I’m not much of a morning person, but I love to make breakfast, especially for my son Nathan, especially on school mornings. He’s relatively self-sufficient these days, and doesn’t need me to do much of anything for him, so sending him off for the day with something warm is pretty much all about me clinging to the last gasps of his childhood.
Nathan is a big fan of apple pancakes, especially at this time of year when anything apple tastes like crisp sunshine. If I’m rushing, which is almost always, I just grate an apple into basic pancake batter and griddle off a few (giant) cakes. But if I’m up and at ’em, I’ll whip together this beauty, which is as easy or easier than griddle cakes, but requires 30 minutes in the oven.
The pancake is meant to be served with a dusting of confectioners’ sugar, which is lovely, but I’ll be honest…Nathan soaks it in a fair amount of Sapsucker Farms maple syrup, with a tidy pile of bacon next to it, and it is very, incredibly awesome that way.
A bonus for the pre-school effort: Any leftover slices make a terrific after-school snack, cold right out of the fridge.
Dutch Apple Pancake
Recipe via Williams-Sonoma
Serves 2-4
4 Tbs. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 Golden Delicious apple, cored and cut into 1/2-inch slices
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp. granulated sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
Confectioners’ sugar for dusting
Preheat an oven to 400ºF. Butter a 10-inch ovenproof braiser or fry pan.
In another fry pan over medium heat, melt 2 Tbs. of the butter. Add the apple, cinnamon and granulated sugar and sauté, stirring occasionally, until the apple begins to soften and brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Set aside.
In a bowl, using a whisk, beat the eggs. Add the milk and whisk until blended. Sift the flour and salt into the egg mixture and whisk until just blended. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the remaining 2 Tbs. butter. Add the butter to the egg mixture and whisk until smooth.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and arrange the apple slices evenly on top. Bake until the pancake is browned and puffed up, 25 to 30 minutes. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve immediately.
