By Mother's Day. My second one, which is different from the first in that last year I was still processing the identity and this year I'm settled in it. I'm a mother. I know what that means now: it means a fourteen-month-old with tomato opinions and a specific relationship with duck-watching and a preference for his father's Saturday pancakes. It means the chain lock at the top of the door. It means checking the monitor at two AM not because I'm anxious but because I want to hear him breathe. It means loving someone so specifically that the love has an address.
Sean made French toast again—the sourdough one—and Liam had his pieces in the high chair and Sean put a strawberry on the plate next to the pieces and Liam looked at the strawberry for three seconds and then picked it up and offered it to me. He offered it to me. I ate the strawberry. He watched with satisfaction like he'd just made a successful transaction.
We went to my parents' for the afternoon and my mother had made her good roast chicken and I sat at the table and ate and watched my mother watch Liam and thought about the way generational love works—how she loves me and she loves Liam because of me and those two loves are continuous but different. I hope he has enough time with both grandmothers. I think about this more than I say.
Liam gave me a card that Sean had gotten him to put handprints on in yellow paint. Two handprints and "LIAM" written by Sean in marker below. I put it on the fridge. I'll keep it somewhere better. I'm keeping all of them.
Sean’s French toast is his thing, and I’d never try to replicate it — but the spirit of that morning, the sourdough and the strawberry and Liam watching us eat with that ancient little look of satisfaction, made me want something in that same family: baked, golden, something that fills the kitchen with warmth before anyone’s fully awake. German pancakes have that same quality. You pour the batter in, slide the pan into the oven, and by the time everyone is settled at the table, something remarkable has happened. They’re built for mornings that matter.
German Pancakes
Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 20 min | Total Time: 30 min | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 6 large eggs
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- Powdered sugar, for serving
- Fresh strawberries, sliced, for serving
- Maple syrup or lemon juice, for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven. Place a 9x13-inch baking dish or large oven-safe skillet in the oven and preheat to 425°F (220°C). Let the pan heat in the oven while you prepare the batter.
- Blend the batter. In a blender, combine eggs, milk, flour, vanilla extract, and salt. Blend on medium speed for about 30 seconds until completely smooth and slightly frothy.
- Melt the butter. Carefully remove the hot pan from the oven. Add the butter and swirl to coat the bottom and sides completely as it melts.
- Pour and bake. Immediately pour the batter into the buttered hot pan. Return to the oven and bake for 18–22 minutes, until the pancake is dramatically puffed and deep golden brown at the edges.
- Serve right away. Remove from the oven — it will begin to deflate within a minute or two, which is perfectly normal. Dust generously with powdered sugar, top with sliced fresh strawberries, and serve with maple syrup or a squeeze of lemon.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 310 | Protein: 13g | Fat: 14g | Carbs: 32g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 220mg