German Apple Pancakes

The choice this morning was to get up in the dark and run 10 miles or make pancakes. You can see which option won.

This particular recipe comes from the America's Test Kitchen cookbook. It is very similar to a pancake called a "Dutch Baby" that Charlotte d'Amboise and I would eat weekly at the Pancake House in Chicago when we were on tour there with "Chicago the Musical". (How's that for some unapologetic name-dropping?) Anyway, unlike most ATK recipes, this one is not totally dripping in butter, fat, lard or cream. (They do say you should use half and half in this recipes, but I substituted 1% milk (it was all I had on hand) and it seemed to come out just fine.) I'm sure there are some tweaks I could do to make this a little healthier (adding flax meal and/or wheat germ are my default health options) and I'll try them next time.

By the way, the America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook is a great resource for WHY things should be done the way they suggest in the recipe. (I'm a big one for taking shortcuts and they explain exactly why you shouldn't do that.) They also have lots of pictures, hints and tips sprinkled throughout which are very elucidating.

German Apple Pancake

(from The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 TBS sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

2 large eggs

2/3 cup milk (or half and half, if you prefer fat)

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 TBS unsalted butter

3 to 4 large apples, peeled, cored and sliced into 1/2" slices

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp lemon juice (I didn't have any on hand and it seemed to come out okay)

1. Adjust oven rack to upper middle position and preheat oven to 500*.

2. Whisk together the flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl.

3. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk and vanilla.

4. Whisk wet ingredients into dry until no lumps remain.

5. Melt butter in 10" ovenproof, nonstick skillet. Add apples, brown sugar and cinnamon cooking until apples are golden brown (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice.

6. Quickly pour the batter around the edges of the skillet and then over the apples. Place in oven and immediately reduce heat to 425*. Bake until edges of pancake are brown and have risen above the edge of the pan, about 20 minutes.

7. Remove from oven, loosen pancake edges with a heatprood spatula and invert onto a large plate. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar and serve immediately.