Whole Wheat Popovers
Here at St. Isidore Farm, we are celebrating the restoration of the reputation of eggs to their rightful standing as an important and healthful component of a smart eating plan. Specifically, we are about to tear into a batch of whole wheat popovers. The recipe is based on one included in The Better Homes and Gardens New Diabetic Cookbook. Fortunately, you dont have to be diabetic to eatand enjoythese popovers. Try them today!
Here at St. Isidore Farm, we are celebrating the restoration of the reputation of eggs to their rightful standing as an important and healthful component of a smart eating plan. Specifically, we are about to tear into a batch of whole wheat popovers. The recipe is based on one included in The Better Homes and Gardens New Diabetic Cookbook. Fortunately, you dont have to be diabetic to eatand enjoythese popovers. Try them today!
- Carbohydrate 22.5812507684137 g
- Cholesterol 2.45 mg
- Fat 1.51884197284414 g
- Fiber 1.57019363194636 g
- Protein 5.63047090735075 g
- Saturated Fat 0.42551847845866 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (107g)
- Sodium 64.8899852084792 mg
- Sugar 21.0110571364674 g
- Trans Fat 0.159505193526532 g
- Calories 126 calories
Step-by-step
- Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray bottom and sides of six 6-oz custard cups of cups of a popover pan with nonstick coating. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, use a wire whisk or hand mixer to beat eggs, milk, and oil until combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flours, salt, and herbs, if using.
- Gradually whisk flour mixture into egg mixture, continuing to whisk vigorously until batter is smooth.
- Fill prepared cups half full of batter and bake in preheated oven about 40 minutes or until very firm.
- Immediately after removing from oven, prick each popover to allow steam to escape. If you can stand to wait any longer and like your popovers a little on the crisp side, return the popovers to the oven for five more minutes.
- Remove popovers from cups and eat immediately with copious amounts of butter, which may be shown in future to be a health food, too!
The Chemistry of Steam and Structure
Golden, hollow shells emerge from the oven with craggy, blistered crusts and interiors dominated by wide, airy pockets of trapped steam. Achieving this dramatic rise relies entirely on thermal shock, which requires a preheated 400 degree oven to instantly vaporize the moisture suspended inside the batter. Whisking the wet and dry components thoroughly ensures gluten strands develop enough elasticity to trap those expanding gases without prematurely rupturing the exterior walls.
Vessels and Thermal Mass
Dedicated popover pans feature deep, vertical cylinders spaced widely apart to promote maximum heat circulation around every individual cup. Standard six-ounce custard cups placed on a rimmed baking sheet serve as an effective substitute when specialized cast-aluminum hardware is absent, provided they are thoroughly greased with nonstick spray to prevent anchoring. Metal pans conduct heat more aggressively than ceramic or glass, yielding a darker crust and a more structurally sound exterior shell during the initial thirty to forty minute bake.
Venting Excess Moisture
Piercing each hot pastry immediately upon extraction releases residual internal steam that would otherwise condense and soften the crisp structure. Returning the pierced shells to the cooling oven for an extra five minutes dries out the crumb completely. Enjoying these pastries immediately prevents ambient kitchen humidity from compromising their fragile, shatter-crisp integrity.
