A Dutch baby pancake is a delicious and easy-to-make breakfast dish. It’s a large, puffy pancake that is baked in the oven and typically served with a dusting of powdered sugar, fresh fruit, and a squeeze of lemon juice. The batter for a Dutch baby pancake is similar to crepe batter, but is baked in a hot baking dish, resulting in a custardy and crispy treat that puffs up in the oven.
Ingredients
Below you will find information about the ingredients and how to prepare the recipe. For the measurements and detailed instructions scroll down to the printable recipe card.
Here’s what you need to make this easy dish:
You will need standard ingredients that are also used for crepe batter!
- eggs
- milk
- flour
- sugar
- salt
- vanilla extract
- butter for greasing the baking dish
You could also add citrus zest such as lemon zest, orange zest, or clementine zest.
See also this version with sauteed apples! German Apple Pancake (Apple Dutch Baby)
How to make it step-by-step
Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Place your baking dish or skillet in the oven while it’s preheating (this will help the batter puff up).
STEP 1+2: Make the batter: If you have a high speed blender – just add all the ingredients and blebd until the batter is smooth, about 30 seconds.
If you have a hand/immersion blender or prefer to whisk the batter by hand: first add eggs, flour, sugar, vanilla, and salt to a large bowl. Mix or whisk until smooth. Add the milk and continue mixing until smooth.
When the oven is heated up, take the baking dish out of the oven and add the butter.
STEP 3: Melt the butter moving it all around the baking dish, also on the edges, it should melt quickly.
STEP 4: When the butter is melted, pour in the batter.
Place the baking dish again in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden and puffed up.
Take out of the oven, cut into servings and serve immediately.
Dutch baby pancakes puffs up in the oven but quickly deflates when taken out of the oven, this is normal.
Enjoy!
Serving suggestions
- powdered sugar + lemon juice + fresh berries
- sauteed cinnnamon apples
- whipped cream
- salted caramel sauce
Storage
To store the Dutch baby pancake, allow it to cool completely at room temperature. Once cooled, place in an airtight container or wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Before serving, gently reheat in the oven at a low temperature to restore their texture. Note that Dutch baby pancakes are best enjoyed fresh.
Ingredients ratios
If you saw different recipes for a Dutch baby pancake and are wondering what is the best recipe and what are the differences – my answer is: I haven’t met a Dutch baby pancake that I didn’t like! but:
- from recipe testing I noticed: the more eggs, the better rise and crunchier edges
- the more batter in the pan, the flatter the pancake
- too little batter in the pan, not much rise
- the bigger the puff on the edges, the thinner the middle of the pancake.
If a spectacular rise of the pancake is important to you, use the recipe below.
If you’d like to have a thicker pancake (and a bigger portion), use more batter (see below). My kids, for example, prefer a thicker pancake, from 7 or 8 eggs, which resembles a French clafoutis (baked cherry flan/pancake). Such pancake is thicker and the edges are less crispy and less puffed up. Nevertheless, the flavor is really great and we enjoy it very much. Test what you like more and what works for your family.
Many recipes call for 3-4 eggs, and for me, the yealds a really small portion. The amount of pancakes from the recipe below is not enough for my family which is 2 adults and 2 toddlers. I usually make a thicker pancake (= more batter and more servings) or I will make another smaller pancake.
Dutch baby pancakes look always spectacular with their raised edges, but they deflate quickly after being taken out of the oven and are rather thin.
7-egg version/thicker pancake:
7 large eggs
1 1/8 cups (145g) flour
1 1/8 cups (270g) milk
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
pinch of salt 2 tablespoons butter
8-egg version/thicker pancake:
8 large eggs
1 1/2 cups (180g) flour
1 1/2 cups (360g) milk
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter
Recipe FAQ’s
The Dutch baby, also known as a German pancake, is a type of a popover pancake. Despite its name, it isn’t Dutch in origin. Its name “Dutch baby” is thought to be a corruption of the word “deutsch,” which means “German” in the German language.
The dish is believed to have its roots in German immigrants who came to America and brought along their traditional recipes. As the term “deutsch” was misunderstood or mispronounced as “Dutch,” it eventually led to the name “Dutch baby.”
It’s interesting how culinary names can sometimes evolve through a mix of cultural influences and linguistic shifts!
So called German pancake or Durch Baby is not really German! German pancakes are Pfannkuchen/Palatschinken which are similar to crepes.
According to some sources, Dutch babies were introduced in the first half of the 1900s at Manca’s Cafe, a family-run restaurant that was located in Seattle, WA, and that was owned by Victor Manca. Manca’s Cafe claimed that it owned the trademark for Dutch babies in 1942.
A Dutch baby pancake is also a German pancake, a Bismarck, a Dutch puff, Hooligan, or a Hootenanny, and is similar to a large English Yorkshire pudding. So, there is no difference between the two, it is the same dish that have many different names.
When the baking dish is placed in the preheated oven with the butter, the heat causes the batter to rapidly rise and puff up, creating that characteristic fluffy and airy texture of a Dutch baby pancake.
You can use a ceramic casserole baking dish or a round baking dish. A cast iron skillet is also great for this recipe. I haven’t noticed that the batter rises/puffs up better in the cast iron skillet but the bottom of the pancake is definitely more browned in cast iron than when made in a ceramic baking dish.
Did you make this recipe? RATE THE RECIPE or tell me in the COMMENTS how you liked it! You can also add a photo of your dish. It would make me very happy and will help other readers. Thank you!!
Dutch Baby
Ingredients
- 6 large eggs
- 1 cup (240ml) milk
- 1 cup (130g) flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
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Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Place your baking dish or skillet in the oven while it's preheating (this will help the batter puff up).
- Make the batter: If you have a high speed blender – just add all the ingredients and blebd until the batter is smooth, about 30 seconds.
- If you have a hand/immersion blender or prefer to whisk the batter by hand: first add eggs, flour, sugar, vanilla, and salt to a large bowl. Mix or whisk until smooth. Add the milk and continue mixing until smooth.
- When the oven is heated up, take the baking dish out of the oven and add the butter. Melt the butter moving it all around the baking dish, also on the edges, it should melt quickly.
- When the butter is melted, pour in the batter.
- Place the baking dish again in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden and puffed up.
- Take out of the oven, cut into servings and serve immediately.
- Dutch baby pancakes puffs up in the oven but quickly deflates when taken out of the oven, this is normal.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Calories = 1 serving (1/4 of the recipe). This is only an estimate!
- The pancake from this recipe comes out crispy and very puffy but it also is rather thin in the middle. You can make a thicker pancake but it won’t puff up/rise as well but it’s equally delicious. My kids prefer thicker Dutch Baby, especially this one from 8 eggs. The 8-egg recipe is perfect for our family of 4 in terms of size of the portions. Test for yourself what works best for your family.
- 7-egg recipe: 7 large eggs, 1 1/8 cups (145g) flour, 1 1/8 cups (270g) milk, 3 tablespoons sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla, pinch of salt, 2 tablespoons butter
- 8-egg recipe: 8 large eggs, 1 1/2 cups (180g) flour, 1 1/2 cups (360g) milk, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, 1/4 teaspoon salt.
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