Mini Dutch Baby Pancakes

 

Ah darn it, I had something else planned for you but turns out my photos were mmm, crap.  So instead, schedule switcheroo, Mini Dutch Baby Pancakes!

I’ve got a few variations of the theme on the docket so I’ll probably sound like a broken record but I gotta tell ya, when they’re so simple to make and sooo incredibly delicious, you’re not gonna blame me.

True, these are not unlike the Apple Pancake Bowls.  These here are billed as naked, dress-as-desired though.  

And if you’ve never had any version, Dutch Babies and/or German pancakes are like a glorious cross between pancakes and crepes.

When I was a kid, Dutch Baby Pancakes were a holiday morning breakfast tradition.  My mom would whip out her large pizza pans and bake up two of these to much fanfare.  We loved these, loved ‘em.

Hers always came out well ballooned, thin, slightly crispy at the curled edges, dreamy light and cloud-like fluffy, always perfect.  I’ve been trying to replicate hers but have heretofore been unable.  She misplaced the recipe sadly too.

Nowadays, breakfast is a big deal in our house.  Or I should say, breakfast is a big deal in our house on Mike’s days off.  He always pulls together a restaurant worthy spread.  As I’m not an egg fan, we rotate between French toast, waffles, or pancakes, the latter two I prep and he makes. 

I am a huge fan of pancakes.  Huge.  Mike looooves pancakes too.  Before Mike, I’d Bisquick it up for dinner often. Nothin’ like breakfast for dinner, amiright?! 

Opting to move away from pre-packaged mixes to not only skip the additives no one needs but also for tastier pancakes, I now use a basic from-scratch recipe that’s easy, satisfying, and faultless every time.  (Triple the dry, store in an airtight container, and shake; scoop out 11/4 cups then mix up the recipe.  Add some cinnamon, use buttermilk if you want, heaven)

Well. 

Soooooo ok I haven’t had pancakes in six years.  

This is probably going to be heavy for me to reveal and it’s something only Mike knows  …        ……            ………..              hmph. 

It was a Sunday morning, we were groggily starting the day, I fed my soul puppy Hailey her breakfast, we were just sitting down to our pancakes when Hailey died unexpectedly.  It was horrific.  The very worst day of my life. 

Literally had my first bite of pancakes on the fork, about into my mouth, and then it happened. 

I haven’t eaten pancakes since.  Can’t do it.  Quite physically cannot.  

Poor Mike, while he certainly understands and has been kind about it, the last couple years he’s been mentioning pancakes. Relatively often but not so much so, he’s not a jerk. 

Enter Dutch Baby Pancakes.  These have become the next best, a quite suitable similar enough, the closest I’m going to get at the moment substitution.

It doesn’t take much to make an incredibly lovely and elegant breakfast.

Thankfully Mike really really enjoys these so I’m kinda sorta maybe off the hook for the foreseeable future.  (Not really.)  I did mix him the dry ingredients for regular pancakes and wrote out instructions but I think he keeps forgetting. 

Can’t even begin to tell you how much I miss pancakes.  I miss Hailey more though. 

These Mini Dutch Baby Pancakes, courtesy of The Kitchn, are like little miracles.  It takes two minutes to whip them up, less than fifteen to bake in a muffin tin,* they’re billowy, swanky, brunch-worthy, and divine to boot.  In about a half hour, you’re eating like royalty. 

We usually top these with sautéed apples (follow the apple recipe from the Apple Pie Drop Biscuits) which can be easily whipped up while the cutie Dutch Babies are baking but you can serve them any way.  Maple syrup, powdered sugar, berries fresh or saucy, savory if you wish; you’re only limited by your imagination.

Guaranteed to make me drool right here, a big ol’ pan a’ sautéed apples.

To start, place your muffin tin in the oven and pop the heat on.  Yes, the muffin tin empty in the oven.  One of the keys to this is a very hot pan.  As such, always always keep your oven mitts close at hand.

Next up, the batter.  There is nothing simpler in the world than this:  throw all the ingredients in a food processor* or drop them in a blender.*  Turn on.

Dump.  Push button.  Done.

On a Sunday morning, you cannot beat how not-taxing this is. 

You can mix this by hand but the other key to this is air, getting lots of air mixed into the batter.  Not enough and these Mini Dutch Baby Pancakes, or any version of them, won’t rise. 

Now let the batter rest while the oven heats up. 

Batter!  Couldn’t be any easier, right?!

When the oven is ready, take out your scorching hot pan, leave an oven mitt* on the edge as a reminder “hot pan” and drop bits of butter into each well. 

Pour batter into each well, about a third of a cup or ehh, divide the mix evenly really, then off to the oven these go.

Hot pan!  Hot pan.  Don’t forget!  Work quickly here so the pan doesn’t cool too much.

It’s fun to watch them bake — it’s like watching one of those time lapse science-y documentaries about things growing.  The batter puffs up like a crazy alien life form and takes all sorts of nutty forms, ballooning above the pan.

Ka-plew, huge!  Haha!

If you’re not watching the fascinating show, prepare the apples or your desired toppings now.

They do deflate, don’t panic over the fresh baked size nor the deflating size.

You may need to run a knife or something around the pancake edges once baked but they should release pretty easily.  Hot tip:  spray the pan lightly with baking/cooking spray after heating, before the butter.

Ok, so maybe like a pancake meets crepe meets popover is more accurate.

Then just serve ‘em up, all hot and golden with whackadoo edges and soft pillowy, crepe-like interiors….Ok, I am seriously hungry now.  What about Mini Dutch Baby Pancakes breakfast for lunch?  Hmmm yessss.

So yummy, omg.

That, that right there is breakfast heaven.

Note:  This content originally appeared on Flaky Bakers.

Mini Dutch Baby Pancakes

Yield

12

Prep time

5 Min

Cook time

15 Min

Inactive time

10 Min

Total time

30 Min

These muffin size billowy pancakes are a boon for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner. So deliciously simple and quick to make!

Ingredients

• 1 cup (120 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (237 ml ) milk
• 4 large eggs
• 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon (5 g) vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon (3 g) fine sea salt
• 6 tablespoons (85 g) unsalted butter

Instructions

1. Place a 12 well, metal muffin tin in the oven and begin preheating it to 425° F (218° C). If there are any racks above the middle one, be sure to move them.
2. Add all of the ingredients except for the butter, the flour, milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt, to a food processor bowl or into a blender. Process or blend on high speed for about 1 minute.
3. Turn off the machine and leave the batter to rest for 10 minutes. The batter will be very thin.
4. When the oven has heated to temperature, slice the butter into 12 equal pieces and drop 1 piece into each well. It may not melt fully.
5. Give a quick pulse or two to the batter then pour about 1/3 cup into each well or divide evenly between the 12. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the pancakes are golden brown on the edges and are quite puffy.
6. Serve immediately.

Notes:

Do ahead: mix the batter up to 12 hours ahead of time and refrigerate. Blend for 1 minute before baking.

Adapted from The Kitchn.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

139.96

Fat (grams)

7.85

Sat. Fat (grams)

4.38

Carbs (grams)

13.26

Fiber (grams)

0.28

Net carbs

12.98

Sugar (grams)

5.33

Protein (grams)

3.90

Sodium (milligrams)

122.41

Cholesterol (grams)

78.89

The nutritional information is based on the entire amount. Please see the "info" section for nutrition details.

dutch baby, German pancake, breakfast

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*The muffin tins, oven mitts, food processors, and blenders are Amazon affiliate links. Happy baking, thanks!  Please see the "info" tab for more, well, info.