This Fluffy Buttermilk Dutch Baby Pancake is an incredibly easy and hands-off breakfast or brunch recipe with a custardy center and crispy edges. Simply blend together the ingredients, melt some butter, and bake. So versatile you can top with any of your favorite fruits, whipped cream, powdered sugar, or all three.
Jump to:
Ingredients
- Flour: all purpose flour is my go-to flour for this recipe.
- Buttermilk: traditionally dutch babies are made with whole milk, but I subbed in buttermilk for a little extra flavor and tang. If you have whole milk that works perfectly fine too.
- Eggs: three large eggs for the perfect custardy texture.
- Vanilla: just a hint of vanilla makes this even more delicious.
- Cinnamon: a little warm cinnamon really pops.
- Salt: to balance everything out.
- Butter: unsalted butter - really any brand will work but I love to use Kerrigold.
- Toppings: this part is up to you, but I love homemade whipped cream and berries.
Step by step instructions
This buttermilk cast iron dutch baby is probably one of the easiest recipes you'll ever make but it's definitely not lacking in flavor. Details below!
Overview
- Preheat oven to 425℉
- Blend the pancake ingredients
- Melt the butter in the skillet in the preheated oven
- Pour the batter into the skillet with the butter
- Bake until golden
Detailed steps
Preheat oven to 425℉.
1. Combine batter ingredients. To a blender cup add the flour, buttermilk, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt.
2. Blend. Blend the batter together until well combined and and little bubbles have formed (which means it's gotten enough air in it).
3. Melt the butter. Put the butter in your skillet and put the skillet into a fully preheated 425℉ oven. Take the skillet out when the butter is completely melted.
4. Add the batter. Pour the batter into the skillet with the melted butter.
5. Bake. Bake for 25 minutes until golden and puffed. Do not open the oven or the dutch baby will deflate!
6. Add toppings. Add whipped cream, berries, and a dusting of powdered sugar (or whatever toppings you want!).
Tips and tricks
- DON'T(!) open the oven while the dutch baby is baking! If you open the oven too soon the dutch baby will deflate and you won't get any nice bubbles and you risk the edges not growing.
- Use a blender or whisk vigorously. You want to get air into the batter to help with the leavening since there is no leavening agent in these. So using a blender is an easy way to do that, but if you want to whisk together in a bowl that also works, just whisk vigorously until bubbles appear.
- Customize the flavor – you can swap the cinnamon or add more spices such as nutmeg, cardamom, or use vanilla bean paste! It would also be delicious to add some lemon or orange zest.
- Use a heavy bottomed skillet. A cast iron skillet is great because of how it retains the heat, but any oven-safe heavy bottomed skillet will work.
Dutch baby topping and serving ideas
There are really SO many ways you can top and serve dutch babies, and all are equally as delicious.
- Berries! A mixture of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries would be delicious. Or just one of those!
- Apples! Sliced apples (especially in the fall!) would be great. Go a step further and warm the apples on the stovetop with some cinnamon and maple syrup.
- Powdered sugar! Just a simple dusting of powdered sugar on top of the dutch baby adds a nice hint of sweetness.
- Homemade whipped cream! Easier than it seems, just whip together some heavy cream, a dash of vanilla, and a pinch of sugar.
- Syrup! Keep it classic with a generous pour of syrup.
- Make it savory! Add some cream cheese and lox.
- Bacon bacon bacon! My absolute favorite, delicious served alongside a dutch baby. Bonus points for crisping it up, breaking it into pieces, sprinkling it on top of the dutch baby, and finishing with a drizzle of maple syrup. That sweet/salty/savory thing is amazing. Of course breakfast sausage is also an option.
Origins of the dutch baby
A dutch baby, more classically referred to as a german pancake, bismarck, dutch puff, puffed pancake, or baked pancake, originated from the German Pfannkuchen. They first popped up in the US in the 1900s in Seattle at Manca's Diner.
The term "dutch baby" is said to have been created by Manca's daughter, and is derived from Deutsche, the English autonym for Germans. More on it here!
FAQs
It's easiest stored cutting it into slides then storing in an air-tight container in the fridge.
You can reheat it in the microwave for a few minutes. But if you want it to get some of the crisp back you're better off reheating in the oven at 400ºF for a few minutes.
This one is so simple, I recommend doing all the steps at the time that you're going to cook it. If you let the batter sit for too long it will lose some of the air we blended into it and might not rise as well. It's also best for the batter to be closer to room temperature than chilled.
Simply, a dutch baby is one large pancake that is baked. Whereas pancakes are a few inches in diameter and cooked separately on the stovetop. Pancakes are also flipped in the cooking process, while dutch babies are not.
Two things - the air in the batter, and the quick heat in the oven. Which is why it's important to pre-melt the butter (and in turn preheat the pan) and keep the door to the oven closed.
It tastes mostly like a pancake! If you add other spices/zest/etc. it'll alter the taste, but the base is most similar to a classic pancake.
More pancake recipes
Recipe
Fluffy Buttermilk Dutch Baby Pancake
INGREDIENTS
- ⅔ cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup buttermilk
- 3 large eggs
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- 4 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 cup fresh berries
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat your oven to 425℉.
- To a blender add the flour, buttermilk, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt.
- Blend the batter together until well combined and and little bubbles have formed (which means it's gotten enough air in it).
- Put the butter in your skillet and put the skillet into a fully preheated 425℉ oven. Take the skillet out when the butter is completely melted.
- Pour the batter into the skillet with the melted butter.
- Bake for 25 minutes until golden and puffed. Do not open the oven or the dutch baby will deflate!
- Add whipped cream, berries, and a dusting of powdered sugar (or whatever toppings you want!).
Leave a Reply