{autumn recipe} german pancake with apples & cinnamon

APPLE CINNAMON GERMAN PANCAKE

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

• 2 granny smith apples, cut into slices (I left the skin)
• 1/4 cup turbinado raw cane sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour (GF: use brown rice flour)
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 4 tablespoons salted butter

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400° F. Make sure the oven rack is in the middle of your oven.
2. In a small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon.
3. In a medium bowl, combine eggs, salt, flour, milk, and vanilla extract and beat until batter is smooth.
4. In a 10" ovensafe pan (I used Calphalon) or a cast-iron skillet melt butter over medium heat, tilting pan to cover sides. 
5. Add apples and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon mixture. Stir and then remove from heat (if you let the apples cook too long they will become very soft/mushy in the oven).
6. Pour prepared batter over the apples into the baking pan. 
7. Place pan in preheated oven and bake approximately 20 minutes or until puffed up and lightly browned and knife comes out fairly clean (it may puff irregularly in the center); remove from oven (the pancake will begin to deflate).
8. Serve warm, cut into quarters.

To Make This Gluten Free:  I replaced the all purpose flour with the same amount of Bob's Red Mill Brown Rice Flour.  It didn't puff up quite as much as regular flour, but was still really yummy.  I've made it a few times now and Ryan always comments on how delicious it is!

Notes:  I left the skin on the apples and liked it a lot.  However, traditionally you'd peel the skin off.  I've also tried this recipe with a little more of the cinnamon sugar mixture for when I have a sweet tooth, but another option is just adding powered sugar on top. Most of the time it's plenty sweet without anything extra though.

I also like to add whole milk ricotta cheese (a 1/2 cup or so) and just add a little less milk. It makes this dish a little more rich and filling. 

Hope you enjoy this lovely autumn treat! I'm using apples or pumpkin something in almost all my recipes the last couple weeks and it feels so festive!!  I also have been loving all the colorful leaves and crisp air around here so I snapped a couple pics of my front yard.  Happy autumn days to you!! XO

*The graphics added to my pics (other than the first one) are from Studio Calico's Underground Digital Scrapbook Kit Stamps and Underground Background Cut File by Paige Evans.