An Apple A Day

For years, my now 10 year old daughter has been pleading with me to take her apple picking. Living in Phoenix, the nearest real apple orchard is in Willcox, in southeastern Arizona. This means a 3 1/2 hour drive each way, so I haven't been in a big hurry to grant her wish. A few weeks ago my husband I decided we would finally make the trip, and on a warm Sunday morning set off in search of apple nirvana. As we approached our destination, the landscape was looking more and more New Mexico-esque. We knew we were a long way from home when we began seeing billboards advertising the sale of fireworks, which are illegal in AZ, but sold at just about every highway stop in NM. Once at the orchard we were given a bucket and an apple harvesting tool and driven to the pick-you-own apple location in a tractor-drawn haywagon. There we were greeted with rows of Red Delicious, Golden Delicous, Granny Smiths, Rome Beauty, and more. On this weekend in late September most of the trees had been pretty well picked over, but we still managed to pick 25 pounds of apples! After a lunch of applewood grilled hamburgers, cowboy beans and fresh baked apple pie, we made a stop at the orchard gift shop to stock up on fresh cider, apple cookbooks, and apple barbecue sauce. Next came the hard part, figuring out what to do with all of these apples! Aside from putting them into my daughter's lunch and sauteeing them with pork chops, I was looking for something a little different. Since we rarely have time to fix a nice breakfast at home, we occasionally have "breakfast for dinner" nights, so a few nights ago I decided to make a German Apple Pancake, or "Dutch Baby". These are really simple to make, with a thin batter poured over tender sauteed apples, then baked in the oven until the pancake puffs up golden brown around the edges of the pan. A dusting of powdered sugar and a little maple syrup, and this was a wonderful meal with some maple bacon and scrambled eggs.

German Apple Pancake (Dutch Baby)

3 large eggs, lightly beaten

3/4 cup whole milk

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking powder

1 Tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon apple pie spice

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 apples (large) peeled, cored, and thinly sliced

1/3 cup light brown, packed

1 pinch salt

powdered sugar for serving

maple syrup for serving

Cooking Directions

In a large bowl, combine the first six ingredients and whisk until just blended, being careful to not overmix. Set the batter aside to rest while you prepare the apples, at least 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 450°F.
In a heavy, ovenproof (preferably nonstick) 12-inch skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over high heat. Add the apples, apple pie spice, and salt and cook, stirring frequently, until the apples are soft and lightly golden around the edges, about 6 minutes. Add the brown sugar and cook, stirring, until the apples are caramelized and very soft, 2 to 3 minutes longer. Add the remaining tablespoon of butter and stir to melt.
Pour the batter evenly over the top of the apples and transfer the skillet to the oven. Bake until the pancake is golden brown and puffed, about 15 minutes. The pancake will puff up around the edges and extend above the rim of the skillet.
Using oven mitts or potholders, remove the skillet from the oven and serve the pancake, sprinkled with powdered sugar and drizzled with maple syrup, if desired.