Garlic Parmesan Popovers
Garlic parmesan popovers are the perfect combination of garlic bread and traditional popovers. This soft puffy roll will compliment nearly any dinner!
Have you ever had a Yorkshire pudding? They are light, baked puddings that are popular in England as a side dish for pot roast.
Well, this recipe is a variation of that. You get the same light, buttery side dish that pairs well with roast beef but our version is kicked up with garlic and Parmesan cheese for extra flavor. We have an amazing version with gruyere cheese too!
Our version is very similar to a popular variation called a Portland or Oregon popover, which uses garlic and herbs to flavor them.
No matter what you call it, you and your guests are guaranteed to love them!
Note: This post may contain affiliate links. That means if you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Thank you!
Ingredients You’ll Need
Here’s what you’ll need to make these:
- Milk – Whole milk offers the best flavor and texture.
- All-purpose flour – All purpose flour works best for the recipe.
- Seasonings – Kosher salt and black pepper are the only seasonings you really need for this.
- Eggs – You’ll need half a dozen eggs. Whipping them is very important to the rising process.
- Salted Butter – You could use unsalted, but salted adds a bit more flavor.
- Garlic – You’ll need to finely mince or use a garlic press.
- Parmesan cheese – You’ll need to get grated parmesan or grate your own block. Both work.
Instructions
Here are the steps to make perfect popovers.
Step 1 – Prep the butter and pan. In a small bowl, mash the garlic and butter together until well combined.
Next, prepare a 6-cup popover pan by placing ½ teaspoon of the garlic butter in the bottom of each cup. Do the same process if using a muffin tin.
Once the pan is ready, place it in the bottom third of the oven and preheat it to 400°F.
Step 2 – Prep the batter. In a saucepan over medium high heat, warm the milk until you begin to see small bubbles around the edges.
As the milk heats, combine the flour and salt. Run the mixture through a sieve to make it extra fine. Set aside.
Once the flour is ready, whisk the eggs until they are frothy in a large mixing bowl.
Remove the milk from the heat and slowly pour it into the egg mixture. As you pour, make sure you whisk continuously. Be careful that you don’t go too fast because it can cook the eggs!
After the milk and eggs are combined, add the flour mixture, whisking it until there are no lumps and the mixture is smooth.
Step 3 – Fill and bake. Carefully, remove the popover pan from the oven and fill each cup 3/4 full of batter. Top the batter in each cup with 1/2 ounce of Parmesan cheese.
Place the pan back into the oven with a baking sheet beneath it to catch any drippings. Bake for 45 minutes. DO NOT open the oven during this time.
When the timer goes off, remove the popovers from the oven. Pop them out of the tin and cut a small slit in the bottoms. This will release some steam and help prevent them from collapsing. Place in a bread basket and serve immediately.
Tips for Making This Easy Popovers Recipe
Garlic parmesan popovers are easy to make, but a bit of a challenge to master. Here are some tips to make the best popovers.
- Use the right tools. While you can use a muffin tin to make popovers, you won’t get the same shape. The texture may vary too. I highly recommend purchasing a popover pan. The tall, narrow shape forces the popover up as the steam builds. The steam is what helps give it that classic, big, and fluffy, popover shape.
- Whisk, whisk, whisk. Popovers don’t have a leavening agent in them like baking powder. Instead, they rise like a souffle thanks to steam building up inside of them as they bake. The key to big, fluffy popovers is getting the eggs nice and frothy so you have more air in your popover batter. Whisk the mixture together really well! You’ll want to whisk in a lot of air into it before adding it to your popover or muffin pan.
- Preheat the pan. Pouring the batter into a hot pan helps the steam start to form immediately. This simple step can make all of the difference in getting really tall popovers. So place the pan in the oven as it heats and let it sit at temperature for a few minutes in the oven. Only take it out when you are ready to start pouring out your batter.
- Don’t peek! Once your popovers are in the oven, don’t open the door again until the timer goes off!! Opening the oven can introduce room temperature air, which can cause them to fall or not rise at all.
- Keep them from falling. You’ll want to serve your popovers warm, right out of the oven. Once they come out of the oven they will want to fall. To help them keep their shape, you can cut a slit in the bottom of each popover to help release the steam. This will keep them from collapsing in the center.
Popovers vs Yorkshire Pudding
Popovers, yorkshire puddings, and even dutch babies are all in the same family of baked goods. They are made with the same basic ingredients: eggs, flour, and milk. The big difference is how you cook them.
Popovers are baked in a popover pan with a little heated butter. You can, like in this recipe, add additional seasonings such as garlic or herbs to season the bread. You can also top them with some cheese. The popover pan gives them their distinctive, tall shape. The pan forces them to rise taller and puff up at the top.
Yorkshire pudding was historically baked in the drippings of a roast that had cooked low and slow all day. The batter was poured into the hot pan with the drippings. The pudding rose around it making a deliciously fluffy bread to serve with the roast.
Today people use drippings, a little bacon grease, fat from a roast, or just oil or butter. You can even make mini yorkshire puddings in a muffin tin, like you can with popovers.
A Dutch Baby is a breakfast food which is like a big pancake that puffs up as it bakes. It is made with the same ingredients as popovers and yorkshire pudding, but it is usually made in a cast iron skillet. You could also make it in a casserole dish if you prefer.
Once a Dutch Baby comes out of the oven, you can top it with sweet or savory toppings such as strawberry sauce, fresh fruit, or powdered sugar. Savory options can include ham, cheese, bacon, breakfast sausage, or your favorite breakfast topping.
Do You Have to Use a Popover Pan?
A popover pan will give you a larger, taller, and generally more impressive popover. But you don’t have to use one if you don’t have one.
If you don’t want to buy a popover pan, you can use a regular muffin tin. You will use less batter (still fill each cup ¾ of the way full) so they will be smaller. They also won’t get the same distinctive shape, but they will still be very delicious.
Looking for More Bread Recipes
- Overnight Refrigerator Yeast Rolls
- Baking Powder Biscuits
- Cranberry Orange Bread
- Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread
- Apple Cinnamon Pull Apart Bread
- Caramel Apple Bread
- More bread recipes…
Like this recipe?
Make sure to follow us on Instagram and Pinterest for more recipes like this.
Garlic Parmesan Popovers
Ingredients
- 3 cup Milk
- 3 cup All-purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 6 large Eggs
- 2 tablespoon Salted Butter
- 2 cloves Garlic, finely minced
- 6 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated
Instructions
- In a small bowl mash together the garlic and butter.
- Prepare a 12-cup popover pan by placing ½ teaspoon of the garlic butter in the bottom of each cup.
- Preheat oven to 400°F with the 12-cup popover pan in the bottom third of an oven.
- In a saucepan over medium high heat warm the milk until you begin to see small bubbles around the edges.
- Combine the flour and salt and run it through a sieve to make it extra fine. Set aside.
- In a large bowl whisk the eggs until they are frothy.
- Remove the milk from the heat and slowly pour it into the egg mixture, whisking continuously. Be careful that you don’t go to fast and cook the eggs!
- Once the milk and eggs are combined add the flour mixture, whisking it until there are no lumps and the mixture is smooth.
- Remove the popover pan from the oven and fill each cup 3/4 full of batter.
- Top the batter in each cup with 1/2 ounce of Parmesan cheese.
- Place the pan back in the oven with a baking sheet beneath it on the rack below to catch any drips, and bake for 45 minutes. Do not open the oven during this time.
- Once the popovers are done remove them from the oven, cut a slit in the bottom of each popover to release the steam, and place them in a bread basket. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
