An Easy Way to Make Your Meal Pop

Rushing around from work to family events and social functions is hard enough without the snowy Minnesota weather slowing traffic down. But put all of these together, and you’ll find me on any given night - arriving home late, flustered and with absolutely no plans for dinner.

Lucky for me, the hubby loves to grill (regardless of the frigid temperatures), so our fall-back dinner style is a classic meat-and-veggies combo. For the most part, this has worked well for us since we don’t have kids and we are trying to live healthfully. But sometimes you just need a little something extra to accent that meal. I grew up in a house of homemade bread lovers, but 6 o’clock on a work night isn’t exactly prime time for starting the bread-making process. So, what’s the perfect solution for that carb craving? A popover!

Popovers are great because they require very few ingredients (eggs, milk and flour), so you almost always have the elements ready and waiting. Plus, they can be dressed up in a variety of ways. When I was growing up, my family made standard popovers as a side, but my friend Erin’s mom made mini-popovers in a muffin pan, then lathered them with butter, cinnamon and sugar to serve as a sweet snack. Since Ryan and I both love popovers, we recently decided to try these Fresh Sage & Pepper Popovers for a little something more flavorful with our dinner.

To make your Fresh Sage popovers, set your eggs out on the counter a little earlier (maybe your spouse or roommate can do it if they get home before you). This is a nifty little trick because the popovers will pop best if the eggs and milk are room-temperature. You’ll also want to set butter out to soften if you’re planning to make sage butter to go along with the popovers.

As you get closer to preparing your meal, preheat your oven to 450 degrees F. Let the oven heat up while you prep your fresh sage – give it a light rinsing, then chop it into small pieces. Set aside a little extra chopped sage for the sage butter.

I try to hand-mix whenever I can (a little calorie-burning trick I learned from my mom). So beat the eggs as quickly as you can by hand or on medium-speed with a mixer.

Now mix in the rest of the popover ingredients: fresh sage, salt and cracked pepper.

But don’t forget your flour! I got over-confident on my first batch and forgot this key ingredient (sounds like my cream puffs, huh?). This is a major no-no. You’ll end up with wet little egg quiches. So beat that flour in and the batter will be nice and creamy.

Thoroughly grease your popover pan before adding the batter. I greased mine by hand with a little butter, but cooking spray could work too as long as you make sure the whole inside of the cup gets coated. You don’t want your popovers to stick.

Now that your pan is ready, divide the batter into the cups as evenly as you can. They’ll be a little more than half full. Place the pan into your preheated oven and set your first alarm for 15 minutes.

While the popovers are baking, you can mix together your softened butter, chopped sage and a little pepper either by hand mixing or using an electric mixer. I just made a mini batch – enough for Ryan and I to taste. When you’re done mixing the butter ingredients together, set the bowl in the refrigerator until serving time.

After 15 minutes is up on the clock, back the heat down on your oven to 350 degrees F, but DON’T open the oven. Keeping the heat inside is key to fluffy popovers. Set your alarm for 25 more minutes. When the time is up, look through the glass on your oven (if you can). Your popovers should be looking popped and golden brown!

Serve your popovers right away so they stay warm. Spread some sage butter in the inside and you’ll have a perfect side to your meal.

How do you like to dress up your popovers? Let us know by posting below, then rate and review this recipe.

Amanda is paid to write for the Land O’Lakes Recipe Buzz® Blog.