German Apple Pancake. After a good night’s sleep, who is not eager to start the day with a temping breakfast—an English word referring to “breaking the fasting period of the previous night.” It’s a morning ritual that defines the day’s first meal and is often referred to as “the most important meal of the day.” Each country favors ingredients that create breakfast specialties that leave us with memorable flavors and visual feasting.
Growing up in Austria as a young kid, I remember the Germanic breakfast made from a cornucopia of breads and rolls (the Germanic culture has over 300 regional varieties of breads and over 1,200 types of rolls). The breads were served with butter, jam, sliced ham, cheese, cured meat spreads, sausages and cold cuts, hard and soft-boiled eggs, fruit, and, my beloved liverwurst.
Image 1: Google image -German breakfast
A variety of breakfast items
Later, while living on and off for over twenty years in Fribourg and Lausanne—both in the French part of Switzerland—breakfast consisted of delectable pastries such as croissants (sometimes filled with almond paste), brioche, pains au chocolat and pains aux raisins, tartines with butter, jam, honey or hazelnut chocolate paste, accompanied by the traditional café (similar to the Italian Espresso), café au lait, or a chocolat chaud. Let me not forget the refreshing yogurt Parfait (a French influence) or the iconic Muesli dish (a Germanic influence) as the staples of a typical Swiss breakfast, the latter being hardy with memories of its therapeutic origin.From my favorite Parisian Boulangerie Pâtissier Tour Eiffel
The list of breakfast dishes appears endless, especially when one includes non-Western delicacies that make the day’s first meal memorable. As I love to eat pasta on an almost daily basis, I was delighted to find during multiple trips to India, the traditional savory dish from the southern region called Lemon Sevaiya. While there are many variations of this classic Indian breakfast, I favor noodles rather than rice as the main ingredient. It’s easy to make, has a wonderful deep flavor which perfumes your kitchen with a sense of being in an exotic country.
Of course, I cannot forget the breakfast staples where I currently live. The US has such a variety of egg dishes accompanied by sausage and bacon, yogurt, cereal (hundreds of choices), waffles, muffins, biscuits and gravy, hot oatmeal, and grits to name a few. Each dish reflects indigenous American culture and regional staples made available—and adjusted to US taste—by the influx of immigrants during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Image 3: Google images -international breakfast items
Who has not benefited from these ‘new’ dishes. We indulge in delectable and wonderful New York bagels with Lox and schmear, Polish cheese blintzes and Slavic latkes, French toast and New Orleans beignets, Italian frittatas and layered casserole dishes called cheese strata, Tex-Mex huevos rancheros and breakfast burritos, and even California’s eggs benedict with sliced avocado? While all of these, and many other items, are found on our breakfast and brunch tables at home, they also constitute the basic offerings in restaurant chains accompanied by colorful pictorial menus, a ferocious marketing tool to sell an abundance which will exhaust your appetite.
Image 4: Google images -breakfast menus from left to right: Denny’s Signature Slam, IHOP World Famous, and Waffle House
The fast food industry has also capitalized on the importance of breakfast, and remains a strong competitor to the rural culture and urban institutions of the mom and pop eateries, diners, and restaurants. Decades of rebranding burgers to breakfast offerings, McDonald’s successful creation of the Egg McMuffin and McGriddle remains the iconic breakfast food followed, in no order, by Burger King’s Croissan’Wich, Dunkin’ Donuts popular coffee and baked goods, Sonic’s California burrito, and Denny’s Grand Slam breakfasts.
Add to this list the boutique breakfast pizza with egg and bacon by Wolfgang Puck. I always wonder when will Domino’s Pizza follow suit? Fast food offerings have become part of America’s iconic road stops yet I hope that they will never replace the comfort of a wonderfully homemade breakfast.
How to make a German pancake
A favorite breakfast dish of mine are pancakes in all shapes and forms with a touch of dark Vermont Maple syrup, sprinkled with powdered sugar and fresh berries. The other day, I was craving pancakes, and rather than using a ready-made mix, I remembered a German Apple Pancake—a mouthwatering breakfast that was so light and delectable that I could have eaten the entire dish. The basic ingredients are simple: flour, eggs, milk, and an apple.
Contrary to cooking a typical pancake, where the batter is added to a buttered skillet and cooked slowly till golden on both sides, this dish is baked in an old fashioned cast-iron skillet.
The completed baked dish which is then inverted, drizzled with butter and a sprinkle of powdered sugar
You begin by sautéing the apple slices, adding some brown sugar, and a sprinkle of nutmeg. When the apples are tender, pour the batter over it and bake until puffed and browned on the edges. A last touch to make this dish special is to invert the pancake—like a French Tarte Tatin—revealing the caramelized apples. Then drizzle butter and lemon juice with a dust of confectioner’s sugar on top.
Conclusion
Voilà, the dish is ready and the presentation needs no additional skill. The object d’art can now be devoured. Bon Appetit.
To replicate this dish, please visit German Apple Pancake.
