Spiced Apple Pop-Over

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I have been making different variations of this dish for several years. During Christmas I do individual pop-overs baked in muffin tins filled with goat cheese and herbs. My family can’t get enough of them and they are so simple yet FUN to eat. They fluff up pretty high sometimes, hence the name pop-overs. Served plain and made with beef drippings this recipe is also know as yorkshire pudding in England, which is a much loved culinary tradition.

I usually make my pop-overs with butter, but this time I wanted to try some of my freshly rendered lard that I got from an Amish farm that’s fairly local to me. This dish is a great way to to incorporate more eggs in your diet without serving eggs for breakfast all the time. This is the best and easiest recipe I have found and have used it several times, and it always works. Traditionally this is made using a pre-heated cast iron skillet but the recipe that this one came from said to just put it in a cold oven. Works for me! I just used a rounded deep-dish pie plate so it’s very versatile. rounded deep-dish pie plate so it’s very versatile.

And also note that this IS a compromise food as it does contain some white flour. I sort of figured that was a reasonable cheat because of the pastured eggs, healthy fat, and raw milk. If you use another type of flour please let me know! Especially if you incorporate a soaking step. This one I made on a weekday morning when my kids where ready to eat. I have gotten into the habit of laying everything out the night before ready to be mixed with the eggs, milk, and melted fat in the am. This cuts down on time even more! (Recipe adapted from “Perfect Recipes for Having People Over” by Pam Anderson)

Here’s what you need:

1 1/2 cups organic unbleached white flour (see update below for my soaked whole wheat version-much better!)

1 1/2 cups hormone and anti-biotic free whole milk (grass fed always preferred, raw even better)

4 local eggs

2 tbls. lard or butter ( I bet you could use coconut oil too though)

1 tsp. sea salt

1 tsp cinnamon or more depending on taste

1 tsp. rapadura (whole cane sugar) or even real maple syrup

1 tsp. baking soda (the original recipe didn’t call for this but I added it for more lift)

1 cored and thinly cut organic apple (optional but yummy)

The How To:

This is very simple. Just combine all of the ingredients and blend well. You might want to slightly beat the eggs separately for easier incorporation. And like I said before, most of the can be prepped the night before to save time as well. Next just generously grease about an 8 x 8 inch glass pan, cast iron skillet, or even a pie plate as I used and pour in the mixture. Place in your cold oven and turn it on to 425 degrees. Now sit back and peek at it every now and then, (but only if you have a window on the stove-don’t open the stove until ready to serve or it can cause it to fall) watching it get bigger and bigger until it is slightly browned on top. Takes about 35 mins.Serve immediately as this dish does fall pretty quickly. Serve with warm grade B maple syrup if desired.

Mine didn’t rise as much as it usually does this time. When I make it in muffin tins they rise really high! But I’m not sure how that would fare with the apples which is why is was slightly denser this time-but still fantastic. You could also omit the apples and cinnamon and add cheddar cheese and bacon pieces. MMM! Lots of possibilities!  Hope you enjoy!

Serves about 6

UPDATE: So I went ahead and tried this with freshly ground whole wheat pastry flour that soaked overnight. The results were FANTASTIC. Even better than with the white flour. It was almost a completely different dish though. It didn’t end up rising so much and instead tasted more like a baked french toast. SO tasty! What I did was soak the fresh flour in the 1 1/2 cups whole grass-fed milk and added about 3 tbls. of apple cider vinegar (but you could do part milk, part kefir or buttermilk with similar results) overnight and added the egg, fat, and the pre-measured dry ingredients. I highly recommend trying it this way! It makes it 100% good for you and even taste the best!

This recipe is shared at Fresh Bites Friday 5/6 , Real Food Weekly 5/5,  The Hearth and Soul blog hop #47,  21st century housewife ,  and Real Food Wednesday 5/11/