Hands down, my favorite breakfast is a whimsical, slightly sour, oven-baked creature that my mom used to make for me when I had sleepovers at our house as a kid. We called it Big Pancake; others know it as a Dutch Baby or German Pancake. In the morning I'd hear the blender going and know she was making the batter. About 45 minutes later, a gaggle of pajamaed girls would gather around the over and watch the pancake's showy, doughy display.
I started making these Big Pancakes by myself at an early age, and thirty plus years later, Big Pancake is still my go-to dish for big gatherings, holidays and lazy weekend mornings. You can serve a lot of people without a lot of effort, and everyone's jaw will drop as they witness how the pancake puffs and falls in the oven.
The ingredients are basic, the recipe is easily memorized, and it can be made in any oven-safe dish (cast iron skillet, pie dish, square or rectangular glass baking dish, roasting pan), so it's likely you're already armed with the right equipment.
Big Pancake is best served with fresh berries, a shake or two of powdered sugar and a spritz of lemon juice, or a bit of warm maple syrup.
Big Pancake (Dutch Baby)
Serves 4 to 6
2 large eggs
1/2 cup whole or 2% milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
To serve:
Lemon wedges
Powdered sugar
Berries
Pure maple syrup
Preheat oven to 425°F.
Whisk the eggs, milk, flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl, or whiz in a blender. Let the mixture stand for 30 minutes at room temperature.
Place the butter in a 9- or 10-inch cast iron skillet or glass baking dish. Place in oven until the butter melts. Remove the pan, swirling butter to coat the sides. Pour the batter into the pan, place the pan back in the oven, and quickly close the door. Bake until golden-brown on top, puffed in the middle, and the edges of the pancake have crawled up the sides of the pan, about 12 to 15 minutes.
Slice the pancake into wedges and serve with dusting of powdered sugar, berries and lemon juice, or just some good maple syrup.
Recipe Notes
- For something a little more composed, check out Faith's fruity riff on my Big Pancake method: a delicious Weekend Apple Pancake. Think Big Pancake plus Tarte Tatin. (Not a bad thought, right?)
(Image credits: Sara Kate Gillingham)
via Recipe | The Kitchn http://ift.tt/1kxTNoP
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I nearly jumped for joy when I saw that picture. I thought you knew the secret of Yorkshire Puddings!
As great as I'm sure the Big Pancake tastes, for another type of taste and as an accompaniment to a moan course, try leaving out the sugar and other sweet stuff and filling that sucka with lashings of onion gravy.
Yorkshire pudding should really be cooked in super heated muffin trays with hot oil in the bottom to enable them to rise like your Big Pancake. However, it is so hard to keep all the "holes" hot while you are trying to pour just the right amount of mix into each (too much and you will get a gooey mess in the middle with burnt edges, too little and the whole thing will burn to a crisp) that the cast iron skillet on top of a stiove sounds like the answer to my prayers.
BTW, as should be obvious by now, Yorkshire Pudding is not a dessert but a side to a mian course such as potatoes and in Yorkshire is even served as a starter with the gravy. In my more juvenile days I used to take great pleasure in seeing the non-Brit customers in Tea and Sympathy eat the Yorkshire Pudding as if were bread. Nothing wrong with that of course but you miss out on so much that way.
Another BTW, T&S is the only place in NYC that I have found can actually get Yorkshire Pudding right. The Irish pubs cannot do it. They tend to make what feels and tastes like stale hard bread.
12.01.05 10:10AMif my mom had a sister, i'd swear she was related to your mom
12.01.05 3:16PMthis is what we had EVERY single holiday breakfast my entire life
easter, xmas, t-day, every holiday, and i still love the bejesus out of it
she serves it generally with canned plums and powdered sugar
but, then, sometimes, she would make it much like jamie pup suggests above, as a savory dish for dinner with, say, slovakian mushroom gravy, or stew, or sauerkraut
mmmm... soo hungry
and so glad i inherited my gran's cast iron skillet!
What size skillet - I think I need to invest in one for this.
12.02.05 12:51PMWow! Someone other than my family knowing about the Dutch Baby! Promises of the mysterious "Dutch Baby" (muahahahah) was how I lured people to sleep over at my house when I was a child. This is a huge tradition in our family. We either sprinkle it with powdered sugar over butter or spread stewed fruit on it.
Being a poor college student, I found out that you can bake a dutch baby in almost any kind of pan, including a cookie sheet (the kind with edges). Expensive gourmet catalogs will sell you an "oven pancake" pan but you don't need it.
