What the Heck is a Dutch Baby?

Among the many, many recipes my grandmother collected was the recipe for "Dutch Baby," an unfortunately named breakfast dish that most resembles a giant popover cooked in a cast iron skillet.

My friend Karen gave me Molly Wizenberg's book as a birthday gift. I do enjoy reading Orangette, though sometimes it's hard not to hate Molly for being so clever, such a good cook, and so in love, all at the same time. But I dove into the book on the airplane on the way to Seattle to visit Karen, and by the time I arrived, I had read more than half, cried more than a little, and liked her all over again. As soon as I read her recipe for Dutch Baby, I knew we had to make it, to honor Grandma's obsession. Not only did Karen concur, but she had already printed out the recipe from the website and had been planning it as a breakfast for one of the days of my visit.

Abbie (2 1/2) quite deftly cracked the eggs into the blender and Karen and Abbie together measured the other ingredients and added them. It's a pretty simple recipe, good for beginners.
Whir, stir, melt, pour, bake, and we were there. As opposed to popovers, which take 45 minutes, Dutch Baby takes only 20-25. Great for a Sunday morning when I want to let the dogs snooze a little longer and enjoy my coffee and book before Mike gets up.

I had never made one before, but Karen's mom is an old hand, so Karen led the way. It was delicious! Amazing. The squeeze of lemon and sprinkle of powdered sugar were perfect condiments. It's cooked in butter, so it doesn't require any extra.

I called my grandpa later to tell him. His exact words were, "What the hell is a Dutch Baby?"

In all the years of clipping recipes, my grandma had never actually made one! I made a promise to cook one up on my next visit.

We raved about it so much at dinner the last night that we invited Karen's friend Terri over to do it again the next morning. Unfortunately, due to a forgotten doctor's appointment that required fasting, she was unable to join us, so we had to eat it all by ourselves, and again, had no problem polishing off another beautiful skillet-full.

When Karen sends me the pictures, I will post them for you. I encourage you to make one this Saturday or Sunday for breakfast, as I will be doing. Quick, simple, delicious and fun. I have, among the recipe clippings of my grandmother's that I saved, a recipe for the version that is filled with cooked apples, but I'll bet you can figure that out yourself if you feel like putting apples, jam, or any other fruity thing in it. The point is, try it. You'll like it.

Orangette Dutch Baby

Split between two 6 inch cast iron skillets, or make one big one.

For the pancakes:
4 Tbs unsalted butter (melt butter on low in the cast iron pan or pans) I almost never use unsalted except for pastries and pies.

In blender, bowl, or mixer:
4 large eggs
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup half-and-half (milk works just fine, too)

For the topping:
4 oz melted butter (we skipped this extra butter entirely and it was still delicious)
Juice of 1 lemon (just squeeze a little over the top and add more to your individual serving if you need it)
Powdered sugar (sifted over or shaken from a little strainer is nice- don't be afraid)

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Divide the 4 Tbs butter between two 6-inch cast-iron skillets (or one big one), and melt it over low heat.

In a blender, whir together the eggs, flour, and half-and-half. (Or whip with a hand-mixer, or stir briskly with a whisk.)

Pour the batter into the skillets over the melted butter. Slide the skillets into the oven, and bake for 25 minutes. (20 minutes worked for us. They'll puff, then go golden. When they're slightly brown around the edges, and dry, you'll know.)

Remove the puffed pancakes from the oven, transfer them to a plate or shallow bowl, and pour on clarified butter, sprinkle on lemon juice, and dust with powdered sugar. Serve immediately.
(We put the skillet directly on the table with a trivet and squeezed and dusted right there. No additional butter was necessary, though there is never anything wrong with a little extra butter if you feel like it.)

If, somehow, you managed to get to this point in your life without a cast iron skillet, all is not lost. If you have an oven-proof frying pan (no plastic or rubber parts), or a heavy cake pan, that will work, too. If you use a thinner pan, place the rack just above the middle of the oven so that the bottom doesn't burn, but not so close to the top that it hits the roof when it rises. It may rise as much as six inches.