Baking and Books

German Apple Pancake with Vanilla Whipped Cream & Raspberries

31 CommentsSaturday • March 31, 2007 • by Ari

Passover is just around the corner so we’re eating as much chametz as possible. For breakfast today: German apple pancakes with fresh vanilla whipped cream and a sprinkling of ruby raspberries. Isn’t it pretty? As far as this baker is concerned, an entire week without flour or grain products is easier to bear if you have memories of luscious meals like this to dream about (and look forward to).

German apple pancakes are surprisingly easy to put together and are sure to become a family favorite. After sauteing tart apple slices in foamy butter you sprinkle them with cinnamon and sugar, then add the pancake batter directly to the pan and finish the cooking process in the oven. What emerges some ten minutes later is a full-bodied, scrumptious pancake with caramelized apple slices embedded in the top. Cut into quarters then garnish with a generous dollop of fresh vanilla whipped cream and raspberries.

German Apple Pancakes
From The Williams-Sonoma Collection Breakfast Book.
Ingredients: Serves 4
Required Equipment: An oven safe frying pan

• 5 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon fleur de sel (fine sea salt). You can use kosher salt also.
• 1 1/2 teaspoons unsalted butter
• 2 large, tart apples, peeled, cored, and cut into wedges 1/2 inch thick. (We used Granny Smith apples.)
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 cup fresh raspberries
• Fresh whipped cream, recipe below.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. (Also, if you are making the whipped cream put the mixing bowl you’re going to make it in into the freezer.)

In a blender, combine the eggs, the vanilla, and the 1/2 cup granulated sugar and blend until combined, about 5 seconds. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt and mix until smooth, about 10 seconds more. The batter is now going to sit while you do everything else, allowing the bubbles from the baking powder to dissipate and resulting in a denser pancake.

Place a 10-inch ovenproof, nonstick frying pan over medium heat and add the butter. When the butter has foamed and the foam has subsided, add the apples and saute, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4-5 minutes. Sprinkle the apples with the cinnamon and the remaining 1 tablespoon granulated sugar. Stir together and saute until the apples are glazed and the edges are slightly translucent, about 2 minutes longer.

Spread the apples evenly in the frying pan and pour the batter slowly over the top, so that the apples stay in place. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the bottom is firm, about 8 minutes. Transfer the pan to the oven and cook until the top of the pancake is firm, about 10 minutes longer.

Remove from the oven, invert a flat serving plate over the frying pan, and then, holding the pan and plate together, invert them together and lift the pan off. Be careful: the pan will be very, very hot!! Cut the pancake into 3 or 4 wedges and transfer to individual plates. Place a dollop of vanilla whipped cream on top, scatter with a few raspberries, then serve immediately,

Fresh Vanilla Whipped Cream
Ingredients:

• About 3/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 tablespoon granulated sugar
• Scant half teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Combine all the ingredients in a chilled mixing bowl. Mix on high speed with a hand-held mixer until stiff peaks form. Enjoy!