Dutch Baby Pancakes are simple and delicious.
A quick batter is poured into a hot skillet and baked to golden fluffy perfection.
The result is a perfect tender pancake ready to be topped with fresh fruit, maple syrup, Nutella, or powdered sugar.
A Dutch baby pancake, also called a German pancake, is made with a thin batter that is poured into a preheated skillet (preferably cast iron!). As it bakes, it will puff up around the edges and the center remains flat. Similar to a popover in texture, they have a delicate texture and a slightly eggy flavor.
The batter takes 2 minutes to make and can be topped with almost anything, no flipping required.
How to Make a Dutch Baby Pancake
- Preheat the skillet in the oven while it preheats.
- Blend all ingredients together (or whisk in a bowl) and pour it into the hot pan.
- Bake until puffed and golden brown.
Serve hot right from the skillet with your favorite fruit, syrups, or toppings. Strawberry sauce or blueberry sauce are great additions, especially with some homemade whipped cream!
Easy Variations
Dutch Baby pancakes are great with fruit or fried eggs but here are a few other additions we love to add before it hits the pan:
- Add ½ teaspoon of cinnamon.
- Add a squeeze of lemon juice.
- Swap the vanilla extract for almond or maple (or your favorite flavor)!
- Use whole wheat flour in place of the all-purpose flour.
- Stir in fresh chopped herbs and Parmesan cheese after blending for a savory twist, or even top it with a fried egg!
Tips for a Perfect Dutch Baby Pancake
- Ensure that the ingredients are at room temperature.
- Preheat the skillet to get that beautiful puffy rise on the Dutch baby.
- A cast iron is nice, but not required. You can use any 9-10″ oven-safe skillet.
- A 10″ skillet works well but for extra high edges, choose a 9″ skillet.
- For a smooth batter, use a blender, an immersion blender, or a food processor. If you don’t have a blender, you can also use a whisk, but unlike a traditional pancake batter, you don’t want lumps in this batter. The batter will be thinner, and more similar in consistency to a crepe batter.
Our Fave Toppings
This Dutch baby recipe can be topped with almost anything or everything, sweet or savory! Here are a few of our favorites. Top it with shredded cheese while it’s warm or try whipped cream, a sprinkle of powdered sugar and fresh blueberries or strawberries.
More Breakfast Favorites
Did you try these Dutch Baby Pancakes? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
Dutch Baby
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- ⅓ cup milk
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 tablespoons butter unsalted
Instructions
- Place an empty 9-inch or 10-inch ovenproof skillet in the oven and preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Meanwhile, add eggs, flour, milk, sugar, vanilla, and salt to a blender and blend until smooth (or whisk until smooth). Set the batter aside.
- Once the oven is hot, remove the pan (it will be hot!) and add two tablespoons of butter. Melt the butter by swirling it around the pan.
- Pour the batter into the hot pan and immediately place it back in the oven.
- Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until it is puffed at the edges and golden.
- Remove from the oven and add toppings as desired.
Notes
- Preheat the skillet to get a perfect puffy rise on the Dutch baby.
- Use any 9-10″ oven-safe skillet. A 10″ works well, but for extra high edges, choose a 9″ skillet.
- For a smooth batter, use a blender, an immersion blender, or a food processor. You can also use a whisk, but, unlike a traditional pancake batter, you don’t want lumps in this batter.
- For larger appetites, two Dutch babies can be baked at the same time.
- Top with fresh fruit, pie filling or jam for a sweet breakfast. Top with shredded cheese, ham or poached eggs for a savory breakfast.
Leftovers
Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave until heated through. Freeze in layers (with wax paper in between each dutch baby) in an airtight container for up to 2 months.Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Breakfast
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I sometimes make a Dutch Baby when I have guests for breakfast or brunch. I fill it with what my family always called Creamed Eggs, cut it in wedges and serve.
Creamed Eggs is just a basic béchamel sauce with yellow mustard added, either dried or prepared (I sometimes use both, the prepared for the color, and the dried for the extra zing), with sliced hard cooked eggs stirred in. The mustard is to taste. For two cups of sauce I generally start with about a TBSP of prepared, or 2 TSP of dried. Stir it in, taste and add more until it’s what you like. If using both, start with half of the above amounts, and again adjust as needed. A little chopped dill, chives, or parsley to garnish. Personally, I’m partial to dill.
It’s a simple, fairly elegant looking entree whether for breakfast or brunch. We usually served it with bacon or sausage and fruit, either a fruit salad, berries, a melon medley, or sometimes Broiled Grapefruit.
That sounds delicious! Thank you for sharing.
If you are doubling the recipe, do you use a bigger pan?
You would need 2 pans if doubling the recipe. Since they’re 10-inch you should be able to fit 2 in the oven at the same time.
I’ve tried many of your recipes and never a disappointment. I’d like to make the Dutch babies for my family of six. What’s the best way to reheat them?
So glad you’ve loved them Ginger! You can reheat on a baking sheet in the oven at 350°F for about 5 minutes or until heated through or the microwave for smaller portions.
OH MY!!! I just made myself this for supper along with a bacon wrapped sausage and cooked up an apple to go along with the maple syrup drizzled over it all. OH MY!!! Best meal I’ve made myself in so long. Thanks for this keeper recipe! p.s. my eggs were straight out of the fridge and I used my hand mixer at it was still great. Also I cut the recipe into a third.
That sounds delicious Debby! I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
mine turned out flat. it didn’t puff up. what did I do wrong?
Did you preheat the pan in the oven? Did you make it in the blender? If not this could contribute.
How do I get the eggs at room temp for a breakfast meal? How longs can the eggs sit out, overnight?
To quickly get eggs to room temperature, place them in a small bowl with warm water for 10 minutes. I hope this helps Lisa!
We love Dutch baby…. A weekly rotation breakfast ….. alternating fruits of the season and a real hit with pumpkin butter and crushed pecans …Mmmmmmm
So glad I found this recipe, one of my favorite things. Thank you!
So happy you found it too! Hope you loved it as much as we did.
I am not savvy in the kitchen. My wife had left for the day with some friends and I was thinking what to eat for lunch when I saw this on FB. I looked at the directions and ingredients and thought why not try it. It was so simple to prepare and bake. It came out perfectly, curved, everything. I used blueberries, strawberries, powdered sugar and maple syrup. I took pictures and when my wife came home she said that’s what I want for breakfast tomorrow.
Thanks JerryB
Well didn’t that just make my day Jerry! I’m so happy it turned out so well for you!
I’m hoping my 10″ cast iron skillet will work with this. Anxious to try this for a special Sunday breakfast.
That should work well, Shery! Hope you enjoyed it.
Our favorite go to supper when I don’t want to cook. I actually double it for a hearty supper in a 12 inch cast-iron pan. You cant go wrong with this comfort food. Some jam and a cup of coffee is all I need.
That sounds like the perfect pairing to me, George! Glad you enjoyed this recipe.
This sounds delicious, but I live alone, so a recipe for two isn’t feasible. All ingredients except the eggs are easily halved, so would you suggest I use either one or two eggs? Or maybe I’m just out of luck!
This recipe reheats beautifully so you could certainly cook it and then enjoy the leftovers the next day. I haven’t tried this with different ratios so I can’t say for sure how it would work out.
Leftovers – that sounds great. Thanks for the reply!
Absolutely delicious!!! This was so fun to make. And easy too! I thought I messed up the recipe when I looked inside the oven and saw it was way puffed up really high but it settled back down when it was done cooking and out of the oven. Will definitely make again and again!
That is great, Nicolette. So happy this recipe worked well for you!