Apple Season is well underway in Virginia! At Colonial Gardens, we are big fans of using fresh, seasonal ingredients in all of our cooking. While we are crazy about pumpkin spice (keep an eye out for future recipes!), nothing can replace a sweet, juicy, Virginia apple in our hearts.
In light of our love for all things apple, we are sharing our signature Fall Apple Pie Pancake Recipe with our followers! This recipe features all the things we love about a yummy, warm fall apple pie mixed with our delicious fluffy pancake recipe. This is a guest favorite and we’re so excited to share it!
Colonial Gardens Signature Apple Pie Pancake Recipe
Breakfast Expert Tip! The secret to that fluffy, perfect pancake consistency is not over mixing and then giving the batter time to sit and rest after you mix it together. We give our batter at least 30 minutes to rest before cooking. So the first thing to do is to mix up the batter.
Batter Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 6 tbsp white sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp cloves
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 sour cream
- 3/4 cup whole milk or half & half
- 1/2 stick melted butter
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Start by mixing up your dry ingredients. Place flour, sugar, powder, spices, and salt into a mixing bowl and mix well by hand until combined.
Breakfast Expert Tip! If you live in a place with high humidity and have lumps in your flour and sugar, you may want to sift your ingredients. You don’t want to over-mix later, so removing lumps now will keep your batter smooth!
In a separate bowl, combined the wet ingredients. Don’t add all the milk/cream. Start with 1/2 cup. Place butter, eggs, sour cream, milk/cream, and vanilla in a bowl and mix until completely combined and homogeneous. Then add the wet ingredients to the dry. Using a spatula, fold ingredients together. If the batter is too dry, add more milk until the batter is the desired consistency.
Breakfast Expert Tip! The batter consistency is completely up to you! If you want thin pancakes, add more milk for a thinner batter. If you want thick, fluffier pancakes, add less milk to keep the batter thick.
Allow the batter to sit for at least 30 minutes.
Now to put the apple to our apple pie pancakes!
Choose whatever apples you have in season. Start by peeling the skin off of the apple. This is where your creativity comes in! The apples are going to be arranged in a design you will see on top of the pancakes after they’ve been cooked. You could choose to make rings or pretty slices arranged in a star or pinwheel formation.
Whatever design you choose, make sure you slice the apples almost paper thin. This is important! If the slices are too thick, the batter wont cook underneath and the pancakes will have sections of wet, uncooked batter. YUCK!
Now it’s time to cook and assemble!
Preheat a griddle pan, cast iron skillet, or frying pan to medium heat. Place butter on the pan and allow to melt, but not brown/burn.
Breakfast Expert Tip! Use butter to cook with! This will given the pancakes an extra rich flavor as well as help with the golden color. Beware, butter burns at a low temperature so keep an eye and wipe out the pan if it starts to burn.
Arrange the apple slices in the design of your choosing on the pan first. Keep in mind that the size of the pancake will be a bit bigger than the design itself.
After the slices are arranged on the pan, ladle some pancake batter over the slices, making sure the batter completely covers and surrounds the slices. Let cook for 3-5 minutes, until the batter is starting to dry around the edges and the top starts to set. Using a thin metal spatula, carefully flip the pancakes. Let the other side cook for another 2-3 minutes until cooked through. Both sides should be golden brown and the apple slices deliciously caramelized.
Continue until the batter and apples are all used up!
To serve, place 3 pancakes on a serving dish and garnish how you desire.
Some of our favorite garnishes are maple syrup, apply pie syrup, toasted or spiced pecans, or whipped cream!
This recipe is so warm and inviting! These apple pie pancakes will make seasonal fresh apples the centerpiece of your next fall breakfast!
