I am a complete sucker for baked treats and simple sugary carbs. Walking into a kitchen that smells of batters baking — the floral aroma of vanilla filling the air, sugar caramelizing — comforts me. So I blame my children’s sweet tooth on genetics. My whole family loves all things baked. But rather than completely deny ourselves the simple pleasure of baking, I create healthier, portion-controlled versions of our family favorites. Enter the popover!
Popovers have lots of heft and volume, but most of it comes from air. So we can scratch the sweet itch while limiting the damage of loading up on sugary treats.
My mini strawberry popovers have the subtle tang of the strawberries underscored by a drizzle of lemony glaze on top. There also is just a tiny touch of basil in the batter (which you can skip if your kids are in that “won’t eat anything green” phase). While I use all-purpose flour in this recipe (whole-wheat flour just doesn’t get the fluffy lift we love), these little guys are so tiny and airy that you can have a couple of them for just 100 calories.
And making them in a mini-muffin tin means they are done in no-time. They are perfect for last minute treat needs. Plus, they are cute!
I use chopped strawberries, which are chock-full of vitamins and minerals (a crazy-great source of vitamin C!), but feel free to improvise with your favorite fruit or berry, fresh or frozen. While these mini-popovers won’t have many calories, they won’t really count toward your 5-a-day produce quota either.
But hey, every little bit of nutrition helps. And they may make your kids fall in love with strawberries, as they did for my youngest daughter. She went from eating popovers to fresh berries.
MINI STRAWBERRY POPOVERS
Start to Finish: 45 minutes
Makes 24 popovers
For the popovers:
2 teaspoons coconut oil
1 cup strawberries (or other fruit), chopped (fresh or frozen)
Squeeze of lemon juice
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup low-fat milk, warmed
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon dried basil (optional)
For the glaze:
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon coconut oil, melted
1/2 to 3/4 cup powdered sugar
Nutrition information per serving: 50 calories; 10 calories from fat (20 percent of total calories); 1 g fat (0.5 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 20 mg cholesterol; 30 mg sodium; 9 g carbohydrate; 0 g fiber; 4 g sugar; 1 g protein.
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