Cookie Cutters Are The Ultimate Hack For Perfectly Shaped Pancakes

Any morning that starts off with a stack of classic pancakes is a good one, but you can make it even more special by making your pancakes in fun shapes. Whether you're making them for yourself, your family, or friends, pancake shapes are a great way to jazz up the classic breakfast and brunch food. While you can go to Williams Sonoma and buy fancy pancake molds to help you make the best shapes possible, there's a much easier alternative that you likely already own: cookie cutters.

All you really need is a simple shape to hold your pancake batter while it cooks, and cookie cutters can do exactly that. Just spray the molds with cooking oil before placing them onto the cooking surface, add a tiny swipe of butter in the middle, then pour in the batter and wait for your pancakes to set. After about three minutes, carefully remove the cutter, flip your pancake, and proceed to cook as normal. Just be sure not to fill the mold up the entire way unless you're making Japanese soufflé pancakes.

This is a great way to have the sharpest-shaped pancakes possible. It can also be perfect for holiday brunches if you have the right shapes — and the right material.

One key element to remember is that you should always use metal cookie cutters. Metal is going to do a better job of withstanding the heat of a pan or griddle. Using any plastic cooking products in a high-heat environment can be dangerous if they aren't specifically designed for that purpose. Not only is it likely that the plastic will melt, but it can also release dangerous chemicals into your food. For this reason, it's best not to take the chance and stick to metal cookie cutters instead.

Using metal cookie cutters will improve your pancakes' shapes as well. Metal molds tend to be more precise and create better cookies, so its safe to say that the same goes for making pancakes.

Just remember to use tongs when removing your molds. Metal is a conductor, and will heat up as it sits on the grill. Use tongs or oven mitts to carefully remove your molds once the first side has bubbled up and finished cooking to avoid burning your hands.

Another tool that will help shape the perfect pancakes is a squeeze bottle. You might be more familiar with these bottles when they're on diner counters filled with condiments, but they are also the perfect batter dispensers.

The genius of this hack is that it gives you more control than ladling or spooning batter onto a griddle would. With a squeeze bottle you can easily draw thin lines and other shapes to go with your cookie cutter shapes. Its nozzle also makes it much easier to get batter into those cookie cutter molds without making a complete mess. With this trick you'll be making pancake celebrity portraits in no time. 

The best part is you don't even need to buy a new one. The next time you finish a bottle of ketchup at home you can clean it thoroughly, and fill it with batter. It will work just as well with pancake batter as it did with ketchup and save you from buying another kitchen tool.