Maple Bacon Popovers

Why don't I make popovers more often? They are easy, delicious, and impressive. It may be because the cabinet in the kitchen that holds most of the less commonly used equipment is ridiculously non-ergonomic. Getting the popover pans out is an enormous pain in the ass.

If you haven't tried popovers, you need to, soon. They are descended from the Yorkshire pudding. They are a thin batter, cooked in a very hot oven, and are dependent on the mechanical leavening of steam. They develop a crisp, chewy exterior, and a soft, fluffy interior. They must be eaten as soon as possible after coming out of the oven.  A cold popover is not pleasant, and don't even try re-heating in a microwave *shudder*.

All the recipes say you can use a muffin tin. I never have, and I'm dubious that the results would be optimal. They would certainly be smaller than ones from a proper popover pan. That would also result in a higher crust to fluffy interior ratio, the cube square law being what it is.

The proper popover pan has a kind of trumpet shaped cup, which is much longer than it is wide.

We are still frantically busy getting ready for Potrero War. Since the spouse is pretty much the anti-morning person, I find doing a special breakfast helps encourage her to get on with the days business.

So today I decided to make popovers. I went with maple bacon, because, well, bacon. The recipe I use as a base is from the famous Jordon Pond House in Maine. The order they do things seemed a little wonky to me, so I changed things around to be more in line with the methods I learned in my pastry class.

To accompany the popovers, I made some Bingo Blueberry tea from the Cobblestone Cottage Tea Shoppe in Alpine California. I thought it continued the New England vibe well. It was very good, just needed a little sugar to balance it out. It went well with the popovers.

Maple Bacon Popovers

2 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup bacon bits
2 Tbsp. maple syrup
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder

Pre-heat oven to 425 F.

Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat eggs until fluffy and light yellow. Add maple syrup, beat on high until well incorporated. Add flour mixture in three stages, alternating with half the milk. After each addition, beat on high until well incorporated. Scrape down sides of bowl after each addition of flour.

Once all the milk and flour mixture are incorporated, beat on high for two minutes.

Strain batter. Stir in bacon bits, distribute batter evenly among the six cups of the popover pan.

Bake for 15 minutes. Turn heat down to 350F, and bake for another 15 minutes.

Serve immediately.

Happy Eating!