Dutch Baby Love: Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free German Pancakes Revisited

Frugal Foodie Friday: Recipes that I post on my blog, or that I have included in my book aren't made exclusively for those purposes. They are recipes that are enjoyed time and time again in our house. Since I don't log my daily eats, I often forget to remind you of past favorites that are still on our menu.

Now that the cooler weather is moving in, I am migrating to heartier, warm breakfasts, like hot brown rice cereal, whole grain waffles (check next week's post for a great recipe!), and these Dutch babies. Often known as German pancakes, these have much more of an egg base than your average pancake, making it simpler to cut the dairy and gluten. Still, traditional Dutch babies are made with flour, milk, and eggs, so some adjustments and tests were required to get it right … and get it right I did. Below are two recipes that I adore. Not only are they tasty, but they can also be made quite quickly ….

Sorry, the following recipes are dairy-free and vegetarian, but since eggs are the primary ingredient, I have yet to succeed in a solid vegan version of these pancakes, but I will be working on it!

I know a few of you are shouting, "what are eggs doing on this site?" If you are one of these concerned people, please read the following article entitled, "Does the term dairy include eggs?" I wrote it specifically to address this question since it does occur frequently.

For those of you who can and do consume eggs, enjoy …

 

Healthy Wheat-Free / Dairy-Free Dutch Babies

This recipe is Vegetarian, Dairy-Free, Wheat-Free, Soy-Free, Nut-Free, Low Sugar, Relatively Low in Fat, and optionally Gluten-Free (seek out some of those certified gluten-free oats)

For the scrumptious topping pictured, see my recipe for the Chunky Maple Blueberry Sauce.

• 1 Cup Rolled Oats (can sub 1 cup of your flour of choice)
• 1/8 Teaspoon Salt 
• 1 Cup Regular or Unsweetened Milk Alternative (I used unsweetened coconut milk beverage from Turtle Mountain – it was on sale! Rice, Almond, or Hemp Milk should also work well)
• 1 Tablespoon Maple Syrup, Honey, or Agave Nectar (I used pure maple syrup)
• 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 4 Medium Eggs, brought to room temperature if you have time
• 1/2 Tablespoon Coconut Oil or Dairy-Free Margarine (I used coconut oil)

Preheat your oven to 425ºF

Place half of the oats in a spice / coffee grinder and whiz for about 30 seconds, or until the oats turn into a flour. Repeat with the remaining oats. I believe this can also be done in a food processor, but it is so quick, easy, and clean in a cheap little spice grinder ($15 at the grocery store!), why bother.

Sift the oat flour and salt into a medium-sized mixing bowl. Whisk in the milk alternative, sweetener, and vanilla, stirring until everything is well combined.

Whisk in the eggs one at a time until incorporated.

Put the coconut oil or margarine in a 9″ pie plate, cast iron pan, or similarly sized baking dish, and place it in the oven for a few minutes, or until the oil / margarine is melted and the pan is good and heated.

Removed the dish (with a pot holder!) and swirl the oil / margarine around a bit to coat. Pour in the egg batter, pop it in the oven, and leave it be for 25 minutes.

The batter will climb up, swelling a bit like a souffle (it is really fun to watch). When you take it out of the oven, it will deflate …

While this may seem less desirable than a puffy souffle, the crater actually makes for a wonderful bowl to hold delicious fillings or syrup! You can fill it with my Sinful Cinnamon Apple Saute; a bounty of seasonal, chopped fresh fruit and/or berries; a dusting of powdered sugar and served with pure maple syrup; your favorite jam; or try my Chunky Blueberry-Maple Sauce (as pictured).

Since I feared we might eat the entire dish in one sitting, I only made 1/2 batch of the blueberry sauce. If you want to fill the crater, the full recipe should do it. But, it was a good thing I held off, because for my husband and I, this was just a 2 serving recipe …

Yields 2 to 4 pancakey, eggilicious servings

 

Wheat-Free Apple Cinnamon Dutch Babies

This recipe is Vegetarian, Dairy-Free, Wheat-Free, Soy-Free, optionally Nut-Free, Low Sugar, Relatively Low in Fat, and optionally Gluten-Free (seek out some of those certified gluten-free oats).

• 2 Teaspoons Oil or Margarine (I used coconut oil)
• 3 Eggs, brought to room temperature (when I halved the recipe, I used 1 jumbo egg … it was really big)
• 1/2 Cup Almond Milk, warmed (I used unsweetened, but plain or vanilla would be nice too)
• 1/2 Cup Oat Flour (I processed about 1/3 cup of rolled oats in my spice/coffee grinder for 30 seconds (until it turned into a nice flour), sifted, and measured out the 1/2 cup; feel free to sub a different flour if you prefer)
• 1/4 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon + additional for sprinkling
• 1/8 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Small Apple, finely diced

Preheat your oven to 400ºF. Place an empty glass pie plate or baking dish in the oven to preheat. If you want, you can make individual dutch babies and use regular-size, oven-safe bowls.

Mix the eggs, almond milk, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl, until well combined.

Remove the dish from the oven, and melt the margarine or oil right into it. Sprinkle with the diced apple, and an extra sprinkling of cinnamon for good measure. Pour the batter over all.

Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, or until set. Cut into wedges and serve immediately with syrup, a sprinkling of powdered sugar, a pat of margarine and more cinnamon, jam, berries, or however you like!

Yields 2 Yummy Servings

 

Grain-Free Note: If you want a grain-free version of these recipes, trial almond flour or ground cashews. I used cashews successfully in this recipe for a "Crustless Quiche." The results were slightly different, but still just as tasty.

 

Article, photos, and recipes by Alisa Fleming, founder of GoDairyFree.org and author of Go Dairy Free: The Guide and Cookbook for Milk Allergies, Lactose Intolerance, and Casein-Free Living.