Danish Style Pancakes

Just about every country has their own style of pancake. Here in America we love our buttermilk pancakes; Norway has lefse, and Denmark has "Dutch Baby" (yes, it's a misnomer) pancakes. I had my first taste of this pancake at an Original Pancake House restaurant last July during our honeymoon. I first heard about these pancakes from watching the Food Network, of course!

What's different about these pancakes is that you do not put syrup on them, you simply squeeze fresh lemon over them and sprinkle with powdered sugar, add butter and that's it! These pancakes are thin and light and tangy and I think you're going to love them.

INGREDIENTS (2 large Dutch Babies)

• 1 stick butter
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 cup white flour
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. lemon zest
• Pinch of salt
• Fresh lemon juice
• Powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut stick of butter in half and place each half in two round aluminum pie-baking tins or two 12" frying pans that can withstand heat up to 425 degrees. When oven has reached 425 degrees, put pie tins on center rack. You want your butter to be zizzling.

Meanwhile, blend four eggs in your blender; add whole milk and blend. The batter should have the color of a ripe lemon. Slowly add in white flour, vanilla, salt and lemon zest. Finish off batter on "liquefy" for 30 seconds. The batter will be thin and should contain a number of small lumps (like pancake batter). Do not overbeat; this batter doesn't need a lot of air beaten into it. Set aside briefly.

Pour 1/2 of batter in each hot pie pan or frying pan. Make sure you distribute the boiling butter evenly in the pan.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, but check on them at 12 minutes. You want the Dutch Babies to be puffy and golden-brown. Once they are done, remove them CAREFULLY from the oven, using pot holders (the pan will be very hot), then serve it at once.