Cover Batter

Ingredients

• 1 cup of milk
• 1 cup of sifted flour
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon fat

Method

1. 1

   Mix ingredients until smooth.

2. 2

   For thicker batter, use 1.5 cups of flour and add 1 teaspoon of baking powder per cup of flour.

3. 3

   Use for frying various foods.

As published

This recipe was extracted from Foods, their selection and preparation (1935) by Louise Stanley, page 238. The excerpt below is the record exactly as published.

1 cup of sifted flour to 1 cup of milk being standard proportions. In batters, the gluten (protein) of the flour is so dis¬ persed or scattered that it is usually supple¬ mented by protein from egg. The leavening in popovers is steam formed from the high proportion of liquid to flour. In order to hold in this steam, the walls of the popover must be strong, and egg protein makes them so. Unless popovers are made from hard wheat (bread) flour, at least 2 medium-sized eggs are needed to 1 cup each of flour and liquid. From no fat at all up to 1 tablespoon may be used. Salt is needed for flavor, about \ teaspoon to the proportions given. The ingredients are combined by the bat¬ ter method and beaten smooth with an egg beater. Since strong walls are needed, and the batter is very thin, the popovers are beaten to develop the gluten in the flour. Baking cups of glass, earthenware, iron, or enamelware are the best, since they hold the heat. They should be heated and well greased and the batter poured in, filling them not more than half full. To form steam as soon as possible, a hot oven is needed at the beginning. Bake at 450° F. for 20 to 30 minutes or until the popovers pop from the force of the steam. When water is changed to steam, the volume is increased many times, and this sudden expansion forms the large central cavity typical of popovers. Further baking, after the popovers are hollow, makes them crisp and brown. The high tempera¬ ture, if kept up, would make them too brown by the time the walls are cooked through. The temperature, therefore, should be low¬ ered to 350° or 325° F. to finish cooking. Bake until the crust feels quite firm. Pop¬ overs soften when removed from the oven and will collapse unless thoroughly baked. If necessary the heat may be turned off to prevent their getting too brown while be¬ coming crisp. Yorkshire pudding is a variation of pop¬ overs. The proportions are identical, but in¬ stead of being baked in cups, the batter is poured into a pan containing hot drippings from roast beef. No fat is needed in the bat¬ ter. It is baked at the same temperatures as popovers for about 30 minutes, then cut into squares for serving. Timbales and cover batters. Timbale cases and rosettes are for the purpose of holding creamed dishes, such as chicken a la king. They are cooked in deep fat on irons that give them special shapes. They should be crisp and golden brown with a shell thick enough to hold the weight of the mixture to be served in them. [266] The same proportions of ingredients may be used for timbale cases and rosettes as for popovers, although more or less flour may be used, depending upon the hardness of the flour and the amount of egg. One to 2 eggs are used. Since timbale cases are cooked in fat, fat may be omitted from the batter. One to 2 teaspoons of sugar may be added to make them brown better. The batter is mixed until free from lumps to avoid thickened places in the finished products. It should stand about half an hour before cooking, to allow any air bub¬ bles to escape. If left in, the bubbles make holes or weak spots in the timbale cases. The timbale iron is heated in the fat at 370° F. so that it will be of the same tem¬ perature as the fat. Then it is drained to remove excess fat and is dipped into a cup or bowl of the batter to about three fourths of its depth. The iron with the batter on it then is immersed in the hot fat and cooked for about one-half minute, or until golden brown and crisp. When the batter slips off the iron, the fat is too hot. When the cases are soft rather than crisp, the batter is too thick and should be thinned with milk. The same proportions of ingredients used for popovers or for timbale cases may be used also for a cover batter for frying pieces of fruit, certain sliced meats, poultry, sliced eggplant, sliced onion rings, oysters, scallops, and other fish. Proportions that are easy to remember and that work well are these: 1 cup milk, 1 cup sifted flour, 1 egg, ^ teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon fat. A some¬ what thicker cover batter (1J cups flour) is used for frying the juicy fruits and vege¬ tables. For the thicker cover, the coating is improved by adding 1 teaspoon baking pow¬ der to each cup of flour. Egg pancake is another variation of pop¬ overs with the proportion of egg double that of popovers. For a pancake to be baked in a nine-inch skillet, use half this quantity. [267] There should be plenty of fat and the skillet should be hot. The pancake is baked at the same temperature as popovers but not so long, since it is folded or rolled like an omelet for serving. When used as a main dish, creamed meat, fish, chicken, or mushrooms may be added to the top of the pancake before folding. Butter, lemon juice, and powdered sugar, fruit sauce, or marmalade may be used when it is served as dessert or as a breakfast dish. Cream puffs have the same proportion of flour to liquid as popovers, but a higher proportion of both fat and eggs. The liquid is usually water. The fat is increased to give tenderness and richness. The egg gives rigidity to the crust of the puffs and holds in place the high fat of the mixture during baking. To 1 cup each of liquid and flour, basic proportions for cream puffs include \ cup fat, 4 eggs, and 1 teaspoon salt.

Cook this with the app: pantry check, scaling, and the assistant.