Pancake art and pancake faces don’t require an art degree! They are easy – give it a try. Our ultimate guide to pancake art shows you 6 different ways and gives examples for you to duplicate. Make someone smile with a pancake face today!
There are different types of pancake art:
- Pancake art with pancake shapes: pouring pancake shapes that look like animals & objects, etc.
- Using a cookie cutter: cut your shape out with a cookie cutter like cookie dough.
- Using a specialty pancake pan: there are special pancake pans and pancake/egg silicone molds to make impressions or a specific shape.
- Creative toppings: add toppings to a pancake to make it look like a face, animal, holiday picture, etc.
- Squeeze bottles: drawing with pancake batter in squeeze bottles (pancake pens) onto a griddle. You don’t have to use color. There are 2 ways to do this: make just an outline (like a snowflake), or filled in allowing some parts to cook longer and appear a darker shade.
- Tinted pancake batter: painting with tinted pancake batter in squeeze bottles with several colors on a griddle.
#1: Pancake art with pancake shapes.
Strategically place round pancakes or make your pancake a specific shape, then add fruit, whipped cream or poured syrup to create your happy work of art.
#2: Use a cookie cutter to make the shape.
This is a fun way to make breakfast seasonal holidays. There are always a large selection of themed cookie cutters for the holidays. One person can have the circular pancake and another can have the cut-out piece and vice versa.
How to create this gingerbread man masterpiece:
- put one pancake on plate and spread with nutella
- cut a shape out of a second pancake using a cookie cutter (gingerbread man)
- put second pancake on top of first one on plate
- decorate with powdered sugar, sprinkles, candy shapes and fruit as desired
- use the cut out shape on a different plate to create new pancake art
#3: Use a pancake pan to make an impression or a silicone mold for specific shapes.
There are special pancake pans and silicone molds to make all sorts of pancakes. They can be round with an impression to create the art, or a silicone mold to make the shape.
These pancakes were made using an Emoji Smiley Face Pancake Pan that has 7 different faces.
Just make & serve to everyone’s delight. No need to get creative.
Fast & easy fun.
There are also pancake pans to make:
Pancake/egg rings are the perfect way to make your breakfast in any shape you want – like these heart pancakes.
They also come in silicone molds in a myriad of shapes.
I love these silicone molds – this weekend you can use them to make pancakes, and next weekend you can use them to make egg shapes!
#4: Make a work of art using pancake toppings.
Feeling creative? Get your fruit and pancake toppings out and get inspired!
#5: Pancake art using squeeze bottles or pancake pens.
You can use condiment squeeze bottles as pancake pens, or you can purchase containers specifically made for pancake art.
Pancake Art Tips
These pancake art tips are by a pro who knows, Krivas at Instructables.
Sift your flour or pancake mix before you make your batter paint so lumps won’t clog the bottle tip. (If you do get a clog, don’t squeeze harder! You’ll end up with a mess. Use a toothpick to dislodge it.)
The batter paint will ooze out of your pancake pen when you least expect it. You can prevent this by:
- mixing batter in a bowl and filling pancake pen with a funnel
- only filling container 3/4 full
- don’t let the batter sit too long in the squeeze bottle
Don’t make your batter too thin. It will run, flowing where you don’t want it, making it difficult to create your masterpiece. It shouldn’t flow from the bottle when turned upside down – if it does, it’s too thin. It should have to be gently squeezed before it comes out, and when it does, it should draw a uniform line.
Don’t make your batter too thick. If you have to squeeze hard, the lines you draw won’t be nicely uniform. They’ll twist and be thinner in one part than another. If this happens, thin your batter a little.
Cook on low heat. You don’t want it to brown like regular pancakes, this will destroy the outline or colors you used in your drawing.
Know when to flip. If you flip your pancake too soon, your creation will rip. Just like regular pancakes, watch for the bubbles. Allow it to bubble until the surface seems dry, not shiny.
Pancake art with just the outline.
Use the pancake pen to squeeze-draw the outline of your object, and leave the rest open.
Pancake art with just pancake batter.
Plan the areas that you want darker, and draw these first. Allow them to cook longer that the rest of the pancake so they appear a darker color and stand out.
Do you want the darker, more prominent parts to be an all over outline? Or maybe the ears and facial features for a dog face pancake?
Drawing pancake art with tinted batter.
Get inspired.
Plan what you’d like to draw. Simple is better, especially in the beginning.
If you have an idea of what you’d like to draw, or even a theme, do an internet search. If you use the term + icon like robot icon, you’ll find simpler drawings that are easier to duplicate.
Next, plan the colors required to draw the icon. Will you be using an outline color?
Pancake art equipment.
Of course you’ll need a griddle. (A frying pan can work but it’s easier to draw on a large, flat surface.)
Next, you’ll need squeeze bottles for the batter paint. Use small ones for drawing your outline because they are easier to manage. Use large ones for filling in your outline because they hold more pancake batter.
Then you’ll require pancake mix (or the ingredients to make from scratch if you wish) and gel food coloring in order to tint the batter paint.
Preparing your batter paint.
As mentioned above, sift your pancake mix and add the ingredients per package into a bowl or pancake pen with a mixer ball. Then test the consistency of the batter and adjust until it draws a uniform line.
Then, using the gel food coloring, add drops to your batter and stir, then add more drops and stir again, until the batter is the color you’re desiring.
Pour your batter paint into a squeeze bottle with a funnel. If the bottle isn’t clear, label it with a piece of masking tape.
Drawing your work of pancake art
When using colored batter, draw your creation on the griddle when it is turned off. No heat.
After you have drawn your outline and filled it all in to your satisfaction, turn the griddle on. But on low heat. Let your pancake cook slowly. You don’t want it to brown like regular pancakes – that would destroy all the gorgeous colors.
First, outline the sections of your drawing. You can use the color that you will use to fill it in, or use black to look like a pencil sketch. (After you’re more experienced you can do it all freehand, but even then you’ll probably find it easier to draw this way – just like drawing on paper.)
Then fill in each part with the corresponding color. Each color should touch so when cooked it is one whole pancake without holes. (That makes it easier to flip without breaking.)
Remember that the griddle side will look different than top side when complete. It doesn’t have to be perfect.
For a pancake painting
For a pancake drawing
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