A few weeks ago, Julie had a bit of trouble with popovers. They didn't pop. It's a problem she's had before. Poor Julie! Popovers are such a beautiful thing. What better vehicle for some good, organic, sweet butter and some lovely imported French jam? I've made popovers quite a few times and have always had success. I thought I'd make a batch so I could tell Julie exactly how I did it, in hopes that I could find the reason her popovers won't pop...
Popovers Puffy buns with space for stuffing
(12 popovers)
Mix thoroughly:
1 cup unbleached white flour
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup milk
2 tbsp melted butter
Use popover pans or regular muffin tins. Pre-heat oven to 450. Grease muffin tins and heat in pre-heated oven. When hot, fill 1/3 full with popover batter. Bake at 450 for 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 and bake for 10 - 20 minutes longer. Do not open oven until after 30 minutes of baking or popovers may fall. Eat with butter or jam or cheese.
I followed the instructions pretty closely. I mixed the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet in another. I added the dry to the wet and whisked until the batter was smooth. I used a regular nonstick muffin pan. I even preheated the pan for just a couple minutes while the oven was getting up to temp, which I don't normally bother to do. I think it helped -- they popped higher than I've ever had popovers pop!
Of course, I used a different recipe than I usually do, too. Some of them did have weird little indentations, but they were still pretty poufy. I usually like my popovers for breakfast, with butter and jam (of course!), but they went very well with the corn chowder my parents and I had last night!
Well, Julie... I don't know what to say. I can't imagine why your popovers don't pop. All I do differently is I'm not quite as fussy as the recipes want me to be. I hope you have better popover luck soon!
Dr Five Pints March 11, 2005 07:20 PM PST I forgot to mention...for the problem Julie is having, the solution is simple. First, DO NOT open the oven, ever, until they are done. The 30-minute rule is a fallacy. Do what you have to do to make that oven window clean enough so that you can tell if they're a-poppin' or not. Also, as with so many things, keep the batter nice and cold until the minute you put it into the hot pan (yes, you should heat the pan to melt the butter, please see my other comment).
Furthermore, an alternative cooking method (one my grandmother doesn't approve of but I've been having quite a lot of success with) is to skip the changing of the heat and just cook all the way through at 350-375. Try these variations and you'll have success!
Dr Five Pints March 11, 2005 07:15 PM PST Using this recipe, these are actually mini-Yorkshire Puddings. We made them this way (in the popover pan) my whole life, and now as a grown-up I make 'em that way too. The traditional way to grease them was to cook them beneath a beef roast and let the fat drip down into whatever reservoir you would be using to cook the puddings until it was 1/8 to 1/4 full. Since I hate beef (and since no one cooks that way anymore), I just put a pat of butter in the bottom of each. Or, if I'm cooking duck, about a teaspoon of duck fat. They are MM-MM good.
Kelli March 11, 2005 01:53 PM PST Brian -- I was at my parents' house when I made these -- and of course, my Baker's Joy was at home! But I just used regular old non-stick cooking spray, and they came out beautifully.
Brian W March 9, 2005 02:03 PM PST May I ask what you greased your tins with? Did you flour 'em too? Maybe something like that made a difference.
