Winter meets spring in strawberry-orange compote

Winter and spring are battling it out for dominance. We know spring will win eventually, but right now, as a blustery storm yanks new green leaves from the trees, it seems winter is determined to overstay its season.

Indoors, I have piles of winter oranges still from our Washington navel tree, along with some gorgeous early-spring strawberries. Can these two work together for breakfast? Indeed they can, in a quick fruit compote that pairs beautifully with a baked German pancake, which in turn gets a flavor boost from fresh orange zest.

If you've never baked a German pancake (also called a "Dutch baby"), it's a puffy marvel, similar to but sweeter than a Yorkshire pudding. It's preferably cooked in a cast-iron pan. The ingredients are mostly liquid, with a minimal amount of flour. The key is to have the eggs and milk at room temperature. The batter is mixed in a blender, and poured into hot butter in a hot pan. Twenty minutes in a hot oven and it's puffed, golden and ready to serve.

This recipes uses four oranges total. To achieve the "supreme" segments for the compote, peel or cut away all the orange peel and pith from the  orange. Then, holding the orange over a bowl to catch any juice, cut the segments out between the membranes.

Baked German pancake with strawberry-orange compote

Serves 2 to 4

Ingredients:

For the pancake:

3 large eggs, room temperature

3/4 cup half-and-half or whole milk, or 2 tablespoons sour cream and enough milk to measure 3/4 cup

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Zest from one large orange (save the rest of the orange for the compote below)

1/4 teapoon salt

Pinch of nutmeg (optional)

2 tablespoons butter

For compote:

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Zest and juice from 1 large orange

2 tablespoons maple syrup or agave syrup

"Supreme" segments from 3 large peeled oranges (including the one zested for pancake)

2 cups sliced strawberries, plus more for garnish

Confectioner's sugar, for sprinkling, optional

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In a blender, or a medium bowl using an electric mixer, blend the eggs, milk, flour, sugar, zest, salt and nutmeg (if using) until fully blended and smooth. (Tip: If using a blender, be sure to add the eggs and milk first. Putting flour in first makes it difficult to blend thoroughly.)

Set batter aside until ready to cook. (Batter benefits from resting for a bit.)

Once the oven has reached 425 degrees, you're ready to cook. Place a 10-inch cast-iron pan on the stovetop, turn heat to medium-high, and after 30 seconds add the 2 tablespoons butter. It should foam and start to turn color. Swirl it to cover the pan bottom.

Immediately pour in the pancake batter, and place pan in the oven. Bake for 20 minutes; pancake should be puffy and golden brown. Remove and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar, if desired.

While the pancake is baking, make the compote: In a nonstick saucepan, heat the granulated sugar, orange juice and zest, and maple or agave syrup. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Reduce heat to medium. Add the orange segments to the thickened sugar mixture,  and stir to thoroughly incorporate them. (Add a little extra juice if the mixture seems too thick at this point.) Finally, gently stir in the strawberry slices, and cook until the strawberries just start to become warm. Strawberries turn an unappealing color if cooked too long, so don't walk away from the pan.

Remove from heat and scrape the mixture into a serving bowl or syrup pitcher. Add a few strawberry slices on top for garnish if desired.

The easiest way to serve the pancake (unlike the top photo) is to cut it into wedges, place on warmed plates, and pass the compote at the table.