best pancakes I’ve had since not being able to eat wheat or eggs. Thank you! Oh and I added apples because I love apple and cinnamon together for breakfast.
Lindsey says
I just made these this morning with TJ’s GF all purpose flour. They were a little runny so they weren’t “mini” or very fluffy but nonetheless DELICIOUS! I haven’t had a sopapilla in years and this tasted just like one :) Thanks so much!
Lena says
Greetings from Germany! I just had those pancakes and I loved them, not sure whether I can eat lunch today…;-)
I made your peanut butter brownies yesterday and I was amazed at how well they turned out (wasn’t sure whether I would be able to taste the beans)
Thanks for your great blog!
Alex says
I’ve never had sopapillas, but these tasted just like fluffy little snickerdoodles! Love your pancake recipes!
Thanks, Alex!
Stephanie says
OMG! These pancakes are so adorable! Can’t wait to try them <3
April says
I’m not vegan (or even vegetarian) but I’m super excited to try some of your stuff. Also, I can’t express how much I appreciate that you put nutrition facts for everything. :o
Laurie says
I made these for dinner tonight. They were a huge hit! While we are not a gimme type of family, my teen and preteen said they should be renamed Gimme Mores =) So thankful I found this on Pinterest! I can’t wait to try more and see if they pass my picky, always hungry kid tests!
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Laurie! Glad you and your family enjoyed these so much :D
Gretchen says
Question: What’s a scant TBSP? Thanks!
Scant means a little bit less than the proposed measurement. So a scant TBSP is a little bit less than one Tablespoon. Hope that helps!
Gretchen says
Ah, thank you! Love your blog btw!
Katie says
I made these today using oat flour and subbing some for flaxseed to cut the calories a little. Also frying them in coconut oil works just as well, just gives them a coconutty flavour! Used soya milk in place of almond and worked just fine. Only bother was it was a little too cinnamon-y for me so I’ll use a bit less next time :-)
Glad you enjoyed these, Katie! The cinnamon can be overwhelming for some, so feel free to pull it back next time! Thanks for sharing.
Claire says
Wow, I made these pancakes today and they are great. Me and my boyfriend loved them. Serves 10? Well, the two of us just polished them off…
haha, I need to change the note in that! It “serves” 10 pancakes, which is about 2-3 people. Glad you enjoyed them!
Natalie says
I just made these today and I LOVED them!!! I can’t wait to make them for my fiancé. I used regular butter though, and plain almond milk rather than vanilla. I want to try almond extract next time, since I am a huge fan. But the vanilla was amazing, as well! :)
Kyra says
These are heavenly! I can’t wait to try more of your recipes, I love it! (eating one as I’m typing this, haha)
Neill Hines says
Looks and sounds delicious. One question. Could you substitute coconut oil for the butter?
I think so, but it will affect the flavor. Hope that helps!
Michelle says
I just made these for my family!! :) They turned out super good, but I used baking soda by accident the first time… (ick)
Thanks for the recipe!! :)
Ha! Unfortunate swap with the baking soda. Glad you liked them the second time, though!
Rebecca says
These are fantastic and have made me fall in love with pancakes again! Thank you so much! :)
kim says
My search for egg-free and dairy-free edible pancakes is over! My son, allergic to all the above (+nuts) immediately asked me if I could make them again! I don’t have to make 2 different batches of batter anymore. Thanks so much!
Katie says
Oh my goodness…..it should be sinful to have dessert for breakfast! It was a unanimous vote that these babies tasted like snickerdoodles! I awakened this morning with the intent of making your pb flax pancakes but then I checked my emails and saw the smore pancakes (we have been eating smores like crazy lately) but didn’t feel like taking the extra steps and then saw the sopapilla recipe. It was up to my four yr old to decide, pb chocolate chip pancakes or cinnamon pancakes and he chose the winner and winner they were! Slathered with earth balance and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar then drizzled with honey and we were in sweet heaven! I do have to agree with everyone else(at my breakfast table) that these were like big stacks of fluffy snickerdoodles!! And I will totally be making these again and again!!!! Thank you!
Katie! Snickerdoodles or sopapillas, these babies are delicious, no?! So glad you and your family enjoyed these. And thanks for sharing! We always love hearing from readers :D Best, Dana
danielle says
Yum! I wanted to let you know that I featured this today in my “What I Bookmarked This Week” post – stop by and see!
Tammela says
Oh wow, definitely making these soon! I love cinnamon on pretty much everything.
Erica Gilliam @ La Dolche Vita says
These look amazing!! I may just have to try these tomorrow!
Chung-Ah | Damn Delicious says
Love this! I need that huge stack for breakfast tomorrow morning. Do you deliver? :)
haha, I wish! If you lived in Wichita, maybe….
Sarah says
Anytime you want to donut-ify any baked good is fine by me. Everything is better when donutted.
Monique @ Ambitious Kitchen says
YUM!
Suzanne says
I’ve never heard of sopapilla before- what is it? The pancakes look delicious anyhow!!
Billy says
ooooowee these look so good!!
Laura Dembowski says
Sopapillas are the bomb, but they’re not very easy to make and aren’t exactly healthy. These are the perfect compromise. They look so fluffy too!
Joy // For the Love of Leaves says
These pancakes look fantastic! Cinnamon and honey? I’m there!
andrea says
these look a-ma-zing omg. fatty fluffy pancakes = love.
Kayle (The Cooking Actress) says
omg these are so cute and look SO tasty. You are the master of pancakes!
Alison @ Ingredients, Inc. says
These look amazing! I posted these on my fan page today
Lindsay @ The Live-In Kitchen says
Mini things are so much fun! Plus there aren’t any calories in anything smaller than the palm of your hand, right?
Tieghan says
Gorgeous! Loving all the cinnamon and your shot are so perfect. I love every sigle on one!
Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar says
I love all that cinnamon in there – it’s such a fabulous spice! These sound awesome!