Popovers make it fancy!

[kevin313]

Some friends popped over so we made popovers to go with our pot roast - half the fun was in the making!

<iframe width="425" height="349" src="" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Recipe and more at link:

Cavalcade of Food

Celebrating the joy that food brings to life!

cavalcadeoffood.blogspot.com

 

[bleacho]

love the videos

and the simple recepies. the things you cook are things that ive forgotten to have.. i love the videos. keep them coming..

 

[peterh770]

I've made popovers 2 or 3 times, but don't care for their "eggy-ness".  But they are fun to make and very impressive on the dinner table presentation!

 

Great job, Kevin!  Eat your heart out, Ina Garten!

 

[mrb627]

OMG

You two must be stopped! LOL!

Malcolm

 

[whirlpolf]

made them: yummy!

Oh how I love these videos that you make. Apart from seeing what must be done and in which way, you really transfer this "sit down with friends and have a great time" holiday & patio feeling all along with the message.

The popovers turned out to be great and they are a snap to make, but one thing got me stuck:
I could not explain why they are called "popovers"
pop = plop, bang, explode, snap up
over = to the other side (like a pancake) or over like over the rim (of those cups?)

Can you please help out and tell us where the name comes from?

Thanks for the good mood you spread to the world (and that tiny extra wobble that you spread on our hips ;-))))))

Just lovely!
Joe

 

[mrb627]

Wiki

The name "popover" comes from the fact that the batter swells or "pops" over the top of the muffin tin while baking. Another name for them is Laplander[1], of unknown origin.

Malcolm

 

[kevin313]

The Food Timeline.com...

"Popover. A light, hollow muffin made from an egg batter similar to that used in making Yorkshire pudding. The name comes from the fact that the batter rises and swells of the muffin tin while baking...In American Food (1974), Evan Jones writes: Settlers from Maine who founded Portland, Oregon, Americanized the pudding from Yorkshire by cooking the batter in custard cups lubricated with drippings from the roasting beef (or sometimes pork); another modification was the use of garlic, and, frequently, herbs. The result is called Portland popover pudding, individual balloons of crusty meat-flavored pastry." Most popovers, however, are not flavored but merely set in buttered muffin tins. They are served a breakfast or with meats at lunch and dinner."
---Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink, John F. Mariani [Lebhar-Friedman:New York] 1999 (p. 249)

 

[kevin313]

Joe,

I'm SO GLAD you had a chance to make these! Aren't they yummy? And don't worry about those hips....it's all good!

 

[slantfrontwesty]

popovers

Kevin I am enjoying all your videos ! The popovers brought back a stream of great memories of my Mothers Sunday Roast Beef dinners in the winter months. Her popovers, she always claimed, came out the very best and popped the highest when she was in a bad mood and beat the living daylights out of the batter!!!! She used old heavy black muffin tins and heated up the rendered fat from the beef in the tins for a few minutes before pouring in the batter. They were always a huge hit!!!! Cheers!

 

[kevin313]

Kelly - thanks for sharing your story about your mom's popovers. I'll bet using the beef fat in the pan gave them great flavor - hopefully she didn't have to take her frustrations out on the popover batter too often!!

 

[westingman123]

Thank you for shedding light upon these--I'd never been brave enough to try them before. Now, they are going into the rotation! You should do a cooking show. I'd watch.

 

[slantfrontwesty]

popovers

Hey Kevin,

The bad mood was not too often lol..... on the rare occasion where they did not rise to the desired hight, they were coined >flopovers> They were still delicious!

 

[whirlpolf]

Kevin thanks again

Having explained all that has been written here we had a little phone and chat voting.
While it is hard to translate original names with the real "zest" of an expression into another language, some good and some funny ideas were raised and adopted. (We have no popovers in Europe, it seems to be an American thing).
Here is what people came up with:
- Atombrötchen (nuclear rolls)
- manchmal gehen die (sometimes they will rise - ok, my fault ;-)))
- Steigerbrötchen (rising muffins)
- Formsprenger (mold exploders)
- Schlabberjamjams (soaker-up yummys as they can take up so much gravy).
- die vom Kevin (just "Kevin's")

No matter what people said, please never feel insulted, we had such a fun time. And you know how it is going: Chatting, laughing, giggling and cheering away all night, just that sort of things...
Thanks again, we will have them again in December at our annual biker's Christmas barbecue (we have this chilly and frosty "eat/drink/party or die" thing in open air each December, freezing temperatures and a huge "everyone brings something" barbecue fire.
Thanks!
Joe

PS: (my guess: it will solidify on "Kevin's nuclears", I'll bet my beard...)

 

[kevin313]

Joe -
I love it! My favorite has to be "Steigerbrötchen" because it just sounds SO GERMAN! Glad you all had a good time - that's what is all about....the biker's Christmas BBQ sounds like a great time...I'll be there in spirit!

All the best!
Kevin

 

[mixfinder]

Popover Folklore

A.  Mix popovers in a blender to thoroughly combine and hydrate the flour but not form gluten.

 

B.  Let popover batter set twenty minutes before filling the muffin cups.

 

C.  Use Wondra flour (Martha Stewart)

 

D.  Always preheat the pan.

 

E.  Always place the popover pan on a baking sheet.  I garantee you will have oil smoking in the bottom of the oven if you don't.

 

[lordkenmore]

oil smoking in the bottom of the oven if you don't.

Oil better not be smoking in my oven. If oil wants to smoke, it can go outdoors before lighting a cigarette, pipe, or cigar!

 

[kevin313]

Kelly,

I'm curious about Martha's use of Wondra flour - do you think it would make a difference in texture of the popover? I'd be willing to try it, but I just wondering if the results would be any different...

Also, a number of people have told me to start with a hot pan, which I've never done, but does that just reduce the baking time or does it set more of a crust?

Inquiring minds want to know!

 

[henry200]

Instant flour such as Wondra is lower in protein much like cake flour so it's less likely to clump when making sauces and gravies and has a lighter texture for baking.  I've had no problem using all-purpose flour for popovers but for the fluffiest results I'd vote for cake flour.  Starting out with a hot, heavy pan is the way I do it.  Just as when making aebleskivers, you get a dark, golden, crisp crust and the popovers practically disolve in your mouth.

 

[mixfinder]

Wondra

Wondra is a wetted then dried instantized flour that has been deproteinized for sprinkling into boiling liquids to make gravies and sauces.  Wondra can work for some who are gluten sensitive but not for those with Celiac's disorder.  Martha's thought is that it blends instantly, seals over quickly in the hot oven and explodes to greater glory.  I think the heated pan comes from steel and cast iron of earlier days.  Glass which conducts heat quickly and aluminum cupcake pans which lose heat quickly may make preheating less of a factor.

Unless one owns a self cleaning oven, oil in the bottom of the oven is a mood killer and the aroma is never one to highten the dining experience.