Dutch Baby Recipe
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A Dutch Baby, sometimes called a German pancake, is a sweet popover recipe served as a pancake. The Dutch Baby makes a simple recipe the whole family loves.
Years ago, well before Little Buddy was even a sparkle in our imagination, my husband and I traveled to Europe for a few weeks exploring. It was truly the trip of a lifetime for us and one that we’d saved for years to be able to take, even though we had a strict budget for each night’s stay and for meals and souvenirs.
My husband’s sister and her husband went with us on our trip and we laughingly named it, Bart’s European Econotour. I could go on and on about bullet holes through the windows in the first room we stayed in while in London and scary offers for uses of rooms in Venice, but I think you get the picture. It was budget-friendly and one of the best trips of our lives.
We visited Great Britain, France, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, and Germany.
While in Germany, we stayed in a small bed and breakfast. When I say small, I mean small. The bed and breakfast had two rooms for rent and our room was situated over the kitchen. We’d wake up to the smell of sauerkraut and wurst in preparation for the steady traffic of patrons throughout the day. But, we were also greeted with the smells of pretzels, sweets and breads cooking from the restaurant as well. The mingling of smells sounds odd as I write it, but it definitely made enough of an impression that I remember it well still.
This Dutch Baby recipe immediately makes me think of those few days above that restaurant and leave me wondering if we might be able to visit there again someday. It sure would be fun to take our son with us although I think we might want to skip some of more colorful spots we encountered on the first trip. For now though, I’ll just continue to share some of the delicious foods we enjoyed there.
A Dutch Baby is perfect for breakfast, but works great as a breakfast for supper idea, too. Ready and on the table in about 20 minutes, it is an essential recipe at my house.
Dutch baby pancakes come together quickly since you simply add the ingredients to your blender and blend on high speed until the batter thickens and begins to bubble a bit on top. While your batter is blending, you melt your butter in a skillet in the oven as it preheats. Once your batter is ready, you pour the batter into the skillet with the melted butter, put it back into the oven for about 18-20 minutes and watch it pop up in the skillet as it bakes.
Once it has turned golden brown, you remove it and quickly serve it with a light dusting of powdered sugar, fresh berries or sautéed apples, and a bit of warm maple syrup, if you like. Whatever you decide to serve it with though, just be sure to work quickly as it deflates as soon as you remove it from the oven. You definitely don’t want to deprive your family or friends from seeing the Dutch Baby in it’s full glory!
Here’s my Dutch Baby recipe. I think you’ll love it as much as we do!
Dutch Baby Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons (42 g) butter
- 3 large (150 g) eggs
- 1 cup (227 g) half and half, or heavy cream or whole milk
- 1 teaspoon (5 g) vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup (60 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon (0.6 g) kosher salt
- 3 tablespoons (36 g) granulated sugar
Optional toppings
- confectioners’ sugar
- fresh berries
- sauteed apples
- maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425º F. Add butter to medium skillet and place into oven as it preheats to melt the butter.
- While butter is melting, add eggs, half and half, vanilla, flour, salt, and sugar to a blender. Blend on high speed until the batter thickens and bubbles begin to form at the top of the batter.
- Pour batter into the melted butter in the skillet. Place into the preheated oven and bake for 18-20 minutes, until it has puffed up on the sides and they have begun to turn golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and serve quickly with any of the optional toppings as it deflates quickly.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
It’s been over a decade since I’ve had a Dutch Baby and I don’t recall them being so moist! I was reviewing various recipes and saw someone’s comment here about your recipe being more custard-like versus dry. While I haven’t met a Dutch Baby I didn’t love, I recall they were more on the dry side… this was a welcome surprise!!! My kiddos loved them as well. I might try 1 less TBSP of sugar next time, and then down to just 1 TBSP of sugar after that and see if they’re all still fans (and I believe they will be). The powdered sugar on top will hopefully add enough sweetness for our taste. I wanted to follow the recipe exactly the first time though. I used heavy cream as our liquid. If anyone is on the fence, try it!!! I’m curious to know how they would rise if fruit was inside the batter like another person commented? I may have to experiment…
Erica, I’m so glad you liked these Dutch baby pancakes. I haven’t tried adding fruit to the batter. Let me know if you try it.
I use this recipe all the time, this morning I wanted to try another recipe to see if there was a difference, there was. The other recipe was dry and not as custard like. This recipe will be the only recipe I use for rich baby pancake. Thank you!
I’m so glad this recipe works so well for you, Melody!
I’m 65 now. I. Started eating these at age 12 when a neighbor would come over to cook breakfast for me on Saturday.I think he had a little crush on me. He was one of the nicest boys I knew. Very sweet. He would also take me down the street to visit his grandmother,and aunt. We had lots of fun together.His older brother would have my baby brother come over and visit with his friends.He was the cutest little guy in the world and very funny.at age 5.He would always wear his little suit with the Etonian collar to visit these special neighbors.
I have used this receipe multiple times. It is excellent.
Thank you so much, Mama Zara.
This is the recipe I use for Christmas breakfast every year. It’s a staple in our home. So easy and delicious. The leftovers are a rare but delicious treat right before bed 😉
Hi Robyn! I am about to embark on some of the recipes that I just happened to stumble upon as I was seeking a good white cake recipe with sour cream and more eggs than the typical. My husband is a chef and he couldn’t expound on any new and unique versions. When I was growing up, my grandmother lives upstairs from us as our home was a very large old castle, to me:)!
Well, grandma and grandpa were full blooded Swedes and couldn’t speak English very well. But that didn’t keep her unique and beautiful personality from shining through. She taught me how to sing, “A Bicycle Built for Two. I will always cherish all of the wonderful memories of her except I was a child and don’t remember her delicious recipe for, “Swedish Meatballs”! They were the best ever and all of the years of my adult life I have never found anything even slightly comparable. Do you know how to make Swedish Meatballs that are absolutely unforgettable?
Tremendous gratitude!!
Cheri
BTW: We are going to try a few of your recipes tomorrow and are so looking forward to trying new recipes for a change. that sound so good. Thanks so much for your site as it was the one of many that we chose to explore!:)
Hi Robyn, I love all your recipes. I would love to try the Dutch Baby recipe, is there any other baking dish I could use as I don’t have a skillet, thanks.
Hi Sherine,
Absolutely. Just use any oven-safe, round dish (square would work too!). A pie plate would be pretty for serving!