Savory Dutch Baby with Herbed Ricotta..

Filling this savory Dutch Baby with Herbed Ricotta, Roasted Cherry Tomatoes, Sautéed Mushrooms, and Ham is like having a brunch pizza.

Savory Dutch Baby

The Dutch Baby is often called a skillet pancake but I think the batter is more like a crepe batter, having more egg & milk than flour. I love the way they puff up and brown when they bake. Then when you take them out of the oven they collapse a bit leaving a very inviting center for filling. Even though the crust is not pizza like, I thought these flavors would be nice in it.

Dutch Babies require a bit of multi tasking but are relatively simple. You get your batter going in the blender, the mushrooms sautéing on the stove, tomatoes roasting in the oven, ricotta mixture mixed up in a bowl, & your skillet heating in the oven. I like to use a cast iron skillet for it. Allowing the skillet to get super hot when you add the batter gives the pancake a nice edge after it's baked. Make sure when you swirl the butter around in the hot pan you get good coverage so the pancake doesn't stick. Like most cooking, it's a bit of a juggling act.

When roasting the cherry tomatoes for the Dutch Baby, the recipe calls for 1 cup. But, if you have a pint, throw them all in. I tossed them in olive oil and put a few sprigs of thyme from the herbs I had. We love roasted cherry tomatoes. I just about always have some on hand. We love them on sandwiches, eggs, avocado toast, on a cheese platter... It seems most of the pints of cherry tomatoes I buy end up roasted. I'll throw a handful of cherry tomatoes in a salad, then a few days later I realize I need to finish them so I throw them in the oven, they keep longer that way.

I like the filling ingredients warm when I put them in the Dutch Baby so before I serve it I throw the tomatoes & ham in the skillet with the mushrooms and get them sizzling for a bit before I add them on top of the ricotta mixture.

Feel free to embellish with fillings of your choice. Improvising with what you have is always a good idea. Fill it with eggs, salsa & avocado, or toss some arugula with olive oil, lemon juice and grated parmesan & put it on top. The Dutch Baby is very versatile.