steam rising
i baked popovers twice recently, after getting a sudden hankering for these treats. there's a "feel-good" nostalgia that i associate with popovers. flashback many moons ago to one fine september during the early 90's. my 18-year-old self had just started school in Massachusetts, ready for new adventures. just before heading north for college, i had gone to a trendy salon near georgetown university, in washington, DC, where a black-clad, gay-tastic stylist chopped off the frizzy remnants of an old perm (don't laugh!). i walked out with a new chin-length cut, feeling open to new experiences and ready to conquer the world as only someone that young can feel.
sure enough, within two weeks of my arrival, i entered into a steamy, hot love affair--one that would last me all four years that i was there. it started when another student told me i absolutely HAD to try a restaurant called Judie's, in the nearby town of Amherst, because they served famous and outrageously good popovers.
so like a good girl, i caught the next bus over there to see what it was all about. sure enough, i was instantly smitten with those puffed up little darlings. they were steaming hot and fresh-from-the oven. and what was so fun & unique about this restaurant was that regardless of what you ordered (salad, entree, soup, whatever), instead of your typical bread/rolls, your meal always came w/ a basket of warm popovers. that, and a saucer of apple-butter to dab onto them. what a delight!
after graduating and moving away from the area, i baked popovers several times. but other interests and priorities took over, and these treats simply became etched into my kaleidoscope of good memories. then out of the blue, a craving happened, and the only solution was to rekindle an old flame.
what's next? buy a popover pan, but only *maybe* since i'm a student and have to save money, and my classic little muffin tin does the trick. and? visit the well-known Popover Caf� if/when i visit New York.
