How to make delicious Dutch pancakes with this simple recipe | Simone's Kitchen (2024)

These delicious Dutch pancakes are super easy to make and can easily be transferred from a sweet to a savory pancake if you want. I love them with bacon and cheese as well or just plain as you find below.

Dutch pancakes

Now let’s start by explaining that there is a difference between the Dutch mini pancakes (also known as poffertjes) and theDutch baby pancakes, which is something else entirely. The funny thing is that apparently the Dutch baby pancake is an American pancake, but probably made in a Dutch oven?

This recipe for Dutch pancakes is maybe more like a crepe than anything else. Not a puffy pancake. You could possibly also call them German pancakes (apparently). Although being Dutch myself I would never refer to them as Dutch of course. Haha..

The biggest difference between a Dutch pancake and American pancakes is how thick they are the size. American pancakes are thick as there is some yeast in the pancake batter. For basic Dutch pancakes you do not use any rising agent other then the egg. That way the pancakes stay flatter. They’re traditional pancakes that I grew up with and are totally delicious. Or so I think.

Now in order to make these pancakes you don’t need anything special, unlike the poffertjes for which you need a special poffertjes pan. It does help to use a special pancake pan but any regular hot skillet will do the trick. Like I said they are very similar to a French crepe, so a crepe pan does work well.

It’s a very easy recipe and unlike a French crepe they can be a little bit more rustic and crunchy on the sides. I love those crispy edges! They are still thin pancakes but not as thin as a crepe.

​What you need to make the Dutch pancakes:

First of all you need a few basic pancake ingredients:

• all purpose flour
• eggs
• milk (I like to use whole milk)
• pinch of salt

You can add additional ingredients to the batter but I will share more on that later. Other then that you just need some butter for baking and if you’re making sweet pancakes, it is also nice to add a little bit of sugar and vanilla extract to the batter.

Making the batter

Now making the batter is as straight forward as it gets. You just take a large mixing bowl and a whisk and you mix the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. Whisk until you have a smooth batter and you’re ready to go. Now take a frying pan and add a pat of butter to it. Let it melt and make sure the heat is not too high. Medium is usually fine.

Now add a spoonful of the batter to the preheated skillet and swirl the pan around to distribute the batter evenly so it spreads out across the entire pan. The first pancake is usually still a little on the too blond side. You want the pancakes to be golden brown.

You wait until the top of the pancake becomes dry and then you flip it over. You can use a spatula to do that or – if you’re courageous – you can do the actual pancake flip.

Once both sides are baked an golden you transfer them to a plate and continue until all batter is finished.

So these are not little pancakes. They are nothing like American pancakes but they will be roughly the size of the pan. So yes, they can be bigger or smaller depending on your pan. The pancakes are a delicious breakfast just the way they are but can be even more delicious by adding fresh fruit to it, icing sugar, maple syrup or whatever else strikes your fancy.

Variations

​Now the fun part in making these Dutch pancakes is that you can make endless variations to the batter. My favorite additions are apple, cheese and bacon, but also pineapple and banana are really good to add. They way you handle additions is that you add the plain batter to the pan and then immediately add your extra’s.

So it’s best to have the apple slices already good to go and any other extra’s as well. You want to be able to press them into the batter gently before the top dries out. Then you flip them ( a little more carefully) and bake the other side. If you’re using grated cheese don’t leave it on the second side for too long.

Plain or with flavor variations

The classic Dutch pancakes are usually served just plain, but it’s one of my favorite things to try out new flavor variations. I always tend to overdose on powdered sugar but dark syrup or stroop as we like to call it is something other people like better. I just always go for the icing sugar. But the fun part is that you can have the whole family enjoy these traditional Dutch pancakes by just simply varying each pancake. You can bake ten different ones if you prefer. That’s the best thing about these Dutch pancakes. They’re pretty flexible.

Buckwheat flour is also used often. Becauase it’s pretty basic ingredients, it’s also easy to change some of it. Use a different kind of milk if you are lactose intolerant. It will work fine with almond milk or something similar.

If you’re looking for Dutch poffertjes check this recipe here.

You can follow the entire recipe in the recipe card.