Veryveryvery important is to grab someone to peer into the oven while this is cooking. It makes these huge pancake bubble mountain things which look very impressive especially since they fall when they come out of the oven.
12.02.05 10:35PMdiana
12.03.05 5:46AMi took a look at the one i inherited from my gramma, and it seems to be about 12"
its really old, so it doesn't have any measurments
i included a link (click my name) for lodge cast iron skillets at broadway p-handler
you could probably get away with either the 10 or 12" jobbies
just be sure to season the pan properly and to maintain the seasoning by not washing it with water and keeping it lubed up with oil
it will be something to treasure and pass along to future generations if well cared for!
We call them "Popeye Pancakes." I have no idea where that name came from. We've always cooked them in individual servings, using good oven-safe bowls. But next time, I'm going to try the skillet method.
12.13.05 8:27AMTHE BIG PANCAKES ARE AWSOME THE WAY MY DAD MAKES THEM
02.04.06 7:34AMIan, that's what we called them, too, but my mom always made them in a cast-iron skillet.
02.27.06 9:27AMWhen I saw the photo I knew right away what it was. We love those pancakes - my mom used to make them, gave me the recipe and now I make them. They are delicious and so cool looking! I sometimes add pear or kiwi to the pancake before baking which is super yummy, too.
02.27.06 9:46AMDo they taste like pancakes?
07.16.06 11:45AMNanana:
Dutch Babies, to me, taste like a cross between pancakes and an egg custard. They're heavenly!
08.27.06 5:41AMDutch Babies have been a Christmas morning tradition for years. We make individual babies in four 7 inch aluminum frying pans. Then there are no arguments as to who got the largest piece.
01.31.07 8:30AMWe call a German Pancake in our household and it was
03.29.07 1:49PMone of the few things my Dad would make. He got the recipe from his Father, and I believe it came from the Settlement cookbook. He used and old enamel coated cast iron skillet, and he would butter the pan and put it in the frig over night. Our tradition was to load it with everything, butter, lemon, maple sugar and powered sugar.
Jamie pup, I thought the American version of Yorkshire pudding was the popover (something I adore stuffed with chicken salad). Dutch babies always reminded me of popovers, at any rate.
I saw dutch babies for the first time on Orangette. Definitely yummy.
12.02.08 1:53PMI love making Dutch babies one lazy Saturday mornings! I top it with frozen Maine blueberries, powdered sugar, and lemon juice. Always so yummy!
12.02.08 2:40PMWe have always called them simply Baked Pancakes. We love them. They were a Christmas morning staple thanks to my stepmom. We make them all the time at our house, usually using pyrex pie dishes. I use a small squarish corning ware dish to make a perfect sized pancake for my daughter.
12.02.08 3:35PMThis pan is my favorite for German Pancakes:
12.02.08 4:43PMhttp://ift.tt/1kxTMkU
I grew up knowing these as German Pancakes, but everyone else I know calls them Dutch Babies.
I like mine with fresh strawberries, but since those aren't in season for long, I make my own strawberry syrup/puree to use instead.
12.02.08 5:07PMWe always called them German pancakes too -- I think this is where "Dutch" (Deutsche) came from.
My batter is similiar:
2 eggs
2/3 C milk
2/3 C flour
It scales marvelously.
The key to good rising is to make sure the pan is adequately buttered. If the batter sticks to the walls, it won't rise well. Also, beat a lot of air into the batter.
I've used large muffin tins for individual servings. They come out similiar to a pop-over, but a little denser (eggier).
We like them with creamy Irish butter and homemade jam.
12.02.08 5:38PMthis looks really interesting and i'm not the best at baking but I am willing to give it a try.
Will the recipe cut in half fine, it's just my wife and I, and I don't want too big of one to test it with.
Any other tips for it?
Little confused on the butter part. Do i just plop the butter in the pan and then let it melt, or do i rub the butter all over it to coat the entire thing?
How about the time until golden brown, the first part? Approximation?
12.03.08 10:15AMAfter your pan is preheated in the oven plop the butter in it to melt in the hot pan. After it melts just swirl the butter around the bottom. The dutch baby will push the butter up the sides as it rises. yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
luv2cook
12.03.08 11:01AMjmorey - the recipe will cut in half no problem. Just make it in 1 pan, instead of dividing it in 2.
Put the pan in the oven while it pre-heats. You can either put the butter in once it's hot and swirl to melt, or just put the butter while the oven is pre-heating (that's what I do).
