For The Fluffiest Morning Pancakes, Start Them The Night Before

Fork tender pancakes are an important part of an amazing breakfast. They're springy and satisfying, and nothing beats a bite dripping in maple syrup. It's tricky to make pancakes from scratch that reach their full potential, though. They often crater, burn, or turn out just plain flat. These overnight yeasted buttermilk pancakes from recipe developer Kate Shungu will help you avoid these disappointments. Her version is formulated to be fluffy and tender, plus the overnight recipe cuts down on all the prep work that usually comes with a morning batch of pancakes.

The batter for these overnight yeasted buttermilk pancakes is made with buttermilk, yeast, melted butter, flour, sugar, and salt. Whisk everything together and let it sit in the fridge for 8 to 24 hours. Once you've fired up the griddle, you'll add eggs and baking soda to the batter, give it a final stir, and start making hotcakes. The yeast does a lot of the heavy lifting here to create the fluffy structure we're looking for as it rises in the fridge thanks to a process called cold fermentation. It's a slower version of what you get when you proof bread dough on the countertop, and leads to extra flavor and a pleasant texture. The baking soda and buttermilk also work together to create bubbles in the batter, leading to featherlight flapjacks.

You only need 3 ingredients to whip up morning pancakes, but there are a few other mix-ins and cooking tips that help make them nice and light. For a melt-in-your-mouth texture, use egg whites instead of whole egg. Better yet, whip the egg whites into peaks before adding them to the batter and don't put them in until the very end. Ricotta cheese is another great addition for a little more moisture without any extra weight. The ingredient Martha Stewart swears by for the fluffiest pancakes is carbonated water because it traps air pockets in the batter.

Griddle temperature is another key factor. It should be preheated before you start pouring the batter, but don't let it get too hot; keep the griddle around 350 degrees Fahrenheit. This prevents the outside of the pancakes from burning before the inside is cooked. Be sure to only lightly grease the griddle before use as well since too much grease makes for a soggy, heavy, and unevenly cooked pancake. At the same time, you shouldn't press on the pancakes with your spatula because this will flatten them out. Pancakes that are 4 to 5 inches in diameter should cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Wait until bubbles form on top before giving the pancakes a flip, and always serve them hot with syrup.