Baked Apple Pancake

Perfectly puffed on the edges

This is an old favorite from The Yankee Kitchen radio show circa 1980.

I haven't made this in a while. My son Bailey reminded me about it after his recent train trip to New England. He and his aunt got to talking about how they loved it. And voila! It's back.

This recipe is meant to replicate the famous Apple Pancake of Bickford's fame - a restaurant I remember from my old stomping grounds in Brockton, Massachusetts back in the '70s. In this version from the Yankee Kitchen, the apples aren't baked into the pancake but rather cooked on the stove in a butter/cinnamon/sugar mixture, then poured on top.

This recipe serves 2.



Baked Apple Pancake

1 cup milk
2 eggs
2/3 cup flour
3 TB sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp. grated lemon zest
2 TB melted butter

Process all ingredients except butter. Pour melted butter into a 9" pie plate. Add the batter. Bake at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes until puffed and golden. Serve with sauteed apples. (Recipe follows.)

Awaiting the oven

Soft, chewy and buttery in the center

Sauteed Apples

2 cups Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced thickly
2 TB butter
3 TB sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon


Melt butter in skillet. Add remaining ingredients. Cook over medium heat until apples have softened. Pour over pancake after it has baked. Serves 2.

Naked Granny Smiths

Softened and syrupy

Easy to make and good to eat anytime

Wild blueberry cake

Once upon a time there was a mother who had a little girl. The mother loved to bake and the little girl loved to watch her bake.

When her mother would make cakes, the little girl would watch her mother measure the flour, leveling it by scraping the flour straight across the top of the measuring cup with a knife. The little girl learned what "creaming" meant - when butter and sugar is mixed up together to make a "creamed" mixture. Then, there was the step where you added the dry ingredients first, then alternated with the milk, and you always finished with the dry ingredients. Folding was very important, too. Folding was fascinating to watch. It wasn't really stirring. You sort of scraped around the edges of the bowl and turned the batter over, sort of like catching the air into the batter.


I am my mother's daughter. I love baking, too. And although it's not blueberry season, here is a delicious cake that's easy to make. And if you have a bag of Wyman's frozen wild blueberries handy, there's no reason not to make it right now.

Wild blueberry cake

½ cup butter

1 ½ cups sugar

½ cup sour milk (or ½ cup milk and 1 ½ teaspoons vinegar)

2 eggs

2 ½ cups flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

3 cups wild blueberries (if using frozen there’s no need to thaw)

Cream butter and sugar. Add milk and eggs and beat well. Sift flour and soda together and add to milk and eggs. Fold in blueberries – don’t skimp. If using Wyman’s 15 oz. size bag, use the whole bag. Bake in well-greased and floured 9 x13 pan at 375 degrees for about 40 minutes or until springs back when touched.