Monday, March 28, 2011

Popovers


I never had popovers until I took myself out to lunch at a German restaurant. They served popovers instead of dinner rolls. At first, I was a little hesitant--I mean, how can you outdo a dinner roll? But I learned that there is nothing more delicious than a well-prepared popover. A little buttery, a little sweet, a little crunchy. These things have it all! And you don't even need a popover pan.

Before you start anything, preheat your oven to 450F.

Once your oven is warming, you can start the popover batter. A cup of flour will start you off.

A bit of sugar and salt will boost the flavor of the batter. Give things a stir.

Melt a little butter in another bowl. Let it cool slightly.

Add some milk to the butter.

Now, this is pretty important. The milk (and eggs, which come next) should be room temperature. You could use cold ingredients if you're in a rush, but your popovers may not pop very much. They'll still taste good, though.

Add the eggs and a pinch of salt.

Give your wet ingredients a quick whisk, to break up the eggs.

Pour the wet ingredients in with the dry ingredients.

Whisk the wet and dry ingredients together.

You should have a nice batter.

Now grab a muffin tin (or, if you're lucky, a popover pan) and give it a good shower of nonstick spray. This is important--your popovers will need help to puff up, and this will also keep them from sticking.


Grab half a stick of butter and cut it into pieces.


Pop a piece of butter into each muffin well.


Place the muffin tin in the oven, until the butter melts.


Once the butter has melted, fill each muffin well with popover batter.


Three-fourths of the way up each well should be just the right amount to fill each well.


Put the muffin tin back in the oven. Let the popovers bake for 20 minutes. DO NOT open the oven door to peek!!


After 20 minutes, reduce the temperature to 350F. Let the popovers bake for another 20 minutes.


Nice and popped over!


You'll probably need to run a knife around the outside of the popovers to help unstick them. Give them a poke with a knife, too. This will help release steam and keep them from deflating.











Serve them while they're still hot! Give this recipe a try. They're great plain, with a little more butter if you're feeling indulgent, and heated up the next day with a little jam! You will fall in love!


Recipe: Popovers

1 c. flour
1/2 tsp. sugar
1 tbsp. butter, melted
1 c. milk, room temperature
2 eggs, room temperature
1/2 tsp. salt

6 tbsp. butter, cut into 1/2 tbsp. chunks


Preheat oven to 450F.

In a bowl, combine flour and sugar.

Melt the butter in a medium-sized bowl. Allow to cool slightly. Add milk, eggs, and salt. Give things a quick whisk.

Pour and whisk wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.

Spray a muffin tin (or popover pan) with nonstick spray. Add a chunk of butter in each muffin well.

Place muffin tin in the oven. Let heat until butter melts.

Add the popover batter. Fill the muffin wells up half- to three-quarters of the way.

Bake for 20 minutes. Do not open the oven door! Reduce heat to 350F and bake for another 20 minutes.

Remove muffin tin from the oven; run a knife around the edge of the popovers and give each popover a poke with your knife to release steam. Serve hot!

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