Painting Pancakes: Modern Art You Can Eat
You have to try this painting pancakes activity! This is colorful art you can eat and it is fun for kids of all ages. Toddlers, preschoolers, and elementary aged kids will love eating this art. Explore colors with this painting pancakes activity. Perfect edible craft for at home or in the classroom.
Painting Pancakes Activity
This is a really easy edible art project…Super easy and super fun! You can explore colors using pancakes and food coloring and make beautiful pictures on your pancakes.
Instead of boring plain old syrup on your pancakes, why not paint them! I was surprised by painting their pancakes the kids actually used less syrup than when they drizzled their pancakes or dipped bites in a syrup puddle.
This activity actually makes pancakes a more healthy alternative! You can also use honey instead of syrup.
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Related: Homemade pancake mix recipe
Supplies Needed To Make Painting Pancakes
What you’ll need:
- Food Coloring
- Plastic Cups
- Syrup
- Unused Paintbrushes
- Pancakes (Using Pancake mix)
Painting Pancakes Edible Craft
Step 1
Make pancakes using the pancake mix. All you need to do is mix the pancake mix. 1 Cup mix to 3/4 cups of water will make 4-6 pancakes with this particular mix.
Step 2
Put a skillet on the stove on medium heat and spray with cooking spray.
Step 3
Ladle out some pancake mix on the stove until it bubbles then flip it over.
Step 4
Repeat until all the pancakes are made.
Step 5
Add some food coloring to cups along with syrup.
Step 6
Give the paintbrushes to your kids and let your kids paint on their pancakes.
Step 7
Enjoy!
Our Experience With Painting Pancakes
We used an egg carton to “hold the paint” as it doesn’t tip easily, holds small portions of syrup and, most importantly, is disposable! I love art projects with easy clean-up!
Add 3 drops or so to roughly a tablespoon of syrup and have fun painting and eating your breakfast. Of course, once you start this, pancake breakfasts will never be the same!
As you can see, it was more exploring colors than actual pictures. And that’s okay, it helps kids practice their fine motor skills and explore with their imagination.
Painting Pancakes: Modern Art You Can Eat

Start painting pancakes with syrup and food coloring. This edible craft allows your kids to practice fine motor skills, explore colors, and eat their yummy art!
Materials
- Food Coloring
- Plastic Cups
- Syrup
- Unused Paintbrushes
- Pancakes (Using Pancake mix)
Instructions
- Make pancakes using the pancake mix. All you need to do is mix the pancake mix. 1 Cup mix to 3/4 cups of water will make 4-6 pancakes with this particular mix.
- Put a skillet on the stove on medium heat and spray with cooking spray.
- Ladle out some pancake mix on the stove until it bubbles then flip it over.
- Repeat until all the pancakes are made.
- Add some food coloring to cups along with syrup.
- Give the paintbrushes to your kids and let your kids paint on their pancakes.
- Enjoy!
More Fun Painting and Edible Crafts From Kids Activities Blog
- For other painting fun, check out our bathtub paint recipe or finger painting with shaving cream!
- Try coloring these cookies! These edible crafts are fun and colorful!
- How cool and colorful are these edible paints made from Fruit Loops.
- Did you know you can paint with honey, mustard, ketchup, and ranch?
- Wow, look at this fun homemade edible finger paint recipe.
- Your kids will love this edible mud sensory play.
How did your kids like this painting pancaked edible craft?
I love this idea. My kids love to help me make pancakes and this will add to that fun. Thank you for the idea.
May be a fine idea for some but I have one major problem with it – the activity teaches children it’s great to play with your food. Not true – I hope to teach the little ones in my care how to have lots of fun and how to express their creativity WITHOUT playing with food!
We do something similar, only on toast with colored butter. You can see it here: http://keeslerchaos.blogspot.com/2010/01/muffin-tin-monsters.html
.-= Keeslermom´s last blog ..To Colorado and Back =-.
