Cast Iron Skillet Pancake Recipe

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Breakfast is easily my favorite meal of the day. I have many fond memories of my dad whipping up a hot breakfast for my sisters and me in the mornings before we left for school. From the time my oldest daughter could string together words into short sentences, she’d wake up early and sing excitedly from her bed, “Hungry, Daddy! Hungry!” I’d roll out of bed, escort her to the kitchen, and we’d start the day by cooking breakfast together.

I now have three daughters, ages 6 and under, and it’s been fun to continue the Daddy Breakfast tradition! All three girls LOVE a hot breakfast, and one of their most frequent requests was pancakes. While I love cooking for them, the process of making pancakes is active and somewhat time consuming, particularly on busy weekday mornings. I also found that when I’d serve pancakes with scrambled eggs, they’d often devour the pancakes and leave the eggs behind.

Credit: Tyler Moore

I wanted to find a hot breakfast alternative that was as delicious as pancakes, less hands-on than flipping individual circles, and also protein-packed to keep them full. Cast Iron Skillet Pancakes are the perfect solution! They are a protein-packed pancake alternative that eliminates the active cooking time and has become our go-to weekday morning staple. This breakfast dish is sometimes referred to as a German Pancake, Dutch Baby, or Egg Cake.

Credit: Tyler Moore

The recipe combines five kitchen staples, comes together in about five minutes, and then bakes in the oven! We use a 10.25” cast iron skillet. I always call the girls into the kitchen as I’m pulling it out of the oven, because as the mixture bakes it bubbles up to create a different look each time. It always packs a visual punch!

Prep time 10 minutes

Cook time 25 minutes

Serves 4

Nutritional Info

Ingredients

For the pancake:

1 cup
all-purpose flour
1 cup
milk
6
large eggs
1/2 teaspoon
vanilla extract
5 tablespoons
unsalted butter

For the berry compote:

2 cups
frozen mixed berries (do not thaw)
1 tablespoon
freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon
granulated sugar (optional)

Other topping options:

Fresh fruit, chopped or sliced
Peanut butter
Jam or jelly
Maple syrup
Whipped cream
Powdered sugar
Nutella

Instructions

Make the pancake:

Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and place a 10-inch cast iron skillet on the rack. Heat the oven to 425ºF. Meanwhile, make the batter.
Place 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 cup milk, 6 large eggs, and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract in a food processor or blender and process or blend until smooth, 10 to 20 seconds. Leave in the blender. Cut 5 tablespoons unsalted butter into 5 pieces.
When the oven is ready, remove the cast iron skillet from the oven. Add the butter in a single layer and tilt the pan until the butter is melted and the pan is coated. Pour the batter into the skillet. Do not stir.
Return to the oven and bake until puffed and the edges are golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Meanwhile, make berry compote or prepare desired toppings.

Make the berry compote:

Place 2 cups frozen mixed berries, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar if desired in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the mixture reduces by half, darkens in color, and thickens, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly before using.

More Breakfast Ideas from Cubby

This article was originally published in October 2021.

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