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Oatmeal Griddle Cakes
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These oatmeal griddle cakes are inspired by the famous pancakes at Breakfast by Salt’s Cure, a popular breakfast spot (with lines down the block) and locations in both Los Angeles and New York. The pancakes (there’s really no difference between griddle cakes and pancakes) are made with a combination of ground oats and all-purpose flour as well as old fashioned oats.
The batter is left to sit, refrigerated, overnight, then rehydrated with seltzer just before cooking the pancakes. As they cook the pancakes develop a lacy, crisp edge with a custardy middle. Top them off with cinnamon sugar compound butter and a drizzle of maple syrup (though the restaurant serves them without syrup!). The time required for the batter to sit is important – it allows the oats to absorb the liquid and hydrate before it is thinned with bubbly seltzer giving the pancakes the best texture.
Oatmeal Griddle Cakes
Table of contents
Key Ingredients in This Recipe
- Oats – This recipe uses old fashioned oats (also called rolled oats). The flat, flakey oats absorb more liquid than steel-cut oats. The addition of oats adds texture, fiber and protein to classic pancakes.
- Flour – All-purpose flour is ground with a portion of the oats to create the base of the batter. It can be swapped for multigrain flour if desired.
- Brown sugar – Brown sugar adds sweetness to the pancakes while also adding a deeper molasses flavor. I also combine brown sugar into the compound butter used to top the pancakes.
- Cinnamon – A hint of cinnamon pairs well with the oats in this pancake recipe.
- Egg – Egg adds structure to the pancakes.
- Milk – The milk is added to the batter and absorbed by the oats overnight.
- Seltzer water – Adding seltzer water to thin the batter rather than regular tap water infuses the batter with tiny bubbles that aerate the batter and expand when heated, making for light pancakes.
How to Make Oatmeal Griddle Cakes
Step 1: Make the cinnamon butter.
In a small bowl stir together the butter, sugar, cinnamon and salt until well combined.
Step 2: Mix the oat mixture.
In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, combine 1 cup (80g) of the rolled oats, flour, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Blend until the mixture is fine. Add the butter and pulse to combine until crumbs form.
Step 3: Mix the rest of the batter.
In a large mixing bowl whisk together the milk and egg until combined. Add the blended oat mixture and the remaining ½ cup (40g) of oats. Mix until just combined.
Step 4: Refrigerate batter overnight.
Cover and refrigerate to let the batter rest for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
Step 5: Add seltzer to batter.
When ready to cook, stir in just enough of the seltzer water to make a thick, yet pourable batter.
Step 6: Cook griddle cakes.
Heat a heavy skillet or griddle pan over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons (28g) of the butter and allow to melt. Ladle ½ cup of the batter into the pan. Cook until the edges are crisp and you see many small bubbles on the surface.
Step 7: Flip pancakes.
Flip and continue cooking the pancakes until golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes per side. Remove to a plate and serve with the cinnamon sugar butter and maple syrup.
Tips and Tricks for This Recipe
How to make dairy free
The butter can be substituted for room temperature coconut oil, and the milk can be substituted for water to make this recipe dairy free. Cook the pancakes in canola or vegetable oil instead of butter.
How to Keep Pancakes Warm
If making many pancakes at a time for a weekend brunch, preheat the oven to 200°F (93ºC) and arrange pancakes on a baking sheet covered loosely with aluminum foil to keep warm while the rest of the pancakes are cooked. This method works well when feeding a crowd.
Other Recipes to Try
If you enjoy this oatmeal griddle cake recipe, give these other pancakes a try:
Oatmeal Griddle Cakes
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Ingredients:
For the cinnamon butter:
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
For the oatmeal griddle cakes:
- 1½ cups rolled oats, divided
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup whole milk
- ¾ cup seltzer water
- Unsalted butter, as needed for cooking
- Maple syrup, as needed for serving
Instructions:
For the cinnamon sugar butter:
- In a small bowl stir together the butter, sugar, cinnamon and salt until well combined.
For the oatmeal griddle cakes:
- In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, combine 1 cup (80g) of the rolled oats, flour, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Blend until the mixture is fine. Add the butter and pulse to combine until crumbs form.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk together the milk and egg until combined. Add the blended oat mixture and the remaining ½ cup (40g) of oats. Mix until just combined.
- Cover and refrigerate to let the batter rest for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
- When ready to cook, stir in just enough of the seltzer to make a thick, yet pourable batter.
- Heat a heavy skillet or griddle pan over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons (28g) of the butter and allow to melt. Ladle ½ cup of the batter into the pan. Cook until the edges are crisp and you see many small bubbles on the surface.
- Flip and continue cooking the pancakes until golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes per side. Remove to a plate and serve with the cinnamon sugar butter and maple syrup.
Nutrition:
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Very good, BUT your Step #3 with pictures has an important error. It says to mix the water with eggs; it’s supposed to be milk, not water. The only “”water” in ingredient list was seltzer water. I used that, and only realized the problem when I couldn’t find milk in those illustrated instructions. Added 1/4 cup milk then. Texture was not as I had in Salts Cure, and that might be why. Delicious, but different. Made it for someone’s birthday today, so a little disappointing. Please fix this. I’ll try it in the future the right way.
Thank you so much for pointing that out—and I’m really sorry for the confusion, especially on a special occasion like a birthday. You’re absolutely right—Step #3 should say milk, not water, and I’ve updated the recipe to reflect that. I truly appreciate you taking the time to leave this comment, and I hope when you try it again with the correct ingredient, it’s much closer to what you remember from Salt’s Cure. Thanks again for catching that!