A Breakfast to Impress

You may have noticed "Egg Puff" on my breakfast menu fairly regularly. This is a family favorite. It is basically a baked pancake. Many ethnic groups have different names for it - you may have heard of German Pancakes or Dutch Babies. My first exposure to this lovely breakfast treat was when I was in college in Minnesota. There was a restaurant called Pannekeoken where the wait staff dressed in traditional Dutch outfits and yelled Pannekeoken (doing their best to use a Dutch accent) as they brought it to the table. It made for a rather lively breakfast environment. Little did I know just how easy they are to make.

Years later I came across my first recipe for this special breakfast item when I worked for YouthWorks! The president's wife's name was Nan and she had a recipe for "Nanakeukens" that we made for the students (and their leaders) in mass quantities - 10 Tblsp butter, 5 cups of flour, 5 cups of milk, 20 eggs. It was always one of our most popular breakfasts and fairly easy to make. I scaled down the recipe and made it for my family a few times, usually in a large 9x13 baking pan. It wasn't until I got married that my husband gave me his mother's "Egg Puff" recipe - using a cast iron skillet. I believe the story is that she found the recipe from a well known Milwaukee establishment in the Milwaukee Journal, or maybe she asked the chef for the recipe - I can't remember exactly. But it is so easy to remember since it is basically equal portions of egg, milk and flour that we can make this "fancy" breakfast anywhere!

I've made this Egg Puff with both peaches and apples, both are delicious.  Just like most pancakes the options for toppings are endless. The plain version is just as good in my opinion and it is always fun to see the pancake puff up at the end of baking.

This post is part of Real Food Wednesday. Check out other Real Food Recipes, here.

Bon appetitt!

Egg Puff

Ingredients

• 2 Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Milk
• 1/2 Cup Flour (I typically use half whole grain and half all-purpose, but a white wheat works fine by itself)
• 1 Pinch of Salt
• 2 - 3 Tablespoons Salted Butter
• 1 Dash of Nutmeg (or Cinnamon)
• 1 Fresh fruit, sliced (optional)
• 1 Sucanat, Turbinado or Brown Sugar (for fruit option)

Directions

1. Preheat oven and cast iron skillet to 425 degrees.
2. While oven and skillet are preheating, combine milk and eggs and mix thoroughly.
3. In a separate bowl combine flour and salt. Pour liquid ingredients into dry ingredients and stir just to combine. Be careful not to over mix or pancake will not puff well and texture will be tough.
4. When oven is ready, carefully remove HOT skillet and melt butter in pan, making sure sides of the pan are well coated with butter.
5. Pour batter into pan, sprinkle with nutmeg and return to oven for 12-15 minutes. Pancake will puff up and should be browned on the edges. Serve with maple syrup and/or fresh fruit.
6. If using fresh fruit, instead of preheating the cast iron skillet, heat the skillet over medium heat and add butter along with sliced fruit and brown sugar. Cook until fruit is softened and coated with "caramel" mixture. Add freshly grated cinnamon and/or nutmeg. Then continue with Step 5.
7. Note that this only feeds 1-2 people. We make two in our house, I've started using two cake pans at one time so that we can all eat together. But as my preschoolers get older, I can see a need for making at least three.

Prep Time: 10 min Cook Time: 15 min Ready in: 25 min

Egg Puff courtesy of Jamie Del Balso.

If you don't already have a cast iron skillet, I highly recommend purchasing one. They are great to have in the kitchen! And for egg puff, it makes the best crispy edges.