Myria had talked about there being a pancake in her then-new cookbook that she wanted to try.  I like pancakes, though I’m not crazy about them but sure, I thought, why not?  Imagine my surprise when she placed in front of me a golden, puffed pastry that had more in common with a cream puff than with what I usually thought of as pancakes.  And there was something familiar about it too…

She served it with butter and syrup, the way a regular pancake is served, and I realized it was similar to something a local restaurant chain serves.  The restaurant refers to this as a German pancake and it is served with powdered sugar and lemon juice.  It also does a version that is filled with hot apple/cinnamon compote.  The minute I tasted it, I recognized another association.  My mother used to make this - only she served it with roast beef and called it “Yorkshire Pudding”.  On further reflection, I remembered that she also used to cook it in muffin tins once in a while, and serve the resulting popovers with butter and jam.  They were heavenly! 

But while my mother’s efforts were pretty good, Myria’s are perfection.

The recipe is simple:

German Pancake/Yorkshire Pudding

2 tbls butter or stick margarine*
1/2 c flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/2 c milk

Set your oven to 400ºF and place the butter or margarine in a 9” pie pan (we have had super results with the disposable aluminum pie tins - which can be used two or three times if they’re handled carefully and cleaned well - but any non-teflon pie pan will do).

Place flour, salt, eggs and milk in a bowl and mix casually.  I can’t stress this enough - if you over-mix this it will turn in to a sullen, leaden lump in your pie pan.  Stir only enough to acquaint all the ingredients with each other.

That last picture above is what the batter should look like after you’ve mixed things together.  It should be lumpy with bits of egg still discernible.  You don’t want a smooth batter - trust me on this :).

Put your pie pan (the one with the butter in it :) into the oven.  You want to melt the butter and pre-heat the pan.  When the butter is melted, remove the pie pan and swirl it gently so the sides get buttered too.  Then pour your batter in and put it back in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until the pancake is puffed (and it’s going to puff a lot) and golden brown.

*Don’t use the tub stuff here; there’s too much water in it.  Your pancake will wind up soggy and will stick to the pan.

Remove to a plate (it should just slide out of the pan) and serve immediately.

The secret to its success is three-fold - but they’re all simple things.

1.  Don’t overmix.  Leave it lumpy and ugly - remember how the ugly duckling turned out!
2.  Insure that the pan and the fat are good and hot when you pour in the batter - keep your oven mitts handy :)
3.  No Peeking!  Don’t open the oven door while this is baking or the cool air that rushes in will completely flatten your creation.

The beauty of this lovely, rich shell, is that it is neither sweet nor savory.  So it can be filled with anything your heart desires and is infinitely adaptable for almost any meal.  Myria takes a traditional approach, most often using powdered sugar and lemon juice on hers - sometimes with a little syrup.  I, on the other hand, tend to go all over the board.  Corned beef hash and a little cheese is excellent.  Just plain butter and jam is also wonderful.  Bacon and Welsh Rarebit is nearly orgasmic as are fresh strawberries and just a skosh of real maple syrup.

Oh, and while it won’t keep well for long, if you can’t finish your delectable repast, cover the plate with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for up to 24 hours.  Re-heat gently in the microwave and it won’t be too bad.

Bon Appetit!