Fluffy and light scotch pancakes recipe made with self raising flour, sugar, milk and 1 egg. These soft and delightful scotch pancakes (or drop scones) are a perfect sweet treat for breakfast or afternoon tea. Make the batter for this easy recipe in just 5 minutes and enjoy hot, buttery scotch pancakes every day of the week. For more pancake inspiration see: 5 Easy Recipes for Pancakes.
👩🏻🍳 Why make this recipe
These soft and sweet scotch pancakes are perfect for breakfast, hot and dripping with butter. Make up a batch at the start of the week and then pop a couple in the toaster to warm for your breakfast each day. This recipe is really easy and requires just 5 minutes to whisk together the batter.
🥘 Ingredients
To make this Scotch pancakes recipe at home you will need:
Ingredient notes
Measurements: For the amounts required, see the recipe card below and use the toggle button to see the recipe in cups.
Milk: Semi skimmed milk (2%) is used in this recipe but for a richer flavour you can use whole milk. I don't recommend using skimmed milk which lacks the fat required to keep the pancakes soft and full of flavour.
Flour: This recipe uses UK self raising flour, which is different to the USA version. If you don't have this type of flour, it can be substituted for: 250g (2 cups) of all purpose flour + 1 level teaspoon of baking powder. For more info see this article on how to make self raising flour.
Butter: The butter is purely for use as a cooking agent but you can use oil if you prefer. I suggest melting the butter in the pan, then wiping with a kitchen towel, so spreading the butter and removing any excess.
Caster Sugar: The caster sugar (or bakers sugar) is added to the recipe to make the pancakes sweet. Caster sugar is the best option as it dissolves quickly and produces a nice even flavour throughout the scotch pancakes. Either white or brown caster sugar can be used.
🔪 Step by step instructions
- Start by sifting flour and sugar into a large mixing bowl.
- Make a well in the flour mix and crack in 1 large egg.
- Add half of the milk then start to whisk the milk and egg into the flour.
- Slowly start to add more of the milk to the batter, whisking well between each addition. The gradual addition will ensure a lump free batter.
- Add enough milk until the batter is the consistency of thick pouring cream.
- Place a frying pan on a medium heat. Add a bit of butter and melt. Spread the butter around the pan using kitchen towel and remove any excess. Give your batter a good mix and then scoop ½ of a ladleful of pancake mix into the pan.
- Cook for a minute or so, until bubbles start forming on top of the batter.
- Flip the pancake and cook for a further minute on the second side.
- Repeat steps 6-8 until all the batter is used. Keep cooked pancakes warm by wrapping in foil.
💭 Expert tips
- For extra flavour and texture mix fruit, spices, chocolate chips or spread into the pancake batter.
- Don't over mix the batter. Mix enough to just combine.
- If your pancakes are browning too much or are sticking to the pan then you need to add more oil or butter and spread it evenly around the whole surface. I usually melt a bit of butter and then use kitchen towel to spread it around and remove any excess.
❓ Frequently asked questions
Scotch pancakes, also known as drop scones, are made with self raising flour which does a similar job to the baking powder in American pancakes. Therefore, scotch and American pancakes are very similar, the only real difference being that the scotch pancakes recipe includes caster sugar. So scotch pancakes are sweeter and primed for salty, melted butter.
The most simple topping for scotch pancakes is butter. The butter can be left out if preferred but I do like the nutty and slightly salty flavour that the butter adds. Honey can also be added, but this isn't strictly necessary as scotch pancakes are already sweet.
Other toppings you may want to use could include berries, banana, mango, nutella, cream, yogurt, chocolate chips, nuts and seeds.
In my opinion pancakes are best eaten straight from the pan. However, if you wish, you can make a full batch of pancakes and wrap in foil as you go to keep them warm. If they do need reheating, place the foil wrapped pancakes in a hot oven for 5 minutes. Alternatively, you can pop the pancakes in a toaster briefly or pop the pan back on the heat and warm each pancake on both sides for 10 seconds or so.
🥞 Other Pancake recipes
- English Pancakes Recipe
- American Blueberry Pancakes
- American Pancakes
- Healthy Pancakes Recipe (with Banana and Oats)
If you've tried this recipe, let me know what you think by leaving a star rating in the recipe card or comment section below. I always appreciate your feedback! You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram or Sign up to my email list!
📖 Recipe
Scotch Pancakes Recipe (Drop Scones)
Equipment
- Sieve
- Large mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Frying pan
- Ladle
- Spatula
Ingredients
- 225 g self raising flour
- 40 g caster sugar
- 1 egg
- 250 ml semi skimmed milk
- Butter for cooking
Instructions
- Start by sifting flour and sugar into a large mixing bowl.
- Make a well in the flour mix and crack in 1 large egg.
- Add half of the milk then start to whisk the milk and egg into the flour.
- Slowly start to add more of the milk to the batter, whisking well between each addition. The gradual addition will ensure a lump free batter.
- Add enough milk until the batter is the consistency of thick pouring cream.
- Place a frying pan on a medium heat. Add a bit of butter and melt. Spread the butter around the pan using kitchen towel and remove any excess. Give your batter a good mix and then scoop ½ of a ladleful of pancake mix into the pan.
- Cook for a minute or so, until bubbles start forming on top of the batter.
- Flip the pancake and cook for a further minute on the second side.
- Repeat steps 6-8 until all the batter is used. Keep cooked pancakes warm by wrapping in foil.
Leave a Reply