Popovers are one of those culinary marvels that we will never tire of witnessing - or eating! They start out as loose pools of batter dribbled into a baking tin and emerge from the oven a short while later looking like crispy golden puffs of pastry and air. Don't you want to rush home and make a batch right now?
Contrary to how they might seem, popovers are one of the easiest pastries to make. They're essentially flour, eggs, and milk with a pinch of salt and a little butter, all mixed together into a loose crepe-like batter. In the oven, the air trapped in the batter during whisking lift the batter while the outside bakes into a crispy shell.
Popover tins are handy for getting a really dramatic rise, but we're just as happy making them in muffin tins and saving some cupboard space.
We like to serve popovers instead of rolls or biscuits at dinner parties. They're much easier to make and get a lot of ooh's and ahh's from our guests! We sometimes whisk a little shredded cheese or a sprinkling of fresh herbs into the batter, but we love them just as much plain and slathered with sweet butter!
• Easy Ethereal Popovers Recipe
Do you love popovers as much as we do?
Related: David Lebovitz Turns Popovers Into Sugared Puffs
(Image: Flickr member stu_spivack licensed under Creative Commons)
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Ooooh, I haven't made these in years. Now I know what's for brunch this weekend!
Yes. Yes, I do want to rush home right now.
I think some Yorkshire Pudding is in order because I like the beefy goodness. Definite inspiration w/this post!
how is it possible that i've never had a popover? might have to add these to the thanksgiving menu.
I would be grateful for some high altitude pointers. I recently moved from Illinois (elevation: 600 ft) to eastern Arizona (7000 ft).
The problem, if I can call it that, is that I can inhale 1/2 dozen of these before I realize it. These are sooo good.
The recipe says serve immediately. Do they not store well? I would love to serve homemade bread for Thanksgiving but want to avoid baking with yeast.
Love popovers and serve them often.
MegP, they're best straight from the oven but you can rewarm them pretty successfully.
This is making me want to go to the store to get milk, even though it's late and I'm already in my comfy pants.
My best friend's dad bakes his popovers in coffee mugs!
@ aujahlisa - I don't know much (or have any personal experience!) with high altitude baking, but I'll give it a go! According to Shirley O'Corriher, the main issues are that at high altitudes liquids evaporate more quickly and gas bubbles form and pop more easily.
Her suggested solutions are to increase the liquid (usually the egg, which both adds liquid and helps the protein structure set faster), reduce the sugar, or increase the oven temp. For these popovers, I'd try using extra-large eggs (instead of 2 large) or 2 large eggs 1 egg white. Maybe also try increasing the oven temp to 475.
Give it a try and let us know how it works out!
Oooh Laura, I'm so glad for your comment.
I've had popovers a couple of times, but could not break down and buy a specific pan for them.
It tickles me that the writer assumes everyone is reading from work and must "rush home" to make these. She's probably right, which tickles me even more. :)
I've never made these...but now I sure do want to!!!!
southerngrace: My thoughts exactly!
This look tasty, may have to whip some up this weekend.
Are these the same as Yorkshore Pudding? They look very similar.