Strawberry Cheesecake Pancakes: Cracker Barrel Copycat
These Strawberry Cheesecake Pancakes are everything you love about brunch and dessert rolled into one irresistible bite. Fluffy pancakes are folded around a creamy cheesecake filling and topped with a fresh strawberry sauce that tastes like Spring on a plate.
Servings: 10 pancakes
Calories: 361kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
Strawberry sauce
- 2 pints strawberries quartered, plus more for garnish
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch optional
Cream cheese filling
- 8 oz cream cheese softened
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup heavy cream cold
Pancakes
- 1 ½ cups self rising flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 ½ cups milk room temperature
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted and allowed to cool
Instructions
Make strawberry sauce
- Combine strawberries, sugar, and 1 tablespoon of water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat to a gentle simmer and cook until the strawberries are soft and the liquid has reduced, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes.
- Mash the berries with a fork, the back of a spoon, or a potato masher, to desired consistency and simmer another 10 minutes.
- Whisk together 1 tablespoon of lemon juice with 1 teaspoon of cornstarch and add to simmering strawberry sauce. Simmer another one or two minutes, or until thickened. Remove from heat and let cool completely. It will thicken more when completely cooled or chilled.
Make cream cheese filling
- Place powdered sugar, cream cheese and vanilla, and heavy cream into the bowl of your food processor. Pulse a few times to break up the cream cheese, then turn on the machine and let run, stopping and scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula, mixing until creamy and well mixed.
- Transfer to a piping bag, or large zip top bag, and set aside in the refrigerator to keep cold.
Make pancakes
- In a measuring cup whisk together room temperature milk, and a room temperature egg. Add a teaspoon of vanilla extract if you like.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and begin mixing while drizzling in melted and cooled butter. Stop mixing when just combined. Let batter rest for 15 minutes.
- Heat a nonstick pan, or well seasoned cast iron pan, over medium heat. Add a teaspoon of butter or oil if desired, and then portion ¼ to ⅓ cup (or your preferred amount) of batter into the pan.
- Let the pancake cook until bubbles form on the surface and the edges start to look set (about 2 to 3 minutes).
- Use a spatula to flip the pancake. Cook the other side until golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes more.
- When removing the pancake, fold it over on itself, like a taco shell, with the prettiest side facing out.
Assembly
- Unfold one pancake onto a plate. Snip the corner of your piping bag, or zip top bag, and pipe out your cheesecake filling on one half of your pancake. Fold over the top to close. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, spoon on some strawberry sauce, and add slices of fresh strawberry, if you like.
Video
Notes
No self-rising flour? - To make your own self-rising flour, combine 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, and ¼ teaspoon of salt.
Make-ahead instructions - You can make the filling and the pancakes up to 3 days in advance. The filling and strawberry sauce should be stored separately. Store the filling in an airtight container in the fridge, and let it soften at room temperature for about 10–15 minutes before spreading so it's nice and creamy. Once the pancakes have cooled, store them unfilled in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Assemble just before serving for the best texture.
Reheating pancakes - Pop the pancakes in the microwave for 10–15 seconds. Just enough to warm them through without drying them out. You can skip folding them when you first make them and store them. Reheat them in a skillet over low heat for a minute or two per side, and then fold them before filling.
Nutrition
Calories: 361kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 79mg | Sodium: 100mg | Potassium: 181mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 23g | Vitamin A: 815IU | Vitamin C: 18mg | Calcium: 94mg | Iron: 0.4mg
