Try Boston cream pie pancakes, with homemade pastry cream, chocolate ganache, and fluffy pancakes for a decadent breakfast.
Megan from Country Cleaver is a relatively new friend of mine in the food blogging world but I am so happy we “met” each other on Twitter. Megan is awesome, her site is awesome, and I think we can all agree these pancakes are awesome. (And that I should stop saying “awesome.”)
Good morning, shining faces! I’m Megan and I can’t wait to share this delicious pancake recipe with you.
I like opposite days. Days where you throw caution to the wind, turning left on that road you haven’t traveled before, eat dessert first when all rationale dictates you eat your vegetables instead, and when “no” really means “yes”.
As in – yes, you should really eat a heaping stack of these pancakes. Especially because they’re practically dessert. And it’s even better when you can eat your dessert for breakfast.
And what better way to have your dessert for breakfast than by making Boston cream pie pancakes.
I can’t help but imagine a world where cakes and pancakes – two utterly divine creations in themselves – are combined to create a confection of epic proportions. We are naturally drawn to the mystical and healing properties of chocolate, and an ethereal fluffy pastry cream that is delicious enough to bathe in.
Why not combine the beauty of a Boston Cream Pie with classical breakfast fare? Why not, indeed?! I command you to make these. You won’t be disappointed!
Prepare the pastry cream the night before and chill it. Before preparing the pancakes, make the chocolate ganache.
To assemble, stack pancakes and layer with prepared pastry cream between each pancake. Pour chocolate ganache over the top and promptly devour. So delicious!
Boston Cream Pie Pancakes
Ingredients
Pastry Cream
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 1½ tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup half-and-half
- 1 whole vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped (or 2 ½ tablespoons pure vanilla extract)
- 3 whole egg yolks, beaten
- 1 tablespoon butter
Chocolate Ganache
- 8 oz. chocolate
- 1 cup heavy cream
Pancakes
- 1 cup yellow cake mix
- 1 cup dry pancake mix
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
Instructions
Pastry Cream
- Make up to 24 hours in advance and refrigerate until 1 hour prior to use.
- In a medium saucepan, heat the milk, half-and-half, and vanilla bean to a boil over medium heat. Immediately turn off the heat and set aside to infuse for 10 to 15 minutes.
- In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the cornstarch and whisk vigorously until no lumps remain. Temper the eggs by whisking in ¼ cup of the hot milk mixture until incorporated. Whisk in the remaining hot milk slowly.
- Pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until thickened and slowly boiling. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter.
- Let cool slightly. Cover with plastic wrap, and press the plastic wrap on top of the pastry cream to make sure it doesn’t form a skin. Chill at least 2 hours or until ready to serve.
Ganache
- In small saucepan, heat heavy cream. Stir in chocolate and whisk until melted and the two are completely combined. Remove from heat and set aside.
Pancakes
- In large bowl, whisk together pancake mix and cake mix. Stir in milk, eggs and vanilla until the mixture is smooth.
- Heat a large griddle or large pan over medium high heat. Spray with non-stick cooking spray. Pour ⅓ cup of batter into pan or griddle and allow to cook until golden brown on the bottom, 2 to 3 minutes. Gingerly flip pancake over and continue to cook until the other side has turned golden brown – about 1 ½ minutes. Remove from griddle/pan and allow to cool.
- To assemble: Stack pancakes and layer with prepared pastry cream between each pancake. Pour chocolate ganache over the top and promptly devour.
Notes
- If you prefer, make your own pancake mix. You can also use 2 cups of pancake mix and omit the cake mix.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?Share a comment and rating below! I love hearing what you think!
Amazing!! Megan, you really are awesome! What a great flavor for pancakes, I want them on my plate NOW!!
OMG! These pancakes with that chocolate sauce…what a temptation !
Hey! These look amazing! One quick question, though – could you use vanilla extract instead of split vanilla bean? If so, how much would you use? Thanks for your help!
Katie – You can absolutely use vanilla extract instead!! I would swap 1 Tbsp of vanilla extract for the vanilla bean. Taste it, then add more if you’d like. Hope that helps!
Genius! Using cake mix in pancakes! I need these!
Oooh pastry cream! That’s my kind of breakfast!
My wife shall not see this recipe! I will be making these every weekend. They look sinful!!
This is epic!
Wow, these are really amazing! I could totally take on a stack of these this morning!
Wowza this does look like a party in your mouth. I think this would be a fun birthday breakfast for my kids.
A perfect saturday morning breakfast! These look insanely good.