Savoury ripped pancake with peppered apricots

Kaiserschmarrn, the Austrian sweet dish in a savoury form with freshly ground bread spices.

This is a recipes from my newest cookbook from Chef Alexander Herrmann. It was one of my Christmas presents. Looking through it, I used several of this years christmas cards to stick them between the pages to remind me to cook a couple of recipes. This one is the first one. Afterwards you will need your dishwasher, it takes a lot of preparation dishes. But it is worth it.

First of all, you have to make the breadspice. Freshly ground is the best. Use a spice grinder and sieve the coarse pieces out later. The aroma is wonderful.

Using dried apricots, it is wise to soak them in hot water for a while before using them. That makes them a lot softer and juicier.

recipe for 2:
for the batter:
3 medium size eggs
50 g all purpose flour
100 ml milk
2 tbsp double cream
1 tsp ground bread spice
2 pinches dried majoram
ground black pepper
salt

2 tbsp butter
1 small shallot
4 slices smoked bacon
1 tsp icing sugar

for the apricots:
2 tbsp apricot jam
2 tbsp soaking water
80 g dried apricots
fresh ground coarse pepper

for the dip:
2 tbsp creme fraiched
zest and some lemon juice
pinch of sugar
parsley

Separate the eggs. Beat the egg white with salt to stiff peaks.
Mix egg yolks with the ingredients for the batter. Fold the egg whites in.
Preheat the oven 180 C

In a small casserole, heat apricot jam and soaking water and add the quartered apricots. Cook for 3 min and ground black pepper over them, set aside.
In a wide pan toss in the cut up bacon strips and let them go crispy. Add the thin sliced shallot.
Take both out of the pan and set the pan aside for later.

In a second large pan, best ovenproof, melt the butter and pour in the pancake batter. On medium heat give it 2 min. Get the pan into the oven on middle and let it cook for 10 min.
Turn it over on a chopping board and rip or cut into pieces.

Use the bacon pan and heat it up with the icing sugar, let it caramelize. Add the pancakes pieces and brown them on both sides, add the bacon and onion mix.

Serve on a large plate with the peppered apricots, the dip and some fresh parsley.