It must have been arrogance. There is no other explanation. I had read countless discussions of why biscuits had fallen flat—literally. But I didn’t think it would happen to me, even though it was my first attempt at biscuits. No, I thought I had beaten the game. I had acquired White Lily flour you see, the supposed secret to perfect biscuits. All I had to do was follow the recipe on the back of the bag, and my biscuits would be wonderful.
Not so much.
I know that everyone says “breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” And some people write entire books and blogs, just about breakfast. But I must confess: I’m not a regular breakfast eater. I have nothing against the meal mind you. It’s just that I’m really not that hungry until a few hours after I wake up, and by that time, I’m at work and it’s easier to wait for lunch time to roll around. Someone once suggested that I just wake up earlier. That suggestion was a non-starter; as much as I love food, I love sleeping more.
In stark contrast to myself, Tania is a breakfast lover. She eats breakfast pretty much every day, and it’s usually the same thing: oatmeal with bananas, cinnamon, Splenda, and vanilla. Woe is it to the one who gets between her and her oatmeal; there are very few things that could tear her away from a bowl of hot oats. If there is one thing that could do it however, it’s a dish that she calls “apple pancake.”
I’ve written at length about my own family food traditions. Apple pancake is one of Tania’s. Most commonly referred to as a Dutch Baby, sometimes as a puff pancake, and occasionally as an oven pancake, the apple pancake is akin to a large popover. If done properly, it will tower above the pan in which it is cooked.
Pie are Round 