But first, a failed dutch baby.
I learned a lot of things this time around, making my, oh maybe sixth in a row?, failed dutch baby. I thirded the recipe of a very popular dutch baby recipe and ended up with, once again, a very flat pancake. Here’s what I think went wrong:

Whole wheat flour: maybe this is too dense to allow the dutch baby rise the way all-purpose flour allows? TBD.
Chocolate chips: apparently adding add-ins to the batter before baking hinders the batter’s ability to poof to the heights it should be destined for. I should have known. (cc: this adorable post.)

Anyway, I ended up with this:

Let’s be real: I still ate it, and it was delicious. But if you have any tips on how to make a fluffy, REAL dutch baby, they would be greatly appreciated!

On another note, that immersion blender.

*heart eyes emoji*

OXO generously sent me their fabulous OXO On Illumination Digital Immersion Blender and omg. I’d been thinking about buying one for years, but couldn’t justify it because if you take a casual stroll through my kitchen, you’ll find no fewer than 92837492837 kitchen appliances, including a giant blender, a ninja, and a food processor. Adding another blending device just seemed ludicrously indulgent.

BUT I think it might have just slid into first place as my new favorite kitchen device. I used it earlier this week to blend up a large pot of broccoli soup, which already earned it its weight in gold in my book (has anyone ever had a too-hot blender full of soup explode on them? #scarredforlife) as well as to blend up just a tiny amount of batter for an individual dutch baby AND to blend up a quick matcha milkshake right in the glass I ended up drinking it from. Possibly what I love most about it is the rubber covering that protects the blade so that you’re never in danger of scratching your pots/bowls/dishes.

Last weekend I ate so so many cookies and just didn’t have the carb-consuming stamina to keep testing my dutch baby until it was perfect. I just needed a smoothie and some green stuff! I figured you might need some too because #holidaycookies. They’re all around us.

This is way too easy to throw together, and super delicious! Even though it’s technically not a milkshake at all, I just liked the alliteration and it’s creamy and delicious enough to pretend like it is. Matcha is known for being high in antioxidants and as a natural source of caffeine, it’s a perfect energy booster to keep you going through the holiday madness. Cheers, and don’t forget to get the favorite person on your gift list a brand-new immersion blender! (They’ll love it.)