I’ll have to try this. My four year old is a painting machine. We’ve been mixing colors with water and food coloring in mini muffin tins today. Then folding paper towels into really tiny triangles and rectangles and dipping the corners into different colors. When we unfold them they were kind of tie dyed. They are on the porch drying right now and then we’re hanging them up like nautical flags in his room.
This is the coolest idea ever! Going to try it next time at breakfast!
.-= mom2my9´s last blog ..Cereal and Pipe Cleaner Time =-.
Stopping by from the Unschooling Carnival. This sounds like fun. We love painting and we love pannycakes. Can’t wait to try this.
.-= Rana´s last blog ..Growing up! =-.
What a fantastic idea! My daughter likes to play with her food more than she eats it, this way it’s still edible but fun. We also tried this out with mashed potatoes and it works great.
So happy you linked up at A Crafty Soiree! I’m sorry I’m a bit tardy in making all my visits. I was out late last night and we had a terrible rain storm when I got home. Not good weather for using the computer!
This sounds like fun, ER loves to paint almost as much as she loves pancakes! Sometimes she is done with her meal before I even get started and then wants attention. What a good way to extend the meal so I can get a few bites in too. Good tip on the egg carton. Thanks for sharing and I hope you’ll join us for the newest one, it started today.
I love the idea of substituting honey. This looks like an edible art project for any age. 🙂
“use an egg carton to hold the paint”
What a fabulous tip. Why didn’t I think of that!
This is a good idea for children wherein they can use their imagination and creativity in painting a pancake. Though, parents should still guide their children so as not to spoil the food that they will be eating.
My children will enjoy this pancake painting as long as they will not be spoiling the food. In fact they can develop and enhance their creativity with this.
What a fantastic new way for my son to make a mess in the kitchen ;0)
Good fun way of kids being creative with food, great post.
Steve
My blog: Sofitel Gatwick
My creative daughter will love this. She actually likes using ketchup and mustard to paint her bun. Thanks for the idea!
I run a day home and I’m always looking for creative things to do with my kids. I’ll definitely add this to the mix! Thank you!
My son’s birthday party is later this month. I’d be crazy not to include this fun activity — great suggestion!
Just for fun, you could use cookie cutters to make shapes of the pancakes. Be careful, creativity overload!
So I tried this with my two kids. It was a little too successful. Now they want to paint all their food. I told them it could be a weekend thing.
I’ve just discovered your site, and I’ve been exploring it for a while. What a fantastic resource! Much appreciated.
Hey Quirky Mama.. What a fun idea for kids and adults.. I am going to get the kids to make these for their grandparents for brunch next weekend.. and my mom won’t be able to save this piece of my kids art!.. she already has a collections of hundreds of crayon scribbles! Great blog.. thanks for the info
I love how it made it a “healthy alternative”! Anything to get my kids to resist drowning their pancakes in syrup…
I tried this activity at a birthday party, but we used waffles. Bad idea. The kids were pouring food coloring in the holes. It was a mess. Next time, pancakes.
I’m surprised I’ve never thought of this before — such a simple but effective idea. Great post!
Interesting food craft ideas really want to try on my own and kids!!
I tried this with my kids and the end result looked too artistic to eat – if you like Jackson Pollock that is!
Most probably playboy does not do handles each source it reproduces, just how does copyright law permit them to re-print editorial content they don’t own without having to pay royalties?. . Also, can this law be used worldwide?.
This is a great idea for kids.. you can make the pancakes in a bunch of different sizes too
thanks for this idea.. looks like a lot of fun
Looks like a lot of fun.. I’ll have to try it with my kids
This looks like a lot fun!
this looks like a lot of messy fun.. bet kids love it
I didnt read all the posts but i read most and none of them mentioned alternatives to using food colouring? As food colouring is bad for you I’m surprised by this. A friend suggested doing this but making colours with water and food/fruit puree so as to not have the gross that is food colouring.
This sounds awesome. We did the opposite on Valentine’s Day last year. Put the food coloring into the battter, left it kind of “swirly” and made heart shaped pancakes. Because they get cooked, the colors turned out a “brown pink” if that makes any sense. I think your idea is much more fun. We’ll have to try for one of our daily TV-free activities. : )