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    Home / breakfast / Baked Pancake with Pear and Cardamom

    Baked Pancake with Pear and Cardamom

    Published Nov 12, 2010

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    slice of baked pancake
    The end of summer always comes as a bit of a shock. I'm not talking about the lack of beach days, road trips or forest hikes - I'm a spoiled Californian, after all, and can enjoy these activities nearly year-round.

    No, I'm talking about breakfast.

    cardamom seeds
    There is a time of the year, usually in late October or early November, where yogurt, fruit and granola simply stop being appealing. The 'last chance' peaches sit, neglected and rotting, in the airing cupboard. The jar of Saint Benoit yogurt remains in the fridge, untouched. And the granola jar has long run dry.

    For someone who spent her first 12 years of life eschewing breakfast (until I read in Sassy magazine that doing so can actually make you gain weight), I certainly give it a lot of thought these days. (Chuh, I don't want to get fat!)

    egg shells in a carton
    So what does one make on a chilly fall morning for a quick breakfast?

    Well, lately I've been simmering oatmeal with an apple grated into it. But that's not particularly exciting, now is it? (Still, I may bore you with it in a later blog post.)

    If you're not in a rush, though, you can have this glorious baked pancake puffed and ready to eat in less than an hour.

    pear halves
    The other day I was seduced at Rainbow not by a cute produce worker (sadly), but rather some slender and fragrant Japanese pears. Their skin was sticky to the touch, and they smelled of tropical fruits, like guava or passion fruit. I came upon this Deborah Madison recipe, which I've been wanting to try since I purchased the book seven years ago, and mixed up the batter. I lovingly sliced the pears, and with much anticipation, tasted one-

    slices of pear in a bowl
    -and realized my error! It was a secret asian pear - tasty, but crisp and almost watery; certainly not a pear you would want to bake with. I guess the 'Japanese' bit should have tipped me off, but in my defense, they looked nothing like the apple-round 'asian pears' one usually meets in the fall.

    pears being cooked in a pan
    But I made the pancake thingy anyway, and despite the lack of 'buttery' (as the recipe calls for) pears, it was still awesome. Dramatically puffed from the oven, it was a sight to behold. The barely sweet batter encased lightly-caramelized pears flecked with freshly ground cardamom. The crusty brown edges made a satisfying contrast to the delicate interior, and despite my greatest fears, the pears tasted tender and, well, pear-like.Drizzled with a bit of warm maple syrup, it felt decadent and nourishing all at once.

    batter being poured over pears
    I compared clafoutis to an oven pancake, so it probably won't be particularly helpful when I compare the texture of this oven pancake to a clafoutis. But I'm gonna do it anyway.

    This is like a breakfast version of clafoutis. Where clafoutis is rich and sweet, this batter contains milk, rather than half and half, and no sugar (2 tablespoons flavor the pears, but the batter itself contains none.) Clafoutis puffs a bit, but not nearly as much as this bad boy. Clafoutis would be offended if you deigned to pour maple syrup over it, but this pancake begs for it shamelessly.

    pancake after baking with powdered sugar on top
    I casually studied Traditional Chinese Medicine for a time (I did live in Santa Cruz, after all), and learned that baking foods in the oven makes them not only hot in temperature but warming to the body, having been slowly infused with heat. Whether you buy this or not, turning on the oven undeniably warms up the house. It is said that pears benefit the lungs, important during flu season, and cardamom, a warming spice, aids digestion and increases spleen chi. (I won't go into all the smack they talk about sugar, eggs and dairy, though.)

    See? Even Chinese medicine agrees - this is an ideal breakfast for fall. It may not be quick enough to make before work, but it is simple enough to throw together on a leisurely bojon morning.

    baked pancake in a skillet
    And nearly as virtuous as a granola bowl.

    baked pancake with pear on a plate

    For more skillet recipes:

    • Summer Veg Crustless Quiche
    • Über Apple Upside-Down Cake
    • Apricot Cherry Clafoutis
    • Chocolate Cherry Skillet Blondie + Vanilla Bourbon Frozen Yogurt {Gluten-Free}

    *Bojon appétit! For more Bojon Gourmet in your life, follow along on Instagram,  Facebook, or Pinterest, purchase my gluten-free cookbook Alternative Baker, or subscribe to receive new posts via email. And if you make this baked pancake recipe, I’d love to know. Leave a comment and rating below, and tag your Instagram snaps @The_Bojon_Gourmet  and  #bojongourmet.*

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    Baked Pancake with Pear and Cardamom

    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    These fruit pancakes are the perfect breakfast or dessert!
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 35 minutes
    Total: 45 minutes
    Servings: 4 servings.

    Ingredients

    • 3 tablespoons butter
    • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 4 eggs
    • 1 cup whole milk
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 2 - 3 medium, buttery pears, ripe but firm, cut off the core and sliced 1/4 - 1/2" thick
    • 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
    • juice of 1/2 lemon
    • 2 tablespoons sugar
    • powdered sugar for dusting (optional)
    • maple syrup for drizzling

    Instructions

    • Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400º. Place the butter in a 10" cast iron (or other oven proof) skillet and put in the oven to melt.
    • Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl, make a well, and add the eggs. Whisk to combine, adding the milk little by little until the batter is smooth. Whisk in the vanilla and about two-thirds of the melted butter. Set aside.
    • Heat the skillet with the remaining butter over a medium flame, and brush some of the butter around the rim of the skillet. Toss in the pears, cardamom, lemon juice and sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pears are tender and the sugars are beginning to caramelize, about 10 minutes.
    • Pour the batter into the hot pan over the pears and place in the oven. Bake until golden and dramatically puffed, as though trying to escape from the pan, about 25 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar and cut into wedges. Drizzle with maple syrup and serve immediately.
    • Leftovers, should there be any, reheat beautifully in a toaster oven in 5 or 10 minutes.

