This thick, custardy baked apple pancake takes me straight back to my childhood. Dust it with powdered sugar for a sweet finishing touch & dig in!
My sister and I used to beg my mom for things like Fruity Pebbles and Frosted Flakes. She didn’t cave often, but I remember the few times she did… she’d sigh and say, “If I buy this, are you really going to eat it this time?” We’d smile and nod, excited to be taking home the same colorful boxes our friends had.
We’d each eat maybe one bowl full. Then up in the pantry it would go… to collect dust and then ultimately get tossed in the next pantry clean-out. The smiling kids on Saturday morning commercials would convince us to beg again… and we’d try SO hard to like the stuff. But sugary soggy flakes and blue milk were not for us.
Especially when homemade muffins, pancakes, eggs, doughnuts, and this German(ish) apple pancake were all part of our regular breakfast rotation.
This was a staple of our childhood, and my mom still makes it every time she visits.
Apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon get softened in a pan with butter, and an egg mixture gets poured on top. The thin egg layer and pillowy apples create more of a custard-like texture than a traditional doughy pancake.
Bake until it puffs up and serve hot slices right out of the pan.
For more brunch ideas, try these vegan banana pancakes, this shakshuka, or this frittata!
(The photo above is of a 5-inch mini skillet, but the recipe makes enough to fill approx a 12 or 13-inch skillet. Use either a seasoned cast iron skillet, or a non-stick pan).
Apple Pancake
- 2 tablespoons butter (or vegan earth balance)
- 3 apples, peeled, cored and sliced
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup almond milk (or regular milk)
- 2 tablespoons flour (any kind: white, wheat, spelt*, or a gluten-free blend)
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- Powdered sugar, for dusting (optional)
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Combine brown sugar and cinnamon.
- Whisk together eggs and milk.
- Mix together flour and baking powder and stir it into the egg/milk mixture.
- In a skillet, heat butter, add the apple slices and 1 tablespoon of the brown sugar mixture and cook, stirring, until soft. About 5 minutes.
- Pour the batter over the apples and sprinkle the remaining brown sugar on top.
- Bake until it puffs up, about 18-20 minutes.
- Dust with a little powdered sugar.
I am coming over for breakfast!
I certainly wouldn’t be eating crazy cereal, when I can be having pancakes like this one! Looks fabulous.
such a cute memory, what a testament to your mom! This looks so pretty. We are into waffles lately, but this looks like something that could feed a few more in a larger skillet. Looks great, my dear!
I love the addition of apples to this German pancake recipe. I also love that it is made in the skillet in the oven.
Yum. This looks so perfect. I have a couple of Bosc pears peaking out of my fruit bowl that would be lovely paired up with apples in this. Saturday is sounding better and better the more I think about this pancake!
thanks Sara! Sounds delicious with pears… hope you like!
Since going wheat and dairy free, I have been looking for a recipe for an apple pancake to replace the one we used to love. This is it! I’m so excited to try this – my husband will be so excited!
Hi Yvonne, I hear you… I’m always looking for ways to replace dairy, hope you like it!
This sounds so delicious! A friend is having us over soon to teach us how to make Dutch babies. I think I need to return the favor by serving up this apple pancake next time. 🙂
ooh sounds like a fun friend 🙂
I am going to make this Sunday morning. I can’t wait! Once again, I love how simple yet elegant your recipes are. And of course, I love that they use whole natural foods and whole meal flours. So awesome! I look forward to each new post you have every week. Thanks!
thanks Alise!
You were lucky kids having those sort of breakfasts in rotation!!! Love making baked pancakes sans the eggs though as I’m vegan. Yours looks gorgeous as always!
this one is very much about the eggs 🙂 I’ll have to go check out your recipe for a vegan variation…
i have been working on a vegan and gluten free skillet cake. however, your pancake recipe sounds amazing as well!
Yum! My husband loved those sugary cereals. I was never allowed to have them, we were strictly a Cheerios and Chex family. I never really craved them but I definitley felt like I missed out on the phenomenon. My dad was the expert pancake maker in our house. Blueberry was his specialty. I love making pancakes on the weekend. I cannot wait to try this big guy!
Same here, the only ones we had were Cheerios and Raisin Bran 🙂
This looks delightful! Do you have any tips for those of us who don’t own a cast iron skillet?
Many Thanks,
Ashley
The cast iron skillet isn’t necessary, a non-stick pan works too.
I used a non-stick dutch oven pan.It worked great!
Definitely will be giving this a try with buckwheat flour and probably devouring the entire thing by myself. 🙂
Ohmygoshhhh that looks good!
This sounds perfect – I love the combination of fluffy pancake and sweet apples.
Looks delicious!! Can’t wait to try it.
This is like an excerpt straight out of my upbringing! My mom would also refuse the sugary, colorful cereals but would cave once a year. Love making these on the weekends for my kids. There’s something about the puff and immediate deflate that captivates them. 🙂
You had me at pancake. I’m a sucker for all things breakfast. Adding this to the “to-make” list.
I love the minimal amount of flour in this! I can see where you get your cooking style. 🙂
Mmm what a fabulous recipe!