Dutch Apple Baby with Blackberry Hoisin Bacon

Step 1

For the Bacon: Preheat oven to 500 degrees F. In a small bowl add, mustard, blackberry jam, Hoisin sauce, and 2 tablespoons brown sugar. Stir to combine.

Step 2

Place 10 slices of bacon on a parchment-lined baking sheet lengthwise. Pull bacon to stretch about half its original length (this helps with shrinkage during the cooking process). Don't allow the bacon to go over the sheet pan edges. Spoon about 1 teaspoon of jam mixture over each piece of bacon. Using a basting brush, spread the jam mixture to coat the entire side of the bacon. Flip the bacon over and repeat this process.

Step 3

Cover the bacon with an additional sheet of parchment paper. Place another baking sheet on top of the parchment paper.

Step 4

To cook, place pans in the oven and par-cook bacon for 5-6 minutes or until hot and bubbling but not browned. Remove from oven and set aside until ready to use. Reduce oven heat to 400 degrees F. Brown remaining bacon slices and crumble for garnish.

Step 5

For the Dutch Baby Batter: Peel and core apples. Cut them into slices. Then slice into halves and thirds (about 3 cups of apples).

Step 6

Cut butter into chunks and place in a deep cast iron skillet. Put the skillet into the oven for 3-4 minutes or until the butter is melted and the skillet is hot.

Step 7

In a small mixing bowl combine 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar with cinnamon and ginger. Remove the skillet from the oven. Sprinkle the bottom of the pan with about 1/3 of the sugar mixture.

Step 8

Carefully spread apples over the bottom of the skillet and sprinkle the remaining sugar over the apples. Put the skillet back into the oven and cook for 5-8 minutes to caramelize apples (you should be able to complete the next step while apples are caramelizing).

Step 9

While the apples are cooking, whisk together flour, the remaining tablespoon of sugar, salt, and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Gradually add milk, whisking constantly to avoid lumps. When the batter is smooth, beat in vanilla and eggs one by one. Beat by hand for approximately 2 minutes. Let batter rest for 5 minutes.

Step 10

Remove apples from the oven. Add one strip of bacon to the bottom of the skillet at a time trying not to overlap the pieces. Arrange in a star or spoke pattern so that when sliced each piece will have a slice of bacon cooked into the batter. It may be necessary to cut bacon to fit the skillet. Try not to go over the edge of the skillet to keep bacon from becoming too darkened while cooking. Pour batter over bacon and caramelized apples.

Step 11

Bake in the 400 degree oven for 20 minutes or center is set and the sides are golden brown. The pancake will puff dramatically while baking but fall within a few minutes after baking.

Step 12

Slice pancake into 6 pieces. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and bacon bites. Serve with blackberry or maple syrup.