Baked Caramelized Apple Pancake

Growing up, every Saturday morning meant bacon scrambled eggs (read all about it here!) 

And every Sunday morning meant pancakes.  Or crepes. Or if my mum was feeling extra accommodating, apple pancakes!

I always loved watching my mum make those apple pancakes.  The entire skillet was filled with slightly sautéed sliced apples, and then she would pour the crepe-like batter over them all.  Once it was ready, somehow she managed to lift that entire pancake that filled the skillet, and turn it over to brown the other side.  And she made it look effortless.  I have never been able to copy her spatula skills.  For some reason, my pancake always managed to break apart in the lifting stage.  So I just gave up.  For years. Until I thought about it. Why not make a dutch baby-type pancake with the apple slices already baked in?  This way I could relive a bit of my childhood, have those wonderful apples filling my pancake, without the frustration of trying to turn the pancake? Let the oven do the work!!

So that thinking turned into this pancake.  All the components are still there.  But I let the oven do the heavy lifting of ensuring that the batter is cooked through.  The other step I add is adding a bit of flavour to the apples before adding the batter.  A bit of butter, brown and granulated sugars and a quick sauté adds a layer of flavour to the apple slices.  Then I pour the batter all around the slices and pot the entire pan into the oven till baked through.

About the pancake batter: This is a classic pancake batter, if a little thinner.  So kind of half way between a crepe and a pancake.  I add a bunch of spices to the batter itself.  You could omit them.  Or you could play with the spices themselves.  A good blend would be Chai Spices (check out my Hazelnut Chocolate Dried Cherry Chai Cantucci for the blend) Or just a simple sprinkling of ready made Apple Pie spice blend is great.  You can also play with the flours used.  In the recipe I’ll just give you the classic all purpose flour as the main ingredient.  But why not replace some of this flour with spelt, buckwheat,rye, or even chestnut flour?  These would add some lovely depth and nuttiness to the final flavour of the pancake. You may need to add a bit more of those flours as they tend to absorb liquids differently.  Just start with the same amount and see how runny the final batter is. If it is too runny, whisk in more flour, 1 tbsp at a time.

Leave the pan in the oven till the pancake starts to puff up the edges and is set.  For the most part this should only take between 15 and 20 minutes for a full sized 10-12 inch skillet full.  In the photos I’m showing here, I divided the apple and batter to make two smaller 8 inch or so skillets.  One full skillet should feed 2-3 people.  If you go smaller, each skillet could feed one person.

There is a sweetness to this morning treat that can’t be ignored.  Especially if you top the finished pancake with icing sugar!   You can omit and just go straight for the maple syrup!  Or do both, no one is watching. 😉 Or if you want to combat the sweetness, just add a side of bacon!  Yes, this is where I go to balance out the sweet treats. Bacon…

A great brunch treat, or even a simple dessert.  You pick!

Love Jen

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Baked Caramelized Apple Pancake

The best of an apple pancake and a Dutch Baby! Serve with maple syrup or caramel sauce or a simple dusting of icing sugar.

Course Breakfast

Keyword apples, breakfast, pancake

Prep Time 25 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Servings 3

Ingredients

Batter

• 1/2 cup AP flour can use whole wheat, rye, spelt, or even chestnut flour for 1/4 cup of this amount
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp cardamom
• 1/4 tsp allspice
• 1/4 tsp cloves
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk

Caramelized Apples

• 2 firm apples such as Gala, Honeycrisp, Granny Smith etc, cored and sliced into 1/4 inch thick slices
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 3 Tbsp brown sugar
• 3 Tbsp granulated sugar

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 425F.
2. Combine the flour with the sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, allspice, cloves and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl or measuring cup whisk the eggs and milk together.
3. Pour the egg mixture into the flour, whisking all the while to blend. Keep blending till all the lumps are removed. Set aside for 20 minutes to allow the flour to soak up the liquids fully.

Meanwhile, prepare the apples.

1. Heat the butter in a 10-12 inch skillet over medium heat. When melted, add the apples, and both sugars. Sauté for 5-6 minutes, till the apples are softened, and a caramel sauce of sorts has developed. Adjust the heat to achieve this.
2. Arrange the apples evenly over the entire skillet.
3. Pour the batter gently around and over the apples.
4. Place the skillet on to the middle rack of the oven. Bake until the batter is completely set and lightly golden, and the sides have puffed up slightly, about 15-18 minutes.
5. Remove and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, icing sugar or even caramel sauce!
6. Serves 3-4. Can be served with maple syrup.

Recipe Notes

If using a smaller 7-8 inch pan, divide the recipe into two batches. Reduce the baking times accordingly. Watch the pancake to see when it is set.