Fluffy pumpkin pancakes topped with sweet, caramelized apples is the perfect holiday breakfast – whether you are celebrating Thanksgiving weekend, Hanukkah or just having guests for brunch! Thanks to WhatsGood for sponsoring this recipe post featuring seasonal ingredients from local farmers delivered right to my doorstep. Get $25 off your first order on WhatsGood with a special coupon code listed below.
Has your local farmers’ market closed for the season? Do you wish you could still get farm-fresh produce, eggs, dairy and more from local suppliers? I know I do. My beloved Oak Park Farmers Market closed at the end of October and I would be missing shopping from all my favorite vendors, like Finn’s Ranch, except for one thing: I have discovered WhatsGood.
WhatsGood is an online marketplace that connects customers directly with hundreds of farmers, fishers, artisans, and chefs, increasing access to local, sustainably sourced food. With WhatsGood, you can do all your farmers market shopping in one place – even from different vendors – and have it delivered to your doorstep in about an hour, or pick it up at a designated location. The goal? To empower local food communities because localized food systems are necessary for a more sustainable future.
How does ordering on WhatsGood work? It’s simple. First, create a free account on the website or download the WhatsGood app. Choose from 1-hour delivery or pickup or schedule your order for another day if that is more convenient. You can shop directly from multiple farmers and food producers in your area. You’ll find all sorts of locally made and grown products including fresh produce, meats and dairy, prepared meals, pastas and breads, desserts, drinks, and even dog treats.
WhatsGood‘s partner farms and businesses deliver to the company’s aggregation hub the morning of delivery to ensure that customers receive the freshest quality products! And no giant warehouse means no food waste. Just fresh, local foodstuffs going from producer to consumer.
My most recent order included some of the following: local dairy products, including milk, butter, yogurt, and sour cream; farm-fresh eggs; locally grown fruits and vegetables such as apples, pumpkin and sweet potatoes; frozen blueberries – great for smoothies and baking over the winter – and maple syrup from a local producer. All delivered directly to my door!
Why do I take the extra step of ordering from WhatsGood when all of these products are available at a regular grocery store? It’s the same reason that I shop at farmers markets when I can. Locally grown food has the best flavor and I feel better knowing where my food is coming from – not halfway across the globe but from right here in Illinois and neighboring states. I also want to support local farmers and food producers in my area who are doing everything right and help ensure that my local food system thrives.
WhatsGood is available in many states and metro areas, not only Illinois – because I know that my readers are located all over the country. Indeed, WhatsGood is available in Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin. That’s a big swath of the country! So, I hope that you have access to WhatsGood where you live as I do here in Chicago. If not go to the website and let them know, you want to know what’s good!
And WhatsGood has a special offer for West of the Loop readers: $25 off your first order! Use the coupon code 4ACCC5 at checkout to receive this special offer.
I have partnered with WhatsGood to develop this recipe for fluffy pumpkin pancakes with caramelized apples as a festive breakfast or brunch for the upcoming holiday season. Nearly all of the ingredients for the pancakes came from WhatsGood, meaning that they were grown or produced in my area. The knowledge that these ingredients traveled only a few miles to get to my house makes these pancakes taste that much sweeter.
The recipe begins with instructions to make homemade pumpkin purée from a sugar or pie pumpkin, which you can do in advance. I love to make my own pumpkin purée for fall recipes. You can truly taste the difference when you use fresh pumpkin versus canned. Plus, did you know that most canned pumpkin puree is actually — gasp! — squash? This recipe makes more pumpkin purée than you need for the pancakes, so you can use the remainder for other baked treats this holiday season. (Like maybe a pie?)
To turn a cute little pumpkin into a jar of ready-to-bake pumpkin purée, you need to go through a few steps. First, bake the pumpkin in the oven. Then, scrape out the cooked flesh, and mash or blend it. Lastly — and this is the key — strain it to remove excess liquid. (I picked up this tip from the King Arthur Flour blog.) That will make your purée thick enough to bake with.
The pumpkin purée adds an earthy sweetness, as well as a gorgeous saffron color, to the pancakes. The other secret ingredient is a dollop of sour cream, which helps make the pancakes extra fluffy and brings a bit of a tangy flavor. The pancakes are pretty fantastic on their own – with a generous pour of maple syrup, of course. But the caramelized apple topping is what makes this brunch classic extra special and worthy of a spot on your holiday table. Pumpkin and apple is the ultimate fall combination, don’t you think?
This is an extra busy holiday week for Jewish families like mine because not only is it Thanksgiving, but Hanukkah starts on Sunday night. My college student is coming home for the holiday and we have family in from out of town. In other words, it is a full house!
Not only do I have to think about feeding everybody a fantastic Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, but there are plenty of other meals this week to think about as well. At least I know that one breakfast will be extra special with these pumpkin pancakes with caramelized apples – made with the best quality, locally grown ingredients from WhatsGood. Don’t forget to get $25 off of your first order with the coupon code 4ACCC5.
Happy Thanksgiving and Hanukkah everyone!
Ingredients
- 1 sugar or pie pumpkin
- 2 apples, peeled and sliced
- 2 TB butter
- 3 TB brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 TB granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/4 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. kosher salt
- 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. ginger
- Pinch each nutmeg and allspice
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup pumpkin purée
- 1/2 cup milk, preferably whole milk
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 4 TB (2 oz.) melted butter
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- Maple syrup for serving
Instructions
- To make the purée, preheat the oven to 400. Remove the stem from the pumpkin, cut it in half, and scrape out the seeds. Fit the halves into a baking dish, cut sides down, and add a 1/2 inch of water. Cover tightly with foil and bake until very soft, 45 minutes to 1 hour.
- When the pumpkin halves are cool enough to handle, scrape out the flesh and mash with a fork, or for a smoother texture, purée in a food processor.
- Strain the purée by placing it in a colander set over the bowl. Place a plate on top of the purée and place something heavy, like a can, on top of the plate. Allow the liquid to drain from the purée for at least one hour. (May be done up to one week in advance.)
- Set aside 1/2 cup of the pumpkin purée for the pancakes. Transfer the remaining purée to a clean jar or airtight container. (The extra purée can be refrigerated for up to one week and frozen for up to three months.)
- To make the caramelized apples, melt the butter in a heavy skillet over medium heat. When the butter is almost melted, add the brown sugar and stir. Add the apples and toss to coat with the butter-sugar mixture. Cook the apples until they are softened and caramelized, tossing occasionally, about 9 minutes. Set aside.
- To make the pancakes, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices in a large bowl.
- Whisk together the eggs, pumpkin purée, milk, sour cream, butter, and vanilla in a medium bowl until smooth.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir with a fork until they come together and all the flour is incorporated, but do not overmix.
- Preheat a nonstick griddle or large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until a drop of water will sizzle on it. Turn the heat down to medium.
- Use a ladle to pour 1/4 cup of batter onto the hot pan. Use a spatula to spread the batter out if it is too thick or give the pan a shake to spread out the batter. (You can make up to three pancakes at a time depending on the size of your pan or griddle.)
- Cook the pancakes until bubbles appear in the batter and do not immediately close up, 3 to 4 minutes. (You can also check the underside to make sure it is brown but not burnt.)
- Flip the pancakes and cook until the second side is golden brown and the pancake is cooked all the way through. Repeat with the remaining batter.
- Serve the pancakes with the caramelized apples and maple syrup
Full disclosure time: WhatsGood sponsored this post and I received compensation for my work. All opinions expressed herein are entirely my own.
