Colonial Apple Tansey

🍎 Cast-Iron Apple Tansey

💛 QUESTION OF THE DAY:

If you could sit down at your family table with one ancestor, who would it be and what would you ask them?

I have always loved recipes with a story behind them, and this one may be one of my favorites.

Recently, I was reading through the America 250 Cookbook, a collection of historic and regional American recipes, when I came across an old-fashioned dish called an Apple Tansey. Originally brought from England and adapted by early American colonists, it is somewhere between a skillet custard, a baked pancake, and a frittata.

What makes it especially meaningful to me is that my own family came from England around 1650 and settled in Virginia. As I stood in my kitchen reading about this humble dish of apples, eggs, milk, and butter, I couldn’t help but wonder if one of my ancestors may have made something very much like this over an open hearth centuries ago.

There is something comforting about preparing a recipe that has traveled through generations. It reminds us that while the world changes, gathering around the table remains one of life’s greatest blessings.

🍎 Cast-Iron Apple Tansey

Ingredients:

• 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled and thinly sliced

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• 4 large eggs

• ½ cup milk (whole milk, 1% milk, or unsweetened almond milk)

• 1 tablespoon sugar or 1 tablespoon Swerve Granular

• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg

• Pinch of salt (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.

2. Melt butter in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat.

3. Add apples and lemon juice and cook for 5–7 minutes until slightly softened.

4. In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, sugar or Swerve, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.

5. Spread apples evenly in the skillet.

6. Pour the egg mixture over the apples.

7. Transfer skillet to the oven and bake for 20–25 minutes, or until puffed and lightly golden.

8. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Optional:

Dust lightly with powdered sugar or powdered Swerve, drizzle with a little maple syrup, or serve with a spoonful of vanilla yogurt.

💛 Blessing

May we never forget the stories carried to our tables by those who came before us. May our homes be filled with gratitude for their sacrifices, joy in the meals we share today, and hope for the generations who will gather around our tables tomorrow.

💛 Helene

🌿 Rosemary Thyme

Fall in Love with Home Again 🏡