There are two foods that I strongly associate with my grandmother, Norma Jean. They are pineapple upside-down cake and popovers.
I know. She’s a cool lady. I’m pretty sure if anyone associates any food with me it’s probably pizza and hot fudge sundaes. Which are delicious, don’t get me wrong. But somehow I feel my grandma found two amazingly delicious foods that still somehow seem classy and interesting. Which is pretty much how I would describe her. 🙂
If you’ve never had a popover before, it might look it a little strange to you. I guess they kind of look like bread cupcakes, huh? Well, they’re not. They are very light and airy, as you can probably guess, but they also have a slightly eggy/custard taste. To me, it’s similar to french toast.
One thing I love about popovers is you can easily adapt them into a sweet or savory treat. This gives them the ability to be served nearly any time of day if you want. You can make a cinnamon version for breakfast served with butter and maple syrup. You can make a cheddar-and-chives version to serve alongside soup for lunch. Or you can add a little orange zest, top these with dark chocolate glaze, and just like magic you’ve got dessert! I went with the last option, of course.
There’s just something festive about orange and dark chocolate. It’s almost a holiday thing.
Orange & Dark Chocolate Popovers, makes one dozen mini size.
Adapted from Dark Chocolate Popovers via marthastewart.com
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon orange zest (or whatever you can get out of one orange)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup dark chocolate chips
water to thin the chocolate (I used about 2 tablespoons)
First, it’s helpful if the eggs are at room temperature. I forgot to set mine out ahead of time, so I immersed the eggs in warm water for about five minutes just to take the chill off.
In a bowl, press together (using your clean fingertips) the sugar and orange zest. This will help to release oils and make everything taste even more orange-y. To the ingredients in the bowl, add the flour and salt; stir to combine.
In another bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk. You want to incorporate some air into the batter so really whisk those eggs for a full minute! Then stir in the flour mixture until the batter is just combined.
Preheat the oven to 450°F with the popover pan in the oven as it warms up. Once preheated, remove the pan, lightly spray with non-stick cooking spray, and fill each cup 2/3 full with batter. Bake for 15 minutes. Turn the temperature down to 350°F and continue baking for another 10-12 minutes until the popovers look golden and crusty.
*You can use a regular muffin pan to make popovers. The shape will be slightly different and this may change your bake time by a few minutes. But as long as you’re willing to keep an eye on them as they bake, you really don’t have to purchase a special pan for these.
For the chocolate sauce, microwave the chocolate until completely melted. I will microwave for 30 seconds, then give it stir, then microwave another 30 seconds, and so on until melted. Then stir in water until you achieve a pourable consistency. You can make your chocolate either quite thick or runny based on how much water you add.
Pour the warm chocolate over the still-warm popovers. Sprinkle on a bit more orange zest.
I like to serve these with an orange slice for color, health, and just so people know what they’re getting into. Enjoy! xo. Emma
Credits // Author: Emma Chapman, Photography by: Sarah Rhodes and Emma Chapman
Wow, those look so scrumptious!!!!! Definitely going to need to give these ago!
Cx http://mixedmediumstheatre.blogspot.co.uk/
Wowza, what a treat!! Mmm orange and dark chocolate are such a yummy combo.
Such a beautiful home!
In the uk we call them Yorkshire puddings and we eat them with roast dinners. I’ve never tried a sweet version before but it sounds great!
Popovers are so fun. I had to comment and say how much I especially love that colorful apron, though!
In the UK these are called Yorkshire puddings and are generally savoury. We have them traditionally with roast beef for Sunday lunch. Or you cook a big one with sausages and it’s called Toad in the Hole (no idea why!). Yummy!
I love popovers – they’re one of those impressive things that’s actually incredibly easy. I usually make them for breakfast with jam or for anytime with Nutella. I haven’t tried mixing other things in the batter, I like that idea. Thanks for sharing!
These look delicious! I’ve read that if you’re using a regular muffin pan instead of a popover pan, you should leave the middle spots open so the air in the oven can get around the popovers better. Not sure how much of a difference this makes, but I thought I’d mention it in case anyone has further insight, or if they’re having issues with a regular pan.
These look so good, wish I was as good at making cakes! xx
Amy | http://amysbeautyjournal.blogspot.co.uk/
The weirdest thing happened! I felt like I could smell the chocolate when scrolling through the recipe! Ha! Happy Baking!
Popovers are my mom’s main go to with roast beef and Christmas roasts. I made them once for my hubby and he thought they were strange so I never made them again. This is inspiring though.
On worst cooks in america they were doing a donut challenge and I thought chocolate and orange spice would be amazing… so I think Im gonna get some dark chocolate and make these to follow my orange halibut recipe this week.
I have to admit, at first I passed over this recipe. For some reason I thought it would be a more complicated thing to make & I’m still not entirely certain about whether or not I’m a fan of orange flavouring in my foods.
But I scrolled back up and read through and got more excited as got through the post. So excited to try these!
Yum! These look amazing 🙂
Holy, moly! These look WONDERFUL. I will have to get a popover pan just so I can try them! WOW!
My mother used to make popovers when I was very young, but stopped making them when we moved from the country. I have never tried them, but I think I might make them for breakfast on Saturday. My first thought about them, when I saw the title, was “That’s not Laura Ingals Wilder’s popover recipe!” But hers were plain. 🙂
Lovely photos! Well done! (I would never have noticed your nails if it hadn’t been mentioned…)
In England we call them Yorkshire pudding and serve them with a Sunday roast beef dinner. I’ve never thought of serving them sweet but I guess the basic batter is similar to pancake/crêpe batter and that’s served savoury or sweet so why not.
o0o0o yummy! They look like a muffin and an ice cream cone had a baby! Delicious Emma!
www.dancingthroughsunday.typepad.com
Oooh these sound good. Might have to have a go at these…
www.sophiemakesup.blogspot.com
its looks very yummy.nice article thanx or share it click here for love couples , partner love stories and matchmaking service for free
These look so good! xx
http://www.sweetcandydreamer.com