Apples and walnuts and Brie and maple syrup on top of bread pudding pancakes? I’m making this a regular thing for my face.
It all started a couple of weeks ago when the husband and I were able to go out to breakfast sans bebe. We headed over to Colossal Cafe in St. Paul; he ordered the biscuits and gravy (always) and I hemmed and hawed and fidgeted and deliberated — it’s not like we get to go out to eat and have someone else make our breakfast every day, so the stakes were high — and finally settled on the house special, a short stack of flappers (a.k.a., yeasted pancakes) with an apple, walnut and Brie topping.
I think you and I both know I made absolutely the best breakfast decision ever.
It was true pancake nirvana. I melted into my seat with each bite of fluffy flapper. I tried to dab some of the buttery apple-walnut topping on my wrists (juuuuust kidding. Maybe). I wondered why I’d never thought in all my days to put Brie on pancakes before, because hot diggety that’s a good idea. While I was unable to finish the colossal plate (har har) before me, I did manage to polish off the entirety of the toppings, which I feel doesn’t even need justifying. You are my people; you understand.
Since then, I’ve been wanting to bring the recipe into my home kitchen. So when Cartwheel by Target approached me about creating a simple and delicious seasonal recipe using ingredients found in their slick savings app, I was oh-so-pleasantly surprised to discover that almost everything you need to make these pancakes can be found on Cartwheel. Huzzah!
It should come as no surprise to anyone that Target is basically my second home — I grocery shop there, I buy my household necessities there, I go there to look at pillows and trinkets and shoes I also suddenly need after I just go there to buy mouthwash. It’s one of my favorite places to shop in general. With the Cartwheel app, my experience is made even better; I can get discounts on hundreds of items for holiday cooking and gift-giving, and I can stack the coupons on top of other Target coupons, manufacturer coupons and Weekly Ad savings. The digital barcode on my phone makes my junk drawer a little more clutter-free of clipped coupons, too.
So how does it work, exactly?
1) First, download the app.
2) Then, create an account.
3) Once you’ve created an account, search for items you’re looking to save on: for example, if you type in “Simply Balanced” in the search bar, your favorite items within that brand that are discounted will show up in the results.
4) Choose your discounts; to start, you can add up to 10, but with each use of the app in stores, you’ll rack up more slots for savings.
5) Show the digital barcode to the cashier at checkout at your Target store. Watch the savings magic happen.
That’s just what I did when I went to Target to get the fixins for these pancakes. And then I went home and made them immediately. Because when you’ve got pancakes like these on deck, there’s no time to waste.
Obviously you may have noticed the pancakes are a little different than their muse in that these are bread pudding-based. It was a last-minute stroke of inspiration I had during my regular droolfest in the bakery section at Target (wait, you don’t do this, too?). Take & Bake country white rolls were acquired, cubed and added to the batter. This would also be delicious with my apple bread! It was also an experimental approach to add some extra flavor, density and texture to the pancakes, and the mission was most certainly accomplished.
I topped a stack of those bread pudding flappers with that glorious apple and walnut mixture sauteed in butter, sugar and cinnamon, and then a slice or two of Brie cheese. Aaaaaaand a generous drizzle of that pure maple syrup, of course. And then I ate it. I ate it all. And it was glorious.
And now I’m off to refill my Cartwheel queue with more ingredients for these pancakes (plus maybe some necessities, like mouthwash or that cute monogrammed mug I’ve been eyeing). To get saving on your own holiday baking, gifting and everyday (read: pancake making) needs, download the Cartwheel app here.
Apple, Walnut and Brie Bread Pudding Pancakes
Ingredients
For the pancakes:
- ¾ cup whole wheat flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 5 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 white rolls, or 7 ounces of any hearty white bread, crusts removed, cut into ½-inch pieces
- 2 cups milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
For the topping:
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and chopped
- ½ cup raw walnuts
- dash ground cinnamon
- dash granulated sugar
- dash salt
- Brie cheese slices
- maple syrup
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to combine. In a separate large bowl, add cut-up roll pieces, milk, vanilla and cinnamon; stir to combine. Let sit 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until roll pieces begin to fall apart and get mushy.
- Add flour mixture, beaten eggs and melted butter to bread pudding mixture; stir to combine. Let sit another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until mixture is thickened slightly.
- Heat a large griddle or skillet over medium to medium-low heat (about 325 degrees F). Lightly brush with butter. Pour 1/4-cupfuls of batter onto hot griddle. Cook 2 to 3 minutes until bubbles form on top of pancakes and edges are dry; flip and cook another 2 minutes until golden brown on both sides. Transfer to a plate; repeat with remaining batter, adding more butter to griddle as needed.
- Meanwhile, make the topping: Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add butter, apples, walnuts, cinnamon, sugar and salt. Cook, stirring often, 5 to 7 minutes until apples are softened.
- Top pancakes with apple-walnut mixture, slices of Brie cheese and a drizzle of maple syrup.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!Disclosure: I received compensation from Target for recipe development purposes. All opinions are my own.
Wow these are to die for! I just love that brie you added in there.