I’ve mentioned earlier that I love to cook and that while not a great cook, I do okay. My favorite recipes by far, are stupid easy ones that never fail. It also helps if they look impressive…enter German Apple Pancake.
This pancake is not your Denny’s doughy disk heaped with fake apple goop and whipped cream. Rather, it’s the refined second cousin once removed, made of a delicate batter encasing buttery sliced apples with a sugar cinnamon crust. It also makes for a drop-dead gorgeous presentation. The first time I made this recipe, I thought I was a flippin’ culinary genius.
Penzey’s Spices is credited for this recipe as well as Jyl Boline who introduced it to me. It yields two pans (4 servings) and can be halved easily or doubled using a 13”x9” dish.
Ingredients
4 eggs
¾ c flour
½ t salt
¾ milk
¼ c sugar
½ t cinnamon
4 T butter, divided
2 medium apples, peeled and thinly sliced
Directions
- Preheat oven to 400°, placing 2 pie pans (pyrex are perfect) each with 2 T of butter as oven preheats.
- Meanwhile, beat eggs, flour milk and salt on medium speed for one minute (I use my immersion blender for this—there is less mess and it puts more air into the batter).
- In a small bowl, mix cinnamon and sugar together and set aside.
- Remove pie pans from oven and carefully divide apples among the pans and pouring batter over the top.
- Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar over top of pancakes—it will seem like a lot, and it is, but is necessary for the crunchy cinnamon sugar topping.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and puffy.
- Serve immediately; serves 4.
While typically prepared for breakfast, I have been tempted to pull this off for dessert, adding a bourbon whipped cream. I’m definitely going to do that – one day.