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Easy Chocolate Breakfast Ideas
Chocolate Nutella Pancakes
Pull Apart the Stack and Watch the Magic Happen!
Giant thick chocolate pancakes stacked four high with a liquid river of Nutella pouring out from every layer.
By The Kitchenette Bite
There are pancakes. And then there are these. Giant thick chocolate Nutella pancakes stacked four high with a generous spread of liquid Nutella between every single layer, the whole tower so tall and dramatic that it barely fits on the plate.
Pull the top pancake apart while everything is still warm and liquid Nutella pours out from between the layers in a thick dark glossy river that runs down the side of the stack and pools on the plate. This is not breakfast. This is a full theatrical experience that happens to be served at brunch.
The secret is using Nutella in two completely different ways simultaneously: baked into the batter for deep mahogany color and impossibly rich flavor, and then spread warm between every hot layer to create a molten center.
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Ingredients List
Click any dashed ingredient for substitutions!
Pancake Batter
(4-5 large pancakes)
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp dark cocoa powder
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temp
- 1 cup whole milk, room temp
- ⅓ cup Nutella, slightly warmed
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Filling & Topping
- ½ cup Nutella, warmed (pourable)
- Extra warm Nutella for drizzle
- Optional: Dark chocolate chips, powdered sugar, fresh berries
Step by Step Instructions
Total Time: 25 mins
Prepare the Nutella Batter
- Warm the Nutella: Microwave the 1/3 cup of Nutella in a small bowl for 20-30 seconds until fluid. Why? Cold Nutella is too stiff and will leave stubborn clumps in your delicate pancake batter.
- Dry Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, thoroughly whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, and sugar until no brown streaks remain.
- Wet Ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, vigorously whisk the eggs, milk, warmed Nutella, melted butter, and vanilla until the mixture is completely smooth and looks like chocolate milk.
- Combine Carefully: Pour the wet ingredients into the dry bowl. Use a rubber spatula to fold them together just until you can no longer see any dry white flour streaks. Stop mixing immediately! A few pea-sized lumps are completely fine. Overmixing activates the gluten and will make your pancakes flat and rubbery instead of fluffy.
- Rest: Let the bowl of batter rest on the counter for 5 minutes. This gives the flour time to absorb the liquids and allows the baking powder to start creating tiny air bubbles.
Cook Individually
- Perfect the Pan Heat: Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-low heat. Medium-low is the secret to fluffy pancakes—if the pan is too hot, the outside will burn before the inside finishes cooking. Test the heat by flicking a tiny drop of water onto the pan; it should sizzle gently and evaporate.
- Pour: Add a tiny pat of butter to coat the pan. Pour about 3/4 cup of batter directly into the center. Because the batter is thick, use the back of your measuring cup or ladle to gently nudge the batter outward into a nice circle.
- When to Flip: Cook for about 3-4 minutes. Do not touch the pancake until you see bubbles forming across the top surface that pop and stay open, and the edges begin to look dull and matte instead of wet and shiny.
- The Flip: Slide a wide spatula completely underneath the center of the pancake, lift it slightly, and flip it over in one confident, quick motion. Cook for 2 more minutes, then slide it onto a warm serving plate.
Build the Hot Stack
- Timing is Everything: The “lava” effect relies entirely on heat. You must spread the Nutella filling while the pancakes are still piping hot directly out of the pan.
- Layer: As soon as the first pancake hits the plate, immediately scoop a generous tablespoon of warm Nutella right into the center and spread it out to the edges. The heat of the pancake will melt it into a liquid.
- Stack: As soon as the second pancake finishes cooking, place it directly on top of the first layer, press down very gently to secure it, and immediately spread more Nutella on top. Repeat until you have a towering stack of 4 to 5 pancakes!
Top, Reveal, and Serve
- Final Drizzle: Warm any remaining filling Nutella in the microwave for another 10-20 seconds until it is very runny. Drizzle it over the top center of the stack, letting it cascade down the sides.
- Garnish: If you’re feeling fancy, sprinkle some dark chocolate chips or dust the top with powdered sugar using a fine mesh sieve.
- The Magic Reveal: Bring it to the table immediately while hot! Grip the top pancake with both thumbs (or two forks) and pull it apart slowly from the center. Watch as the trapped, melted Nutella pours out like a chocolate waterfall. Enjoy!
Pro Tips for Dramatic Stacks
-
Warm the Nutella twice: once before it goes into the batter, and again before it goes between the layers. Cold Nutella ruins the texture! -
Medium-low heat is crucial. It produces taller fluffier pancakes than high heat every single time — resist the urge to rush. -
The pull apart reveal requires the stack to still be warm. Don’t let it sit for more than 5 minutes before executing the reveal. -
Use a large pan for maximum pancake size. The bigger the pancake, the more dramatic the stack looks. -
Let the batter rest for 5 minutes before cooking. This allows the baking powder to activate and the gluten to relax.
Brunch Variations
🍌 Nutella Banana
Add 1 mashed ripe banana to the batter and layer sliced bananas between the Nutella filling layers. Extraordinary flavor.
🥜 Peanut Butter Chocolate
Replace half the Nutella in the batter with smooth peanut butter and use peanut butter as the interlayer filling.
🍓 Nutella Strawberry
Spread a thin layer of strawberry jam alongside the Nutella between each layer to cut through the richness perfectly.
🗼 Mini Pancake Towers
Make small 3-inch pancakes and stack 6 to 8 high per person for individual towers with personal pull-apart reveals.
Top Reddit Questions
Q: “My pancakes are flat and dense instead of fluffy. What’s wrong?”
Three main causes: First, overmixed batter. Stop whisking the moment the flour disappears. Second, heat is too high. A hot pan sets the exterior before the batter can rise; use medium-low heat. Third, expired baking powder. Test yours in hot water—if it bubbles vigorously, it’s good!
Q: “How do I keep the Nutella liquid and stop it from setting solid?”
It’s a temperature game! Only spread Nutella while each pancake is hot from the pan. Warm the Nutella before spreading it. Finally, serve immediately. If you must wait, hold the plate in a 200°F oven for up to 10 minutes to keep everything molten.
Q: “Can I make the batter the night before?”
Yes, but with a trick! Mix everything *except* the Nutella, and refrigerate. The next morning, warm the Nutella and stir it into the batter right before cooking. Adding Nutella the night before causes the fats to solidify and ruins the fluffiness.
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The History Behind the Dish
The story of the Chocolate Nutella Pancake is a modern evolution of the classic American diner breakfast colliding with Italian pastry tradition. Pancakes, specifically the thick, leavened “flapjacks” we know today, became an American staple in the late 1800s when commercial baking powder made the signature fluffiness possible for home cooks.
Nutella, created in Italy in 1964 by Pietro Ferrero, originally spent decades being used primarily on bread or inside thin French crepes. It wasn’t until the early 2010s “Instagram food era” that chefs realized building massive vertical towers of thick American pancakes with molten chocolate layers created an unmatched visual spectacle.
Today, the “Pull-Apart Pancake Tower” is a celebrated staple of extravagant weekend brunches. Baking the Nutella directly into the batter ensures the chocolate flavor isn’t just a topping, but baked right into the soul of the dish!