Dutch Baby

If you are like Randy and I, we simply love to treat ourselves every once in a while and go to Original Pancake House and order the Dutch Baby. It does take a little while for them to make it, but the wait is oh so worth it. We order it with the sliced strawberries and bananas and we are stuffed all day……the first time we had it was in Chicago when we were there over New Years Eve and had waited in line for a table on that first day of Jan, 2004 with some friends. Every so often a waitress would pass by us with this gorgeous bubble looking pancake with fruit piled in the middle. So we decided then and there to ask what it was and our adventurous side took over our common sense and we ordered the infamous “dutch baby”. Now, you have to realize that when you do this, you cannot eat for about 12 hours prior to ordering, because you have to have a completely empty stomach to hold this giant “breakfast food”. Do not, I repeat, “do not” attempt to eat this a week or so before having your cholestrol checked. If you do, they will immediately send you straight to the emergency room where you will be put on a lettuce and water diet for a month. So, when we came back from Chicago, I couldn’t wait to head back to OPH for another. In the meantime, I thought that I would hit the internet to see if I could find a recipe for the DB. Sure enough, there it was, in black and white…..was I in heaven or what? I could now make this anytime we felt like it. So here it is…..you do not have to wait until you are in the mood to stand in line for an hour to get a table at OPH and then another 30 minutes for them to cook your DB..you can make it in your own little space and eat, allowing the syrup to cover your chin and the butter to run down the sides of the Dutch baby…..(no this is not another name for Randy)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. If you have an iron skillet, it works best. But if not, spray a 9″ heavy skillet with Pam. Mix together the following:

1/2 cup flour

2 tables sugar

1/2 teas salt

2 eggs

1 teas oil

1/2 cup milk

1/4 teas cinnamon

1/8 teas nutmeg

1 teas vanilla

2 teas butter

Mix dry ingredients. Set aside. Wisk remaining ingredients. Gradually beat dry ingredients into egg mixture until smooth. Melt butter in skillet. Pour batter into skillet and bake 20 minutes. Reduce to 350 degres and bake for an additional 3-5 min or untilo puffed and brown. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and add sliced strawberries and bananas if desired.. Serve hot with fruit and syrup…….