Fadges

A two-ingredient steam-raised batter bread from the eggless health-cookery tradition. Everything depends on heat, since there is no egg, no fat and no chemical leavening to help it rise.

• The hinge: a screaming hot panWith no egg protein and no baking powder, the only lift comes from steam hitting a hot metal surface. Preheat greased cast-iron gem pans or a popover tin in the oven until the fat shimmers, then pour the batter into the hot cups and return them immediately.
• "Bake same as Pop-overs"The book gives no temperature or time, only the cross-reference; period popover directions say simply 'hot oven' for something like half an hour. In a modern oven the usual reconstruction is a hot start, around 450F, to force the rise, then a drop to around 350F to set the shell. Avoid opening the door while it is climbing.
• Entire wheat flourThe period term for flour milled from the whole kernel with only the coarsest bran taken out, so not quite the same as unbolted graham. Modern whole wheat is the nearest thing, though a finer white whole wheat gives a lighter result; coarse bran interrupts the gluten and limits how high a fadge will climb.
• The batter is thicker than a popover'sThe batter is a little thicker than a popover's -- equal volumes of flour and water give slightly less liquid than the usual popover mix of flour, milk and two eggs, so the batter is somewhat heavier though still pourable. Beat it hard, as instructed, and do not count on the dramatic balloon a well-egged popover gives.
• No salt is givenThe recipe as printed lists only flour and water. Half a teaspoon of salt per cup of flour brings it into line with ordinary taste if that is what you want.
• YieldNo yield is given; a cup of flour and a cup of water will fill roughly four to six gem or popover cups. Eat them straight from the oven; with no fat or egg they toughen quickly as they cool.