German Apple Pancake
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This easy German Apple Pancake is made with thinly sliced apples, warm cinnamon, and a simple custard-like batter for the perfect fall breakfast. Baked in one skillet, it puffs up beautifully in the oven and makes your kitchen smell amazing.
Recipe At A Glance: Apple Dutch Baby
This easy baked apple pancake is a delicious way to use fresh apples and makes a beautiful breakfast without standing over the stove flipping pancakes.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 25–30 minutes
Total Time: 35–40 minutes
Servings: 6–8
Cook Method: Baked in a cast iron skillet
Flavor & Texture: Tender, custardy center with golden, crisp edges and sweet, cinnamon-spiced apples.
Difficulty: Easy. The blender does most of the work, and everything bakes together in one pan!
Fall is one of my favorite times of year, especially when our apple orchard starts producing more apples than we know what to do with.
This apple Dutch baby is one of my favorite ways to use them. Instead of making individual pancakes, you simply pour the batter over thinly sliced apples and let the oven do the work.
The batter bakes up light and fluffy around the edges with a soft, custardy center, while the apples become tender and sweet underneath.
It’s simple enough for a Saturday morning but special enough for a fall brunch or holiday breakfast. Serve it warm with maple syrup, honey butter, or maple whipped cream for an extra special treat. Pair it with a pumpkin spice latte.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
One pan: Everything comes together in one skillet, so there’s no standing over the stove flipping pancakes.
Perfect for apple season: This is a great recipe for using the fresh apples from your orchard, including apples that aren’t perfectly pretty.
Breakfast or dessert : Serve it with maple syrup for breakfast or add whipped cream or ice cream and turn it into dessert.
German Apple Pancake Ingredients:
Apples: I love using a mixture of apples from our orchard. Sweet and tart varieties work beautifully together.
Butter: Butter gives the pancake rich flavor and helps create those golden, crispy edges.
Cinnamon and nutmeg: Warm cinnamon and nutmeg pairs perfectly with the apples and gives this apple Dutch baby its classic fall flavor.
Eggs: Eggs are what give this baked pancake its light, custardy texture and help it puff in the oven.
Flour: All-purpose flour works best for a light, tender Dutch baby. You could also swap for fresh milled soft white wheat.
Milk: You can use your favorite milk. The batter works well with dairy or dairy-free milk.
Sugar: A little natural sweetness complements the apples without overpowering them.
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Recipe Modifications and Variations
Use different apples: Try a combination of sweet and tart apples for more complex flavor. Or use pears.
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Make it dairy-free: Use your favorite dairy-free milk and dairy-free butter or coconut oil.
Change the toppings: Try maple syrup, powdered sugar, honey butter, or maple whipped cream.
How to Make Apple Dutch Baby
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 400°F. Place your cast iron skillet in the oven while it preheats. Thinly slice the apples. You can peel them if you prefer, but I usually leave the peel on when using apples from our orchard.
Step 2: Place the butter in the hot skillet and return it to the oven for about 5–10 minutes, or until the butter has completely melted.
Step 3: Add the batter ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. I like to start with the wet ingredients and add the dry ingredients last so the flour doesn’t gunk up at the bottom. You can also mix the batter in a bowl with a whisk. Mix until the batter is smooth and well combined.
Step 4: Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven. Arrange the thinly sliced apples over the melted butter.
Step 5: Pour the batter evenly over the apples. Carefully place the skillet back into the oven.
Step 6: Bake for 25–30 minutes, or until the edges are puffed and golden brown and the center is cooked through.
Step 7: Serve the German apple pancake warm with your favorite toppings.
Amy’s Expert Tips
- Heat the pan first. A properly heated skillet helps create those beautiful, golden, crispy edges.
- Add wet ingredients to the blender first. This helps keep the flour from getting stuck and gunky at the bottom of the blender. The wet ingredients help everything blend together smoothly.
- Slice the apples thinly. Thin slices become tender during the baking time without making the pancake watery.
- Don’t worry when it falls. Dutch babies naturally puff dramatically in the oven and deflate as they cool. That’s completely normal!
Apple Dutch Baby FAQs:
An apple Dutch baby is a large baked pancake made with an egg-based batter and fresh apples. It has crispy, golden edges and a soft, custardy center and is baked in the oven rather than cooked one pancake at a time on the stovetop.
You can use almost any variety of apple. I love combining sweet and tart apples, especially when using apples picked fresh from our orchard.
No! You can leave the peel on if you prefer. Just wash the apples well and slice them thinly.
That’s completely normal. A Dutch baby puffs up from the steam and eggs while baking, then naturally settles as it cools.
Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat individual portions in the oven or microwave. It is best served fresh and warm.
A 10-inch cast iron skillet is my favorite pan for making a Dutch baby because it holds heat well and helps create those crispy, golden edges. However, you can also use another oven-safe skillet or baking dish. Just make sure the pan can safely go into a 400°F oven, and keep in mind that the size and material of your pan may affect the baking time.
More Apple Recipes:
- Sourdough Apple Bread
- Simple Apple Syrup With Brown Sugar
- Sourdough Apple Muffins
- Sourdough Apple Crisp
If you try this recipe and love it, I would love it if you could come back and give it 5 stars! Tag me @ablossominglife
German Apple Pancake
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 large apple sliced
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Place cast iron skillet in the oven to preheat.
- Thinly slice the apples. Place butter in the skillet and put the skillet in the oven for 5–10 minutes, until the butter is melted.
- Make the batter in a blender or bowl with a whisk until smooth.
- Carefully remove the skillet from the oven and arrange the apple slices over the melted butter.
- Pour the batter evenly over the apples.
- Bake for 25–30 minutes, until puffed, golden, and cooked through.
- Serve warm with maple syrup, honey butter, maple whipped cream, or your favorite topping.
Notes
- Add wet ingredients to the blender first. This helps keep the flour from getting stuck and gunky at the bottom of the blender. The wet ingredients help everything blend together smoothly.
- Heat the pan first for golden, crispy edges.
- Slice apples thinly so they become tender during baking.
- Don’t worry when the Dutch baby falls after baking. It is completely normal.
These look tasty. I love the twist on pancakes you’ve given to this recipe. Pinning. Thanks for sharing at Snickerdoodle.
Yum! These look divine. I would like to invite you to link up with us at Family Joy Blog Link Up Party this week. Sunday-Wednesday. Check us out