For 2 people I use a 9x9" glass dish and it works just fine. A 10" skillet also works.
This recipe says 12-15 minutes @ 425. I tend to do mine for 20 minutes, but I use a slightly different recipe. But I think 15 minutes will be safe.
12.03.08 12:42PMMy MIL makes these and they are wonderul. She serves them w/powdered sugar and a fruit compote that is dependent upon what is in season. Delicious!
12.03.08 8:56PMThis is yorkshire pudding (sometimes called batter pudding) (and is also the recipe for pancake batter which is exactly the same in England) just with some sugar added!
This is traditionally eaten in England as either a starter with gravy (to fill you up when there wasn't much meat coming for the main course) or as a side dish alongside sunday roast (you can't have roast beef without yorkshire pudding!).
Its usually only eaten sweet when used to make pancakes although in the North it would sometimes be eaten with jam.
It is my life-long comfort food - toad in the hole (or pigs in a blanket) is THE meal for a cold day!
12.04.08 8:10AMI was thrilled when I saw the pic -- I don't get out much -- because it brought to mind some of my favorite Christmases. I dated a guy years ago whose mother and I got along very well. She used to make this Christmas morning and gave me her recipe. I at first thought she made it to make fun of me -- I am dutch. So I am glad to hear it is referred to as a "dutch baby" by everyone.
12.04.08 2:01PMI made this for breakfast this morning and it was a hit! I served it with organic raspberries, powdered sugar, maple syrup, and a mimosa. OMG! It was so good. I made my husband and son come in the kitchen when I pulled it out to get some oohs and awes. I halved the recipe and it was fine. I also found a dutch baby cooking video that is really cute. They call it a puff daddy!
12.06.08 12:59PMI am so glad I saw this. I just made my dutch baby tonight for a cheap dessert and my baby's daddy and baby loved it. I sprinkled powdered sugar and spread a little cherry butter on. It was a great reintroduction to an old favorite tradition. Thanks!
12.07.08 12:39AMI just wanted to report that I made this for Saturday breakfast and it was DELICIOUS -- and so easy! It was so good that at my husband's request, we had it again on Sunday morning. I chopped up some thawed frozen strawberries and reduced them down to a sauce while the pancake cooked -- it was as good as any brunch at a restaurant. Thank you for the recipe!
12.08.08 11:10AMWe made something similar all during my childhood but called it German Apple Pancake.
The recipe is so simple: 1/4 cup flour per person, 1/4 cup milk per person, 1 egg per person and 1 apple per person.
After the batter is mixed we'd melt some butter in a big cast iron skillet and pour the pancake mix on top of the butter and let cook on the stovetop for a few minutes (gives the crust a wonderful butter flavor). Then into the oven: 10 min at 450 degrees, and then 15 at 375 degrees.
While it bakes, slice all your apples (no need to peel) and drop them in a saucepan with some butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. By the time the pancake is done the apples should be good and soft. The pancake comes out with a big puffed up crust and you pour the apples and their juice/syrup over it so it squashes down the middle (leaving the edges puffy and golden - more so than the variant in this post) and saturating the eggy middle with juices. Dust with powdered sugar to finish.
I now use the recipe to lure in friends and dates alike. It's so easy and it's SO delicious. Everyone we ever made it for was immensely impressed with it.
The longer baking time in this recipe gives the pancake a crispy crust (and frankly, a better appearance). Add shredded cheese to the batter, leave out the apples and instead place sausages on top of the wet batter for a psuedo toad-in-the-hole, savory pancake.
12.08.08 11:16PMFinally made this and LOVED it! So delicious, and so much easier than standing over a griddle. Thanks so much for the recipe!
12.09.08 3:46PMFor anyone counting calories, I was able to make this with a little more than half the amount of butter it calls for. Turned out fine.
12.10.08 8:23PMDutch Babies are one of my family's most favorite celebratory weekend breakfasts. Be it Christmas, a birthday, 4th of July... anytime of the year, we'll gladly come up with something to celebrate to enjoy a fluffy, buttery Dutch Baby.
While living in Italy, my apartment came equipped with a mini toaster oven. To take care of my Dutch Baby craving, I bought a few 6 inch loaf pans that could easily fit into the oven. The best part was watching the puffy pancake rise! Although much more dense than usual, the babies turned out perfectly each time. I covered mine with fresh berries, a slight swirl of good old fashion maple syrup and a dollop of plain yogurt on the side. YUM! So tasty.
