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Sunday Brunch: Dutch Babies with Lemon Sugar

Posted by Robin Bellinger, September 27, 2009 at 8:00 AM

"Another Dutch baby?" you say. "Ho-hum." Not so fast--this version of the dramatically puffed breakfast treat is showered with lemon-zest-spiked sugar, and the result is especially delectable. I like to use so much topping that I can feel the sugar crunch between my teeth.

Usually you make a Dutch baby in a skillet. Here I tried using shallow, heart-shaped, ceramic crème brûlée dishes to make individual babies. The shape was perfect, and the puffs popped right out of the dishes; but this method did produce more of the crispy edge, when what I like is the eggy middle. It was nothing another squeeze of lemon and spoonful of sugar couldn't fix.

If you had good berries you would serve them on the side, as Gourmet suggests, but this time of year I would make these as dessert after a ladylike brunch of creamy tomato soup and salad.

Dutch Baby with Lemon Sugar

-serves 4-

Adapted from Gourmet (April 2009)

Ingredients

1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
3 large eggs at room temperature for 30 minutes
2/3 cup whole milk at room temperature
2/3 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
Lemon wedges

Procedure

1. Put 10-inch cast-iron skillet on middle rack of oven and preheat to 450°. (If you want to try individual ceramic dishes such as brûlée dishes or ramekins, use 4 to 6, depending on size, and put them all on a baking sheet before putting them into the oven to preheat. I used 4 shallow heart shapes and one 6-ounce ramekin.)

2. Stir together sugar and zest in a small bowl.

3. Beat eggs with an electric mixer at high speed until pale and frothy, then beat in milk, flour, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and continue to beat until smooth, about 1 minute more (batter will be thin). I never use an electric mixer here--just a whisk. (Maybe this is why my babies don't get super puffy?)

4. Add butter to hot skillet and swirl it around to coat the skillet as it melts. (Do the same with ceramic dishes; this is the hardest part of using them.) Add batter and return skillet to oven immediately. Bake until puffed and golden brown--18 to 25 minutes according to the recipe, 15 minutes according to my experience, even with a single baking vessel.

5. Sprinkle heavily with lemon sugar and serve immediately, suggesting that each eater squeeze a lemon wedge over his baby before eating.

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Tags: brunch, Dutch babies, lemon, Sunday Brunch

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