    Notes

    Adapted from Local Flavors.
    Nutritional values are based on one of four servings.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 348kcalCarbohydrates: 43gProtein: 10gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 192mgSodium: 456mgPotassium: 269mgFiber: 3gSugar: 20gVitamin A: 620IUVitamin C: 5.3mgCalcium: 110mgIron: 2mg
    Making this? I'd love to see!Tag your snaps @The_Bojon_Gourmet and #bojongourmet!

    Baked Pancake with Pear and Cardamom

    Adapted from Local Flavors

    Makes 4 servings

    3 tablespoons butter
    3/4 cup all-purpose flour
    1/2 teaspoon salt
    4 eggs
    1 cup whole milk
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    2 - 3 medium, buttery pears, ripe but firm, cut off the core and sliced 1/4 - 1/2" thick
    1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
    juice of 1/2 lemon
    2 tablespoons sugar
    powdered sugar for dusting (optional)
    maple syrup for drizzling

    Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400º. Place the butter in a 10" cast iron (or other oven proof) skillet and put in the oven to melt.

    Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl, make a well, and add the eggs. Whisk to combine, adding the milk little by little until the batter is smooth. Whisk in the vanilla and about two-thirds of the melted butter. Set aside.

    Heat the skillet with the remaining butter over a medium flame, and brush some of the butter around the rim of the skillet. Toss in the pears, cardamom, lemon juice and sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pears are tender and the sugars are beginning to caramelize, about 10 minutes.

    Pour the batter into the hot pan over the pears and place in the oven. Bake until golden and dramatically puffed, as though trying to escape from the pan, about 25 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar and cut into wedges. Drizzle with maple syrup and serve immediately.

    Leftovers, should there be any, reheat beautifully in a toaster oven in 5 or 10 minutes.

    fork cutting into baked pancake

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. pheebes says

      November 15, 2010 at 7:00 pm

      Thanks so much for the lovely Saturday breakfast idea. Without pears or cardamom on hand I went with a few honey crisp apples and some nutmeg and cinnamon. The leftovers were gone by 5pm! I will definitely have to try with pears and cardamom next time. Thanks again!

      Reply
    2. Sue says

      November 15, 2010 at 10:58 pm

      I canned pears this fall, they are still quite firm so I'm hoping they will work for this recipe. It is absolutely beautiful, makes me want to dig right in!

      Reply
    3. Darlene says

      November 18, 2010 at 11:20 pm

      Oh Yum!!!! Gonna try this soon, even with summer on its way down under!

      Thanks so much for sharing the recipe.

      Reply
    4. kimmiebee says

      November 20, 2010 at 12:01 am

      ummmm....lovely! this looks great to make and share with some guests this weekend!

      Reply
    5. Joelle says

      November 22, 2010 at 2:45 am

      Yum! I made this with apples since that was what we had and it was delicious. So easy and so gratifying to watch it puff up so nicely. Can't wait to eat the leftovers for breakfast at work tomorrow. My coworkers are going to be jealous.

      Reply
    6. alanna says

      November 22, 2010 at 4:39 am

      Thank you all for your sweet comments! Pheebes and Joelle - I'm so glad you liked it! Sue - I'm sure your home canned pears would work beautifully; you probably don't need to saute them much at all. Cheers!

      Reply
    7. kimmiebee says

      January 11, 2011 at 11:03 pm

      finally made this with my new pan from Christmas! :) turned out delicious! I also have the book with the original recipe, but appreciated your notes and pictures tremendously! thanks so much! yum oh yum!

      Reply
      • Alanna says

        February 18, 2013 at 8:13 pm

        That's fantastic, Kimmiebee - thanks!

        Reply
    8. Emily Betzler says

      February 17, 2013 at 8:34 pm

      I knew this was going to be good but not THIS good! I made it with 100% whole wheat flour because I couldn't find the white all-purpose. Sometimes using whole wheat makes the end product taste a little funny or do something you weren't expecting but I think it worked well. It didn't make a concerted effort to escape from the skillet but it still puffed nicely and the whole wheat flavor lent itself nicely to the pears! Definitely going on my list of favorite breakfast dishes to whip out and impress people with!

      Reply
      • Alanna says

        February 18, 2013 at 8:14 pm

        I'm so glad you liked it, Emily! Good to know whole wheat flour works so well. Thanks for the comment, and happy cooking. :)

        Reply
    9. Mini says

      June 04, 2013 at 11:19 pm

      I can't wait to try this. Looks simple and fab. I am going to try to make this as gluten free as possible.

      Reply
      • Alanna says

        June 05, 2013 at 1:56 am

        Thanks, Mini! Please let me know how it comes out - I've been wondering how a GF version would work. :)

        Reply
    10. Todd Chance says

      January 27, 2014 at 6:02 pm

      Thanks for the recipe! Was a lovely 'snowed-in' brunch treat with coffee.
      T.

      Reply
      • Alanna says

        January 27, 2014 at 7:15 pm

        So glad to hear it - thanks, Todd!

        Reply

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    I'm Alanna, a recovering pastry chef-turned food photographer, stylist, videographer, and award-winning cookbook author. The Bojon Gourmet is a celebration of the sweet, savory, and occasionally boozy recipes that I create in my San Francisco kitchen.

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