We went apple picking recently and came home with 37 pounds of
Gravensteins from an orchard with the rather worrisome name of GM Farms. The bushel basket has been sitting in the kitchen where it's slowly being emptied by hungry kids . Before they all disappeared I wanted to make sure to make an apple pancake or two, just like my dad used to make for us.
One of the things I always loved about this dish was the slightly salty crust that forms. I rarely buy salted butter, but it's what takes this dish right back to my childhood. The flavor is just like my father's version but we differ in technique. I saute the apples and cook the pancake in the same pan. He likes to preheat the pan in the oven, melting a stick of butter at the same time and sautee the apples separately on the stove. Then he puts the batter in the preheated pan and places the apples on top. I've done it both ways and haven't noticed much of a difference except my way uses less butter and saves the washing of a pan. Sorry, Daddy--I hate to be more efficient than you are!
Another nice thing about this one: you probably always have the ingredients on hand so you can make up an apple pancake at a moment's notice. The recipe is
here. Let me know how it goes.
We went apple picking recently and came home with 37 pounds of Gravensteins from an orchard with the rather worrisome name of GM Farms. The bushel basket has been sitting in the kitchen where it's slowly being emptied by hungry kids . Before they all disappeared I wanted to make sure to make an apple pancake or two, just like my dad used to make for us. 
One of the things I always loved about this dish was the slightly salty crust that forms. I rarely buy salted butter, but it's what takes this dish right back to my childhood. The flavor is just like my father's version but we differ in technique. I saute the apples and cook the pancake in the same pan. He likes to preheat the pan in the oven, melting a stick of butter at the same time and sautee the apples separately on the stove. Then he puts the batter in the preheated pan and places the apples on top. I've done it both ways and haven't noticed much of a difference except my way uses less butter and saves the washing of a pan. Sorry, Daddy--I hate to be more efficient than you are!
Another nice thing about this one: you probably always have the ingredients on hand so you can make up an apple pancake at a moment's notice. The recipe is here. Let me know how it goes.
1 comment:
I make this too! We call it Apple Pankuchen, and it's also the first thing I made with our apples! Sorry, though, I can up the efficiency. The way I learned how to make it is this:
melt the butter in the pan in the oven while it's pre-heating. Then sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon on top the butter. Lay the apple slices on top in an even layer, then pour batter over the apples. Bake as usual. I can mix up the batter and core and peel the apples in the time it takes to melt the butter, and then I slice them directly over the pan. Works very well, and the apples are cooked nicely.
I learned about this dish from a friend who was just dismal in the kitchen. It's such a simple thing to prepare, but she mixed the butter into the batter, rather than letting it coat the pan and then pouring the batter over. The result was yummy, but not the same. It didn't puff the way a Dutch Baby should. So I had to learn by myself how to make it right!
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