“Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armor yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.”
-Tyrion Lannister (A Game of Thrones)
I think these are few of my most favourite lines penned by George R R Martin. At first it seems like it’s negative, said in resentment or anything far from being actually powerful from the core. At least for me. Because I always struggled with loving and accepting myself. However, when I read this book again. Somehow, these lines just stayed with me. Self-love is so empowering isn’t it? I mean, I can’t even fathom how happy we would be if only we loved and accepted ourselves for who we are and then improve and grow with positivity embedded within us. The fact that it’s Tyrion’s character who says this, I think all should understand how strong his character is. His mental strength and he himself has always been his best friend, his best ally. Given, maybe it is lonely if we look at it one way. But I think it’s the best example of self-love. And like everything in life, his character must also be taken with a pinch of salt. Not everything he did was justifiable but overall, if we just look at those lines. They reflect how he has learnt the art of loving himself.
Woah! That was a mouthful. DO you guys like me talking about the books I read? I’ve been reading so much these days that my mind is constantly lost in thought about plots, characters, dialogues and suspense. Anyhoo, if you’re anyone like me and you spend most of your time on either Instagram or Pinterest, you must have seen the picture of a really super fluffy pancake like thingy which looks absolutely GORGEOUS. It’s a Dutch Baby!
I knew the moment I laid eyes on it, I had to make it. So, I gave it a shot. It is actually really easy and takes literally no time to put together. The best part is that you can customize your toppings to make it as delicious as you’d like.
Few things to keep in mind:
- Use a Cast Iron Skillet: The heat of the skillet is crucial to this recipe. The pancake rises because of the intense heat of the pan and the oven.
- Safety: Be extremely careful while handling your skillet because it can be really, I mean REALLY HOT.
- Do not open the Oven door while the pancake is baking.
Orange and Blueberry Dutch Baby Pancake
Ingredients
Pancake:
- 3 large eggs (Room temperature)
- 120 ml Milk (Room temperature)
- 2 tbsp Caster sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 65 g All-purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp Baking powder
- 1/4 tsp Orange zest
- 1/4 tsp Vanilla extract
- 14 g Unsalted butter (melted)
Toppings:
- Fresh oranges
- Blueberries
- Whipped cream or Yoghurt
- Powdered sugar (for dusting on top)
For preparing the pan:
- 14 g Unsalted butter
Instructions
Make the pancake:
- Preheat your oven to 220 C, place your 8-inch (oven-safe) cast-iron skillet inside the oven.
- In a bowl add all your ingredients for the pancake and whisk until smooth. You may also put all the ingredients in a blender and blend for 10-15 seconds till you have a smooth batter.
- Now add the butter (kept aside for preparing the pan) into the pan that’s inside the oven. Close the oven door and let the butter melt. It takes about 45 seconds.
- Once the butter is melted, very carefully, using your heatproof gloves, hold the skillet and swirl the melted butter to ensure that it is coating the skillet well.
- Pour the batter into the heated skillet and close the oven. Bake for approximately 18 minutes or until the pancake has puffed up a lot and is golden brown in colour on the sides. The center should be cooked and not runny.
- Handle the pan carefully. Serve immediately and have your toppings ready as the pancake will start deflating as soon as you take it out of the oven. Sprinkle a generous amount of sugar and add your favourite toppings. Enjoy!
It was so much fun to make and eat this, you should definitely give it a shot. If you do, the please share a photo on Instagram and tag me @bakesalotlady #bakesalotlady
Love,
Anjali.
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