Sheet-Pan Pancakes
One big buttermilk-style pancake batter spread in a sheet pan and baked at 375°F for about 20 minutes, then cut into squares so everyone eats hot pancakes at the same time.
Pancakes for a crowd usually means standing at the stove while the first ones go limp. America's Test Kitchen's answer is one big pancake baked in a rimmed half sheet pan: the toppings melt into it while it is hot, and three eggs and extra baking powder give it lift. It is the most American idea in the hub: take a griddle food and make it fit a weeknight.
Why it works the kitchen science
One pan, one bake
Every square comes out of the oven at the same moment, hot and fluffy, instead of the first pancakes going limp while you make the last (ATK).
Extra lift
Three eggs and a generous 4 teaspoons of baking powder help a thick layer of batter rise evenly in the oven instead of baking up dense.
Step by step
- Step 1
Put a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 375°F. Spray a rimmed 18 by 13-inch half sheet pan with oil spray.
- Step 2
Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. In a second bowl, whisk the eggs and oil, then whisk in the milk and vanilla.
- Step 3
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold gently until just combined; the batter should stay lumpy with a few streaks of flour. Let it rest 10 minutes while the oven finishes heating.
- Step 4
Spread the batter evenly in the pan, all the way into the corners.
- Step 5
Bake about 20 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through, until the top is spotty brown and firm to the touch.
- Step 6
Cool on a wire rack 3 to 5 minutes, cut into 16 squares and serve warm with butter and maple syrup.
Sheet-Pan Pancakes
Serves 8 · one half-sheet pancake, 16 squares · 40 min total
Dry
- 3 cups (15 oz) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 4 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 1 1/2 tsp table salt
Wet
- 3 large eggs
- 6 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 1/4 cups milk
- 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
- Vegetable oil spray, for the pan
To serve
- 4 tbsp salted butter
- 1 cup maple syrup
Method
- Put a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 375°F. Spray a rimmed 18 by 13-inch half sheet pan with oil spray.
- Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. In a second bowl, whisk the eggs and oil, then whisk in the milk and vanilla.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold gently until just combined; the batter should stay lumpy with a few streaks of flour. Let it rest 10 minutes while the oven finishes heating.
- Spread the batter evenly in the pan, all the way into the corners.
- Bake about 20 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through, until the top is spotty brown and firm to the touch.
- Cool on a wire rack 3 to 5 minutes, cut into 16 squares and serve warm with butter and maple syrup.
Adapted from America's Test Kitchen, "One Big Pancake" (September 7, 2025), as written for 8. Oven temperature, bake time, the 10-minute rest and the 3 to 5 minute cool are ATK's. Butter and syrup amounts for serving and the topping ideas in Tips are ours. ATK lists "milk"; we count whole milk. America's Test Kitchen. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
All sources (1)
Tips
- Our topping ideas: scatter blueberries, sliced bananas or chocolate chips over the batter right before it goes in the oven.
- Freeze leftover squares in a zipper-lock bag up to a month and microwave them one at a time (ATK).
- Half the recipe fits a quarter sheet pan; start checking at 15 minutes.
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- Real pancakes need a griddle. Folklore: the sheet pan makes one big baked pancake; ATK still calls it a pancake.
- Leave the batter lumpy. Documented (ATK: lumpy with a few streaks of flour).
- Rotate the pan halfway. Documented (ATK), because most ovens heat unevenly.
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