Alternative Pancake Toppings

Ah, pancakes - one of the great breakfast staples. We eat them often, usually mindlessly reaching for the maple syrup. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.) But there are many alternative toppings for pancakes. If you're looking to break out of the pancake doldrums, jazz it up a little by trying some of the following toppings:

Ice cream. Who doesn't love ice cream? Top a hot pancake with your favorite flavor of ice cream- it's delicious! You can opt for basic vanilla, a fruit flavor, or the more traditional maple walnut ice cream. You might not think it's the healthiest option, but it's a great way to add a little dairy to your diet!

Pie filling. If you have a sweet tooth, some warmed-up pie filling on top of a pancake really hits the spot! Canned pie filling comes in a variety of flavors including blueberry, apple, cherry, and peach; to name a few. This topping is as easy as buying a can of pie filling and heating it up. You may want to top it off with a dollop of Cool Whip or whipped cream for an extra decadent treat!

Chocolate syrup. Talk about decadence! If you're craving chocolate, but nothing seems to satisfy, drizzle some Hershey's syrup over your pancakes. That'll really jump-start your day!

Applesauce. For a healthy, but still delicious option, try topping a pancake with some warm applesauce! A lot of companies are adding other fruit flavors to applesauce, so if you really want something different, try strawberry applesauce! Applesauce is a great no-fat low-sugar alternative panckae topping.

Fresh fruit. This is probably the healthiest of all the alternative pancake topping options. You could try raspberries, strawberries, or blueberries. Or make a fresh fruit salad and use that- the juice from the fruit is delicious when it soaks into a pancake!

Peanut butter. Smear some peanut butter on a hot pancake! The peanut butter gets a little bit "melty" and it's delicious! You could also opt for other kind of nut butters, like almond butter or cashew butter. It may not be the best option, calorie-wise, but it does add a non-meat protein to your diet.

Butter and sugar. This is a traditional pancake topping in some parts of the United States. (My ex-husband used to eat pancakes that way. It kind of grossed me out, but it wasn't the reason we got divorced.)

Bacon. Sounds funny, but my son and his friend love bacon ON a pancake. As a matter of fact, they've taken to making "pancake sandwiches" by layering bacon between two pancakes. (My son must have gotten a recessive weird-pancake-eating gene from his father.)

Those are just a few ideas of how to break your "same old" breakfast routine with some alternative pancake toppings. Whichever one you choose, I hope you enjoy! Bon appetit!