Apple Puff Pancake

This apple puff pancake is my copycat of the apple pancake at the Original Pancake House, and it bakes in one cast iron skillet. Tart Granny Smith apples caramelize in butter and brown sugar on the bottom of the pan, and a light batter puffs up high around them in the oven.

Depending on which friends I’m meeting and where we are, I go to the Original Pancake House in Park Ridge or Chicago, or one of the Walker Bros. locations. I order the apple pancake every time without even looking at the menu.

Growing up in Minnesota, our favorite breakfast spot was Pannekoeken, a Dutch restaurant with Delft blue everywhere you looked. When someone ordered a pannekoeken, the waitress carried it through the dining room held high over her head, yelling “Pannekoeken!” the whole way to the table.

On lucky days, my mom let me add cinnamon ice cream to mine. I never dreamed I could make one at home, and I was so wrong.

It took a lot of tinkering to get this recipe where we like it. I cut back on the sugar and butter I used in my first few tries, so it’s less greasy and easy enough for a weeknight. The eggs add protein, and there’s little enough sugar that we all feel good about eating it.

This is one of the easy apple recipes we make over and over every fall. I also now make Mini Apple Pancakes, which are just as tasty and another way to enjoy these yummy flavors in an adorable form.

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The Best Apples for Apple Puff Pancake

Granny Smith apples are my first choice. They’re tart, and they keep their shape in the oven instead of turning to mush.

If you can’t find Granny Smith, use another firm baking apple like Crispin or Braeburn. I’d never use Honeycrisp here, because the pancake needs that tartness to balance the brown sugar.

I give the same advice for so many apple recipes, whether it’s Granola Apple Crisp or Apple Pie Bread Pudding.

Core the apples before you slice them, which is much easier than digging out the seeds afterward. You can use an apple corer and a paring knife, or an apple slicer that cores and cuts eight wedges at once. Either way, you want 16 thin slices per apple, so cut each wedge from the slicer in half.

Apple Puff Pancake for Dinner

The restaurants serve apple pancakes for breakfast and brunch, but this is one of our favorite easy dinners. We put the cast iron skillet right on the table and serve it up like pie.

I’ll sometimes make bacon on the side, but it’s really its own breakfast for dinner and doesn’t need anything else. If breakfast for dinner is a regular thing at your house, try my Meatcakes next.

It works as dessert, too, especially when you add extra toppings. When I’m feeling especially decadent at the restaurant, I order a scoop of ice cream on top, though I did that a whole lot more in my 20s than I do now.

How to Make an Apple Puff Pancake

Turn the oven to 400 degrees, but don’t wait for it to preheat. Put the butter in a 12-inch cast iron skillet and set it in the oven to melt while you prep the apples.

Core the apples and slice them thin, about 16 slices per Granny Smith.

Take the skillet from the oven and immediately stir the brown sugar into the melted butter. Layer the apples over it, then sprinkle one tablespoon of sugar, 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon, and a dash of nutmeg over the top.

Put the skillet back in the oven and set a timer for 10 minutes. The oven will still be preheating, and that’s fine.

While the apples bake, whisk together the flour, one tablespoon of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, the nutmeg, and the salt in a bowl. Add the milk slowly, whisking the whole time and pulling flour from the edges toward the center so you don’t get lumps.

Stir in the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, whisking after each one. Keep whisking for two to three minutes until the batter looks foamy and airy, then let it rest.

When the timer goes off, take the skillet from the oven and pour the batter over the apples right away. Bake this skillet apple pancake for another 20 minutes, until it puffs up high around the edges and turns golden brown.

Slice and serve your baked apple pancake right away, while it’s still puffed up.

Is This the Original Pancake House Apple Pancake?

This is my copycat, not the restaurant’s recipe, but it’s as close as I’ve seen anywhere, and it tastes just like it. The Original Pancake House opened in Portland, Oregon, in 1953, and Walker Bros. is its spin-off here in the Chicago area.

Both restaurants use Granny Smith apples and finish the pancake with a cinnamon-sugar glaze. Mine has a little less caramel, which means I don’t feel guilty making and eating it at home.

What Is an Apple Pannekoeken?

Pannekoeken is Dutch for pancakes, and it’s the name the Dutch pancake houses in Minnesota and around the Midwest use for this oven-baked pancake. In the Netherlands, pancakes are big and thin and cook on the stove, but the Midwest version puffs up in the oven just like this one. If you grew up ordering an apple pannekoeken like I did, this is the recipe you want.

Do You Have to Peel the Apples for Apple Puff Pancake?

You don’t, and I never do. A traditional Dutch apple pancake keeps the peels on, and they soften as it bakes so each piece slices cleanly. You can peel them if you’d rather.

Can You Make Apple Puff Pancake Without a Cast Iron Skillet?

You really do need one. The heavy cast iron holds the heat, and the batter needs that hot pan to puff up. I use a 12-inch skillet, which is the right size for this recipe, and it doesn’t work in other pans, so please don’t try.

Why Didn’t My Apple Puff Pancake Puff Up?

If your pancake came out flat, you either didn’t beat the eggs well enough or your pan wasn’t hot when you added the batter. Whisk the batter until it’s foamy, and pour it over the apples the moment the skillet leaves the oven.

Why Did My Apple Puff Pancake Deflate?

You didn’t do anything wrong. That’s simply how this pancake works. Steam puffs it up as it bakes, and it slowly deflates as it cools, just like it does at the restaurant. Bring it to the table right away so everyone sees it puffed up first.

Can You Make Apple Puff Pancake With Other Fruit?

I haven’t tested other fruit yet, but a reader asked about frozen peaches, and I think they could work. Thaw them completely and pat them as dry as you can, then give them extra time in the hot pan so the liquid cooks off before you add the batter. You want the pan to look more like caramel sauce than soup.

Have you ever had an apple pancake? Did you know you could make them at home?

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