Popovers You'll Love!!

Popovers that didn't pop like they should have. That's what I get for using a new recipe!

Note:  This is NOT a gluten-free recipe.

My family loves popovers and considers them a real treat. We occasionally have them with a nice winter soup and I always make them to go with our Christmas Eve clam chowder. The other night I happened upon 'Cooks Country' from America's Test Kitchen and found the secret to making perfect popovers, or so they said.

I bought the bread flour they not only recommended, but insisted upon, whisked the batter until perfectly smooth, like they said, poked a hole in the top to let steam escape, etc. etc.

Result? Their popovers simply tasted like bread fresh out of the oven - which, I'll admit, is not a bad thing. BUT, it's not popovers. I don't want popovers to be heavy and dense and bready! I want popovers to be light, airy, and crisp. AND, when I poked them, they deflated!

SO, I'll scrap that recipe (Sorry, America's Test Kitchen) and go back to my tried-and-true Betty Crocker 1969 Cookbook for wonderful, light, and airy popovers that are crisp on the outside and moist on the inside (and much taller than those in the photo, I might add.)

Betty Crocker 1969 Cookbook Popovers
Makes a dozen popovers


4 eggs
2 cups milk
2 cups All-Purpose Flour (not bread flour, not self-rising flour)
1 t. salt

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Grease (with shortening) 12-part muffin tin. With wire whisk, beat eggs slightly. Add milk, flour, and salt. Beat just until smooth. Do not overbeat.

Fill muffin tins almost to the top. Bake 25 minutes. Lower oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake 15-20 minutes longer or until deep golden brown. Immediately remove from pan. Serve hot, with Real Wisconsin Butter.

I mean it:

REAL WISCONSIN BUTTER.

It's delicious, and it will make our neighbor's cows happy. :-)

P.S. So, tell me what you think: Is King Arthur Flour really all that much better than, say, Gold Medal or Robin Hood? Or is he just another pretty face? I don't know. I mean, really. King Arthur would have lived half a millennium before the Crusader pictured on the flour bag! But still, it makes a pretty package, doesn't it.  I could use some education here regarding brands of flour. Do you have a preference? Do you really notice a difference? A big difference?

This post is linked to Tempt My Tummy Tuesday
and Tasty Tuesdays
and Tasty Tuesday Parade of Foods
and Tuesdays at the Table

Ginger Snaps and Animal Cookies

First of all, I have to say that I hate Daylight Saving Time. Didn't they realize that it actually does not save time at all? that there are the same number of daylight hours as before? that I feel tired and cranky when going on DST in the spring and again in the fall when going off DST? that it's like jet lag without the benefit of going anywhere? It will take my dogs and me a while to adjust to this new time. Imagine what it does to a herd of dairy cows!    So what did that have to do with ginger snaps? Nothing.

This is a totally unsolicited review of DeLish gluten-free cookies. Why? Because the are (delicious, that is). The photo above does not show you the tops of the bags because, unfortunately, I broke into them before we got home from the store. I suppose I should be embarrassed to tell you that. The Animal Cookies are every bit as good and crunchy as the kind we used to get in the little circus box with a string handle when I was a kid.

For me, crunch is a very important factor in food appeal. I like cookies, toast, nuts, and veggies to be crunchy. And then there's my friend's amazing crunchy coleslaw! Even when I stir-fry veggies, I stop while there's still plenty of crunch in them. Both the Ginger Snaps and the Animal Cookies have wonderful crunch.

The DeLish Ginger Snaps are not only great for a treat, but would make a good crust for my Pumpkin Cheesecake. Likewise, the DeLish Animal Cookies would be a good crust for other types of pies or cheesecakes where a cookie crust is recommended.

Nutrition? Well, when you eat half a bag on the way home from the store, it's obvious that your biggest concern isn't nutrition, but just so you know, 10 Animal Cookies give you 130 calories, 1 g of fat, 10 mg cholesterol, 85 mg sodium, 23 g of carbohydrate, and 2 g of protein.  Five Ginger Snaps give you 140 calories, 6 g fat, 0 cholesterol, 110 mg sodium, 21g carbohydrate.

It's easy to forget that just because they're gluten-free doesn't mean they're calorie-free or the most nutritious snack I could possibly have. Still, it is nice to know that there are really tasty gluten-free cookies that I can buy at the store. And guess where I found these: Walgreen's, of all places!

And by the way, no one would ever know these are gluten free.