Nan's Fluffy Pikelets
Small, fluffy pancakes served with butter and jam. An Australian morning tea tradition that's been delighting kids for generations.
The Story Behind This Recipe
My grandmother's Sunday morning tradition - Caroline Baker
In Australia and New Zealand, pikelets are a childhood staple - tiny, fluffy pancakes about the size of your palm, served warm with butter and jam or honey. They're simpler than American pancakes, lighter than English crumpets, and absolutely perfect for little hands. My Nan made pikelets every Sunday morning for fifty years, and three generations of our family learned to cook standing on a stool beside her electric frypan, watching the bubbles form and pop.
Pikelets have been part of Australian baking since colonial times, adapted from Scottish and English recipes brought by immigrants. The name possibly comes from the Welsh "bara pyglyd" (pitchy bread) or the Irish "pÃce" (small cake). Whatever the origin, by the early 1900s, pikelets were firmly established in Australian homes, appearing at morning teas, afternoon teas, school fetes, and children's birthday parties.
Nan's pikelet recipe came from her mother, who got it from a 1930s CWA cookbook. It's incredibly simple - flour, sugar, egg, milk, and a raising agent - but the technique matters. "The batter should be just thick enough to hold its shape when you spoon it into the pan," Nan would say, demonstrating the perfect consistency. "Too thin and they spread like pancakes. Too thick and they're heavy. Just right and they're light as clouds."
The magic of pikelets is watching them cook. Nan would heat her electric frypan to exactly the right temperature (she'd flick water on it - if it danced and evaporated, it was ready), then spoon in tablespoons of batter in neat rows. "Now we wait," she'd say. "Don't touch them. When the bubbles appear and pop, and the edges look dry, then we flip." That first flip was always my job as a kid - nerve-wracking but exciting. The perfectly golden underside was always a triumph.
Nan served pikelets three ways, depending on the occasion: for everyday, with butter and strawberry jam; for special mornings, with lemon curd and whipped cream; for kids' parties, with Nutella and hundreds and thousands (sprinkles). She'd pile them on a plate, still warm, and we'd all gather around the kitchen table. Sunday mornings meant pikelets, and pikelets meant family.
When Nan developed arthritis in her 80s and couldn't stand at the stove anymore, my mother took over the Sunday pikelets. Same recipe, same electric frypan, same plate. Now I make them for my own children, and they stand on stools beside me watching the bubbles, waiting for their turn to flip. "Are they as good as Great-Nan's?" they ask. I always answer honestly: "Almost. But hers had magic." This recipe represents Australian family traditions - simple, warm, made with love, passed down through generations, and guaranteed to make Sunday mornings special.
"Every recipe tells a story, and every story brings us closer to the heart of home."
Adjust Servings
Scaled Ingredients:
💡 Tip: Cooking times may need adjustment when scaling. Larger batches may take longer, smaller batches may cook faster.
Ingredients
For Serving
Pro Tips
- • The batter consistency is crucial - it should be thick enough to hold its shape but thin enough to spread slightly.
- • Don't overmix the batter - lumps are fine, overmixing makes tough pikelets.
- • Cook over medium heat, not high - too hot and they burn before cooking through.
- • Wait for the bubbles to pop before flipping - this is your visual cue they're ready.
- • Keep cooked pikelets warm wrapped in a tea towel - they're best served warm.
- • Make them all the same size so they cook evenly - Nan used an ice cream scoop for consistency.
- • Pikelets are best fresh but can be reheated - wrap in foil and warm in a low oven.
Storage
Store cooled pikelets in an airtight container for up to 2 days at room temperature, or 5 days refrigerated. Freeze in a snap-lock bag with baking paper between layers for up to 2 months.
Instructions
- 1
In a medium bowl, sift the self-raising flour. Add the sugar and salt. Make a well in the center. Sifting adds air and removes lumps - Nan never skipped this step, even after making pikelets thousands of times.
- 2
In a separate bowl or jug, whisk together the egg, milk, and vanilla if using. Pour the wet ingredients into the well in the dry ingredients.
- 3
Using a wooden spoon or whisk, gently mix from the center outward, gradually incorporating the flour. Mix until just combined and smooth - some small lumps are fine. Don't overmix or the pikelets will be tough. The batter should be thick but pourable, like thick cream. If too thick, add a splash more milk. If too thin, add a tablespoon of flour.
- 4
Let the batter rest for 5 minutes. This allows the flour to absorb the liquid and the raising agent to activate. Nan would use this time to set the table and get out the butter and jam.
5 minutes - 5
Heat a large, non-stick frying pan or electric frypan over medium heat. Test the temperature by flicking a drop of water on the surface - it should dance and evaporate. Lightly grease with butter - just a small amount, you don't want them to fry.
- 6
Drop tablespoons of batter onto the hot pan, spacing them about 3cm apart. Nan would do six at a time in her electric frypan. The batter should hold its shape in neat circles about 7-8cm wide. If it spreads too much, the batter is too thin - add a little flour.
- 7
Cook for about 2 minutes without touching them. Watch carefully: small bubbles will appear on the surface, then pop, leaving holes. When the bubbles have mostly popped and the edges look dry and set, they're ready to flip. This is the critical moment - flip too early and they'll be raw in the middle, too late and they'll be tough.
2 minutes - 8
Using a spatula or egg flip, gently turn each pikelet. They should be golden brown underneath. Cook for another 1-2 minutes on the second side until golden and cooked through. They should feel springy when gently pressed.
2 minutes - 9
Transfer the cooked pikelets to a clean tea towel and fold it over them to keep them warm and soft while you cook the remaining batches. The tea towel traps steam, keeping them fluffy. Don't stack them without the towel or the bottoms go soggy.
- 10
Repeat with the remaining batter, adding a tiny bit more butter to the pan between batches if needed. You should get about 20 pikelets from this recipe.
- 11
Serve warm, piled on a plate. Nan's traditional serving: each person gets 3-4 pikelets, spreads them with soft butter while they're hot (so it melts in), then adds jam or honey. Eaten with fingers is perfectly acceptable - encouraged, even.
Ingredient Substitutions
Nutrition Information
Per serving (approximate)
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