This Pumpkin Pancakes Recipe with Cajeta de Leche (or Dulce de Leche) is my Southwest spin on this favorite Fall recipe.
There is something about fall that just says, "Pancakes!" I know it can't be just the cold weather, we don't have any cold weather in Southern Arizona. So, it must be the pumpkins that spill out of the grocery stores and spring up on the street corners to announce that fall is coming.
Pumpkin Pancakes Recipe is one of my family's favorite pancake recipes and this one dates back to the early days; the days when my kids were very, very small. As a young, married couple with two small children, we were always looking for fun ways to make ends meet. Thus, "Pancake Night" was born. Every Monday night (for more years than I care to admit) became the funnest dinnertime of the week. The kids looked forward to weekly pancakes meal not only because they loved pancakes, but because they got to "help." Standing on chairs and kneeling on barstools, they mixed up the batter and gave directions on what shape the pancake should be when I spooned it into the frying pan.
As the kids grew, the pancakes changed shapes from zoo animals to dinosaurs to sports heros (picture stick figures with blobs of batter for baseball hats or basketballs. Hey! I'm a cook, not an artist). The recipes changed, as well. We got a little tired of the same ol' buttermilk pancakes and started experimenting with all kinds of fruits and flavors and even vegetables to throw into the batter. These Pumpkin Pancakes were the winner and well... broccoli pancakes were not.
Use Cajeta de Leche or Dulce de Leche instead of syrup
We also started switching up the toppings for the pancakes. Cajeta became a real favorite on pumpkin pancakes. This traditional Latin sauce is smooth and carmel-y but, not too sweet! It is made by reducing milk and sugar to the thickness of regular syrup. And yes, it is traditionally made with goat's milk. BUT, it doesn't have to be! You can use regular (full fat) milk to make Dulce de Leche, if you must. Or, you can use a mixture of the two milks to get your family used to the idea. But, as Julia Child said, you are alone in the kitchen. No one needs to know but you... and me. It will be our little secret.
Cajeta and Dulce de Leche are healthier than syrup
You can tell your family that cajeta is much healthier than syrup or cajeta is made from real milk and not just straight sugar. Cajeta is great for people with allergies to cow's milk and (this is a good one) you don't really need to use butter when you use caveat, the sauce is creamy enough on it's own. If they still don't fall for cajeta or dulce de leche, just pour it over a few pumpkin pancakes and tell them to close their eyes and taste it.
Of course, you can always tell them to get out of the kitchen. You know... in a good way.
- 2 quarts goat's milk or cow's milk or a mixture of both milks
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- ½ cinnamon stick or Mexican canela (optional)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 cup chopped pecans or almonds, toasted
- 2½ cups prepared pancake batter from your favorite mix without the eggs
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree (if using fresh pumpkin puree, withhold 1 to 2 tablespoons of the required liquid and readjust before cooking)
- 4 eggs, separated
- 1¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon nutmeg
- pinch of mace or ground ginger
- vegetable oil for cooking
- Cajeta may be made in advance and stored in the refrigerator for 2 weeks.
- To make the cajeta, poor the milk into a large pot or dutch oven. Add the sugar and cinnamon stick.
- Heat over medium heat and stir until the sugar in dissolve and the milk has come to a simmer.
- Once the milk is simmering, dissolve the baking soda in 1 tablespoon of water. Remove the milk mixture from the heat and stir in the baking soda and water mixture. The milk will foam up a bit from the acidity in the milk. Please don't skip this step.
- When the foaming stops, return the pot to the heat and return the mixture to a simmer. Adjust the heat to keep the milk at a consistent simmer but, not a boil.
- Simmer for about 1 hour and stir regularly to insure even cooking and keep the sugar from burning on the bottom.
- When the mixture becomes golden in color, stir more frequently until the cajeta develops a carmel brown color and thickens to the consistency of maple syrup.
- Continue stirring and test the cajeta on a cool plate. The cajeta should be the thickness of a medium thick carmel sauce when cool. If the cajeta over reduces and becomes too thick, just add a little water to the mixture and test again. If the cajeta is too runny, continue simmering to the desired temperature.