12.11.08 11:28AMI make dutch babies for breakfast on Sundays throughout the year. Meyer lemons and powdered sugar ---heaven. There is just something about the color of the pancake and the flavor of the lemon that make me happy.
And, you can quarter this recipe-- one egg, 1/4 c flour and 1/4 c of milk-- and make a single size serving in a small ovenproof fry pan.
The most important thing the first few times you make this is to remember to put the pan on the back of the stove and leave it alone for an hour. The handle is red hot.
12.15.08 12:07AMSissy, another Minnesotan here. But I'm as surprised as you were to hear that Pannekoeken Huis is still around. I have a vague memory of having been at one somewhere in West St. Paul, way back in the early 80s. It was staffed by women in dirndle skirts and worried looks, and had dark paneled walls lined with Dutch kitsch.
This is what we have eaten for every Christmas and most Easter brunches for the past decade and a half or so. I use the recipe for Finnish Pancakes, from the Minnesota Ethnic Food cookbook (http://ift.tt/1kxTKcH). But y'all are right--German pancake, pannekoeken, Dutch Babies, sweetened Yorkshire puddings...they're all basically the same lovely, easy, eggy deliciousness.
I serve mine in the best of all possible ways: when I take the pancake out of the oven (I cook it all up in one big oblong enamel pan), I squeeze a fresh lemon over its billowy poufs. It deflates a bit. Then I slice big squares, and top each slice with preserved lingonberries and a spoonful or two of maple syrup, the good stuff. A side of thick cut bacon and oh yeah baby! It's Christmas!!
12.31.08 7:04PMDutch baby! that's the name!!! I've been trying to remember the name of these ever since I had them for breakfast during a stay in an Oregon b&b years ago! absolutely delicious!
cannot wait to try it!
01.05.09 7:27PMTo get it good and fluffy I usually put all the ingredients in the blender and let the batter whip up for 30 seconds. Then let it rest a little before going in the hot butter.
02.10.09 3:37PMmmm, bake till the edges are a good golden color.
One of my faaaaaaavorite breakfasts.
Mine came out flat :( It still tasted amazing (i love love love dutch babies) but it didn't rise on the sides :( It looked like a pancake and not a dutch baby.
02.12.09 10:24PMI've known this as the David Eyre pancake, and found the recipe in the NYT magazine:
06.15.09 4:59PMhttp://ift.tt/1miiQjK
It's sure to impress everyone, all the time!
I made this pancake with an apple pecan topping -- so good! Thanks for the recipe!
http://ift.tt/1miiQjN
12.29.09 1:17PMAs someone living in Rochester, Minnesota for a couple years now, I can say that Pannekoeken is still here. There are two in Rochester -- although as someone born in the 80s (and in Iowa) I can only say that there are no Dutch outfits for the wait staff. Good food, but aside from the Pannekoeken itself, same as Perkins, Dennys, etc (but probably better and cheaper). They DO sing and run out when they bring the Pannekoeken to you! It is fun to see, and a great place to take out-of-town relatives/friends.
P.s. back on topic, totally making this Big Pancake on my day off for New Years Day breakfast. Fiance will love it (i hope!)
12.29.09 2:41PMI still have not eaten a dutch baby, but I think I'll give it a whirl this weekend. And serve it with sauteed apples and pecans.
04.09.10 1:29PMI am surprised no one has mentioned the Original Pancake House restaurant yet. Undeniably, one of the highest quality "chain"s in the U.S.
04.09.10 2:56PMThey serve both a German Apple Pancake and a Dutch Baby, as they are indeed different things http://ift.tt/1kxTMRZ
Just as Yorkshire Pudding is a different thing precisely because it is savory.
I know the difference between all 3 and find it odd many people are calling them the same thing. I mean, same as the English Muffin and Crumpet thread, minor differences but they do exist.
Yes, we called this a German pancake although now my friends know it as "Charlotte's Grandma's Oven Pancake"
I think I'll make one this weekend! In my mother's old 12 inch cast iron skillet, uh huh!
04.09.10 3:28PMWecalways called this oven pancake, using only 3 eggs and no sugar, baking 15 min @ 450, and 10 @ 350. My sister and I would make one for Saturday morning cartoons starting at age 7 or so while my parents slept in, and I still make them at least once a month! The only possible topping is honey.
04.09.10 3:51PMEven simpler version of this delicious dish...
http://ift.tt/1miiQAd
04.09.10 4:19PM4-6 servings for each skillet?! It's more like 2 at my house.
