Popovers

I must not have thought making popovers in a toaster oven was entirely impossible because the last time I was home I copied the recipe from my mother's Farm Journal cookbook. So, when Chris requested popovers for breakfast this morning, I made no promises and gave it a shot.

Popovers are delicate. Like a souffle. Opening the oven door will cause them to shrink and dwindle, like jumping into a cold swimming pool. But I knew that if I didn't put foil on top, they would burn.

About fifteen minutes into baking, their tops indeed began to get quite dark so, with what I hoped would be lightening speed but wasn't, I opened the toaster oven door and slipped the foil on. I watched six gleaming towers shrink before my eyes. Darn.

But with more than half an hour more in the oven, most of them rose back to a level of popover dignity. Although two were really more like plopovers.

No worries. They were perfectly tender on the inside and crisp on the outside.

Chris suggested that, because he had put too much sour cherry jam on one of his popovers, overpowering the delicate flavor, he should have one of mine. No way. Then he offered me five dollars for my last popover. Nope. Then he asked if I could make another batch. Sorry, I ran out of butter. But maybe we'll be having them again tomorrow morning. 

If you have never made popovers, do it. You will be a fan for life.

This recipe is from The Farm Journal's Homemade Breads, 1985 Farm Journal Inc. 

Popovers

1 cup sifted flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup milk

1 tbs. butter

2 eggs

Preheat greased muffin pan, I put about a tsp. of butter in each well, for five minutes in a 375 degree oven. Beat flour, salt, milk and melted butter. Add eggs one at a time. Fill muffin tins 2/3 full. Bake at 375 degrees for 50 minutes. Serve with jam.

Salad

mixed greens

handful basil leaves

Dressing

1/4 cup olive oil

juice of 1 lemon

pinch salt

fresh ground pepper

I don't have room for a salad spinner so I like to wash the lettuce before I start cooking and lay it on a clean tea towel on the windowsill and let it air dry, tossing it a few times. Mix the greens and whole basil leaves together. Mix dressing ingredients and dress salad right before eating.

Nothing better than popovers and a lazy Saturday morning.