- Strain the cajeta through a sieve to remove any lumps that may have developed. Pour into a clean jar with a tight lid and keep refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
- When ready to serve, heat in microwave or over double boiler.
- Prepare enough of your favorite pancake mix to equal two cups but, do not add any eggs. Set the batter aside to "rest."
- In a small bowl, mix together the pumpkin puree, egg yolks, vanilla extract, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and mace or ground ginger. Stir into pancake batter.
- Beat egg whites to stiff peaks.
- Gently fold the egg whites into the batter. If you prepare this ahead of time and store in the refrigerator until ready to use, keep the eggs whites in a separate bowl and fold into the batter right before cooking the pancakes.
- Heat oil in a saute pan over medium high heat. Watch the heat carefully, it should be high enough to "souffle" the egg whites in the batter but, not so hot that the pancakes burn on the outside and stay raw on the inside.
- Lay the finished pancakes out on a parchment covered baking sheet and keep warm in the oven, if necessary. Try not to stack too many pancakes on top of each other until ready to plate. The weight of the pancakes will flatten the pancakes.
- Serve with warm cajeta and toasted pecans or almonds.
Here are some other fun pancake recipes
Some of my other friends have posted their spin on pancakes. Check them out or come up with some ideas that your family might like.
Elvis Peanut Butter and Bananas Foster Pancakes Stack by Everyday Southwest
Whole Wheat Lemon Ricotta Blueberry Pancakes by Barbara Bakes
Carmel and Sea Salt Pear Pancakes by Cookin' Canuck
Low-Carb Whole Wheat Protein Pancakes by Kalyn's Kitchen
Blueberries in Vanilla Bean Syrup by Mountain Mama Cooks
What ever pancakes you choose, bring your family and friends into the kitchen with you. Pancakes may turn out to be a favorite memory for you, too.
—posted by
Sandy
Kalyn
The pancakes sound outstandingly good! (And thanks for the mention!)
Sandy
Thanks Kalyn! They are yummy and not as sweet as syrup.
westindya
blessed be! those pancakes look amazing
Sandy
Please do try them. They are fast and easy but, very fluffy!
Lucy
I agree! These look too good 🙂
I added some flaxseed to this pancake mix to make it even more nutritious
https://www.foodforliving.ie/flaxseed-and-apple-pancakes/
Sandy
Oooo... flaxseed is a great idea! Thanks for sharing your idea.
Laura Dembowski
Pumpkin pancakes alone sound great, but with the addition of cajeta? OMG! I would love to wake up to a stack of these 🙂
Sandy
Really! You've GOT to try it! It is yummy and (I think) much better than syrup... not as sweet.
Charles
I'm sorry, but am I reading this recipe correctly? You really need *2 quarts* of milk? That seems like an obscene amount of milk...
Sandy
Hi Charles, I'm so glad you asked about the amount of milk used in this recipe. Yes, it is 2 quarts of milk. Cajeta is a "milk syrup" more than a sugar based caramel. It is very creamy and not as sweet as you would expect from a carmel sauce that is primarily sugar with milk or cream added at the end. The sweetness is achieved as much from the reducing milk as it is from the proportionately small amount of sugar.
The large amount of milk is reduced to only about 3 cups.
You could cut the recipe in half, if you wish. Just be sure to reduce the size of the pan and make sure that the milk does not evaporate so quickly that it fails to caramelize in the process. I think once you taste it, you will be glad to have the 3 cups of cajeta on hand. It will keep for several weeks in the refrigerator and is really delicious on anything you would use a carmel sauce on: bread pudding, apple cobbler, ice cream...
juliana
yummy! pancakes and dulce de leche, or cajeta, is the best combination! on october 11th is the dulce de leche day, if you like you can leave a comment and be part of the blogroll! https://dulcedeleche-day.blogspot.com.ar/
Sandy
Hi Juiliana, Thanks for the invitation to link up to your sight. I certainly will this weekend. I just checked out your sight, what a beautiful collection of recipes with dulce de leche! I will be checking out quite a few of them I'm sure.
Cindy A.
Yum! I could eat pumpkin pancakes all year long.