A wonderful addition to our Christmas breakfast buffet menu is the amazingly easy, incredibly inexpensive and inexplicably melt- in- your –mouth-delicious puffed pancake known as the Dutch baby. The ingredients for a Dutch baby are almost always found in all kitchens. Only requiring six ingredients, plus the lemon and powdered sugar garnish, the Dutch baby, hands down, is one of the least expensive dishes you could make for a breakfast buffet.

The laughably easy prep time for the Dutch baby makes it a no brainer. The only drawback for this dish is that it should be eaten immediately and so it may not be the best dish to let sit at a buffet, this could be remedied with a warming dish, although, leaving it in the cast iron skillet will help as the cast iron will retain its heat. Having a lot of hungry mouths to feed will, of course, eliminate any concerns as you will watch the Dutch baby disappear before your eyes.

You may wonder where this puffy pancake got its name. According to some references the Dutch baby was first introduced at Manca’s Café, a Seattle based family restaurant. The Dutch baby is a spin off a German pancake dish, but received its adorable name by one of the daughters of Victor Manca, the owner of Manca’s Café. “Dutch” may have referred to the Pennsylvania Dutch, who were German- Americans; Dutch, being misused for the word “Deutsch”.

The butter, powdered sugar and lemon, when melted together atop the Dutch baby, create a syrup that will keep you coming back for more. However, the Dutch baby can be served with maple syrup or other fruit toppings. For a nice contrast with the rest of the breakfast buffet menu, using the lemon, butter and powdered sugar is recommended.

Christmas Breakfast Buffet

1. Crème Brûlée French Toast Bake
2. Creamy Polenta with Honey and Blueberries
3. Dutch Baby
4. Savory Quiche
5. Baked Ham and Egg Cups

Dutch Baby

Our recipe for the Dutch baby came from Mary Engelbreit’s “Winter”, written by Charlotte Lyons. This is sweet little book that was given to us many years ago as a gift and it shares many fun crafts, as well as a few recipes, that will help get you through the long cold winter.

Ingredients
½ stick butter
3 eggs
¾ cup whole milk
¾ cup flour
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place the butter in a 10” cast iron, oven proof skillet or a heavy baking dish.

2. Put the skillet in the oven. Let the butter melt, but not brown, while you prepare the batter.

3. In a blender add the eggs, milk, and flour, salt and vanilla and mix until just combined.

4. Take the skillet out of the oven. Swirl the melted butter in the skillet to make sure it is coated evenly.

5. Pour the batter into the hot skillet and place it back into the oven to bake for 25 minutes or until puffed and golden.

6. Serve with lemon wedges, butter pats and powdered sugar immediately after removing from the oven.

A wonderful addition to our Christmas breakfast buffet menu is the amazingly easy, incredibly inexpensive and inexplicably melt- in- your –mouth-delicious puffed pancake known as the Dutch baby. The ingredients for a Dutch baby are almost always found in all kitchens. Only requiring six ingredients, plus the lemon and powdered sugar garnish, the Dutch baby, hands down, is one of the least expensive dishes you could make for a breakfast buffet.

The laughably easy prep time for the Dutch baby makes it a no brainer. The only drawback for this dish is that it should be eaten immediately and so it may not be the best dish to let sit at a buffet, this could be remedied with a warming dish, although, leaving it in the cast iron skillet will help as the cast iron will retain its heat. Having a lot of hungry mouths to feed will, of course, eliminate any concerns as you will watch the Dutch baby disappear before your eyes.

You may wonder where this puffy pancake got its name. According to some references the Dutch baby was first introduced at Manca’s Café, a Seattle based family restaurant. The Dutch baby is a spin off a German pancake dish, but received its adorable name by one of the daughters of Victor Manca, the owner of Manca’s Café. “Dutch” may have referred to the Pennsylvania Dutch, who were German- Americans; Dutch, being misused for the word “Deutsch”.

The butter, powdered sugar and lemon, when melted together atop the Dutch baby, create a syrup that will keep you coming back for more. However, the Dutch baby can be served with maple syrup or other fruit toppings. For a nice contrast with the rest of the breakfast buffet menu, using the lemon, butter and powdered sugar is recommended.

Christmas Breakfast Buffet

1. Crème Brûlée French Toast Bake
2. Creamy Polenta with Honey and Blueberries
3. Dutch Baby
4. Savory Quiche
5. Baked Ham and Egg Cups

Dutch Baby

Our recipe for the Dutch baby came from Mary Engelbreit’s “Winter”, written by Charlotte Lyons. This is sweet little book that was given to us many years ago as a gift and it shares many fun crafts, as well as a few recipes, that will help get you through the long cold winter.

Ingredients
½ stick butter
3 eggs
¾ cup whole milk
¾ cup flour
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp vanilla

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place the butter in a 10” cast iron, oven proof skillet or a heavy baking dish.

2. Put the skillet in the oven. Let the butter melt, but not brown, while you prepare the batter.

3. In a blender add the eggs, milk, and flour, salt and vanilla and mix until just combined.

4. Take the skillet out of the oven. Swirl the melted butter in the skillet to make sure it is coated evenly.

5. Pour the batter into the hot skillet and place it back into the oven to bake for 25 minutes or until puffed and golden.

6. Serve with lemon wedges, butter pats and powdered sugar immediately after removing from the oven.