Fun Project: German Apple Pancake Breakfast

If you saw my post last Sunday, I'm more inspired to make an elaborate breakfast in the wintertime on the weekends because there's no rush to go outside. Sundays are perfect because it's a family day and we relax together while I do a lot of cooking to prep for the week. I was inspired by a comment someone posted on Facebook yesterday about an Apple Pancake. I remembered that I saved a recipe from Cooking Light magazine to make a German Apple Pancake. It works best if you have a cast iron skillet since you caramelize the apples in sugar on the stove top (see the picture) before you add the batter and put it in the oven to bake. Cast iron skillets are great because you can use them on the stove or the oven.

As you can see from this picture, this isn't the traditional pancake that you typically see. It's a custardy dough almost like bread pudding. I modified the recipe to use less sugar and more cinnamon to my taste. Aaron and I really liked it for breakfast, but other Cooking Light readers made it for dessert. You need to eat it right away when it comes out of the oven because it's puffy, but one reviewer said it tastes great leftover and reheated. I used a bartlet pear and cameo apple from my produce box and it was good to have both, but all apple or pear will work well too.

German Apple "Pancake" Makes 6 servings (Adapted from Cooking Light)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 cup egg substitute (or 4 eggs)
  
• 1 cups lowfat milk
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cups sugar, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 cups thinly sliced granny smith apples
• 1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Preparation:

• To prepare batter, lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, salt, cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Combine egg substitute, milk, butter, and vanilla in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add egg substitute mixture to flour mixture, stirring with a whisk. Let stand 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 425°.
• To prepare apple mixture, coat bottom and sides of a 10-inch ovenproof skillet with cooking spray. Combine 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg; sprinkle half the mixture evenly over bottom and sides of pan. Arrange apple in an even spokelike layer in pan. Sprinkle apple with remaining granulated sugar mixture. Cook over medium heat 8 minutes or until mixture bubbles. Slowly pour batter over apple mixture.
• Bake at 425° for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375° (do not remove pancake from oven); bake an additional 13 minutes or until center is set. Carefully loosen pancake with a spatula. Gently slide pancake onto a serving platter. Sift powdered sugar over top. Cut into 6 wedges; serve immediately.
  

Nutritional Information Calories:173 (28% from fat) Fat:5.4g (sat 2.8g,mono 1.4g,poly 0.9g) Protein:7.7g Carbohydrate:23.2g Fiber:0.9g Cholesterol:11mg Iron:1.5mg Sodium:213mg Calcium:101mg