MONDAY RECIPE POST - DUTCH BABY MADE FOR BREAKFAST ON WEDNESDAY-1/28/25

Gregg sent me a text with this recipe. He found it on Instagram and there was a video of a young lady putting a Dutch Baby together. That link is here. He had never heard of a Dutch Baby before and I suggested we make it soon. I said let's have it for breakfast the next day, which we did (the 28th Jan). 

Very easy! You mix all the ingredients in a blender. 

We didn't have an iron skillet or an oven-proof frying pan but did have a round, small-ish Dutch Oven, which served well. Probably you can see how prettier this Dutch Baby is in the flatter skillet (seeing more of the puffed-up effect) but ours turned out great. 

Dutch Baby:

4 eggs, 

1/2 cup milk, 

2 tablespoons maple syrup or sugar

1/2 cup flower

Pinch of salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 stick of butter (4 tablespoons)

Equipment: cast iron skillet or as in our case, a Dutch Oven.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. 

In a blender, put the eggs, milk, maple syrup or sugar, flour, a pinch of salt and vanilla extract. Blend until combined. This doesn't take long, about 15 to 30 seconds, but you be the judge. 

Add half a stick of butter (4 tablespoons) to a cast iron skillet and place in oven to melt. (When you take it out it is going to be incredibly hot, so don't forget to wear your most durable oven mitts.) 

Once butter is melted, carefully pour your batter in the center of the skillet. It will spread out and you won’t have to worry about greasing any further. Put in the oven for 20 (our oven runs cooler so 22-23 minutes for us). 

When done, carefully take it out and leave for a couple of minutes. Cut into pie sections to serve and enjoy. The sides puff up beautifully but expect it to deflate as it cools.

Dust powdered sugar and top with a fruit compote, whipped cream, maple syrup or any favorite topping. We ate ours topped with pineapple, blueberries and maple syrup. 

I expect many of you have eaten these Dutch Babies before, but this was the first time that we had made one ever. We intend to make it again and am adding it to my collection.  A 10 out of 10 from both of us and above all, very easy to do.

Pro tips for blending:

Liquid first! Always add the milk and eggs to the blender first, then dry ingredients (flour, salt) on top. This prevents flour from getting stuck to the blades.

Avoid over-blending: if you are making thick pancakes, over-blending can develop too much gluten, making them rubbery or tough.

Let it rest: for the best texture, let the batter rest for 15-30 minutes after blending. This allows bubbles to settle and the flour to fully hydrate, resulting in more tender pancakes.

The following is the full address to the Instagram account, for you to copy and paste if you prefer that to the link above.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DT3YL3LDpc_/?igsh=M2FheHA4ZmxkYjhr

Why is this oven-cooked pancake called Dutch Baby?

The term 'Dutch Baby' originated in the early 1900s at Manca's Cafe in Seattle, Washington. 

The name is believed to be a mispronunciation or 'Americanization' of the German word 'Deutsch' (meaning German) by the owner's daughter, rather than having any actual origin in the Netherlands. 

It is based on a German pancake dish known as Pfannkuchen. 

The name arose from a confusion between 'Deutsch' (German) and 'Dutch'. 

Manca's Cafe operated in Seattle from the 1900s to the 1950s, and popularized the term and reportedly trademarked it in 1942. 

The term 'baby' is believed to refer to the smaller, individual, or miniature version of the pancake that the restaurant served, according to some interpretations.

Thanks for looking and have a great day. 

Bon Appétit!