04.09.10 4:56PMFor more "regular" pancakes, try this recipe for Saturday Morning Pancakes:
http://ift.tt/1kxTN8i
04.09.10 7:57PMThis looks awesome and now I know 'what's cooking' this weekend! I'm a Dutch baby myself and I have never heard of these. Can't wait to make them!
04.09.10 10:07PMI just made one yesterday and filled it with marscapone, and blueberry syrup with allspice! You can read the recipe for both on my blog!
04.10.10 1:36PMI tried making this with soy milk, and it didn't rise at all. Just a warning!
04.10.10 2:46PMI just made my first one last night (not this recipe, but the one from Poor Man's Feast) and it was really good. It was kind of like a non-meaty version of my mom's Yorkshire pudding. Yum! I used soy milk too...it rose quite a bit, especially around the edges, but it definitely wasn't the spectacle you evidently get with cow's milk. Tonight I'm going to try this version, topped with a little butter and honey. Cheap, easy comfort food. Gotta love it.
04.10.10 11:14PMJust wanted to check back in and say that I made this recipe tonight using soy milk, and I was most pleasantly surprised when it rose up into a huge golden puff. In case it makes a difference, I used plain/unsweetened/full fat soy milk.
04.11.10 12:51AMthis is AWESOME if you spread lemon curd on it while it's warm. sometimes, I put a nice slather of lemon curd on it and swirl a little raspberry jam through it. V. V. Tasty
04.11.10 2:25AMholy crap that looks good
04.11.10 10:16AMPannekoeken!!! We've always called it that in my family here in Minnesota. So good. My mom made a couple for Christmas breakfast last year and it was awesome.
04.11.10 11:18PMmy fav breakfast evah. i made a savory version for dinner a few weeks ago when i wanted something quick and didn't have any pasta. Swapped olive oil for butter, left out the sugar, added a little minced garlic to the olive oil, sprinkled with parm and rosemary. no leftovers.
04.13.10 4:18AMIt was fun to see this recipe and know that others loved it as kids. I heard the recipe on the Mike Douglas TV show in the early 70's. Some snooty food critic mentioned this FABULOUS dish, so much more elegant than pancakes or waffles. He made the recipe easy to remember because he said it was all about "halves and twos." Half cube butter, half cup milk, two eggs, half cup flour, powdered sugar. Mr. Snooty also said it was simple to double, triple...any number the ingredients for large groups.
Our house was built in the late 60's and the kitchen had a double oven; each oven had a window. My boys were four and six, probably, when I first made this dish. I don't know who named it, but our family called it "Magic Pancake" because the kids could sit on the kitchen floor and watch the pancake rise (sometimes REALLY rise) in the lower oven. No two pancakes have ever been the same.
It's still a dish we make every Christmas morning no matter where we are (if we're together). When my older son was engaged, one of the things his girlfriend said was, "You're going to have to tell me about this Magic Pancake I hear so much about." I've put my recipe in several local cookbooks (kids' cookbooks at school, my jobs, etc.).
Thanks for this one!
04.14.10 4:39PMI'm really surprised not to see a rising agent in this recipe
07.13.13 2:09PMI've made this many times and even adapted it to make a savory pancake with bacon, mushrooms and pearl onions. I even bought a 17" cast iron pan for when I double the recipe.
05.01.14 11:38AMIf memory serves I got the original idea here from you guys!
We make a Dutch Baby every few weeks for a weekend breakfast. It is possibly my husband's favorite breakfast and it really is just heavenly.
05.01.14 11:54AMMy dad's favorite request as well as the small muffin size version my mom calls German pancakes. Can't wait to go home and compare my recipes. Always love to improve upon what I have.
05.01.14 12:29PMLove these!
My version is similar to Mabith's with the butter, sugar & cinnamon sautéed apple slices, except the apple concoction goes right on top of the batter, in the pan, and bakes with the pancake. It still raises in humps, but the center tends to become rather like a baked custard with the edges and high spots crispy and savory.
05.01.14 12:59PMYes! Thank you for sharing this recipe. I love a dutch baby. I love that you can prepare the dry and wet ingredients the night before, and combine the morning of. I love the way the pancake rises unevenly, so your topping (syrup? sugar? butter? all?) can melt into pools of deliciousness in the crevices.
I enjoy mine with homemade orange sugar. http://ift.tt/1kxTL0g
05.01.14 1:25PM