Vanity Biscuit

This is a popover batter under an older name: equal volumes of flour and milk, eggs, no leavening and no fat. It rises entirely on steam, which dictates everything about how it is baked.

• The hinge: a hot oven and hot cupsSteam-raised batters need 425-450F and a pan preheated until a drop of batter hisses. A cold pan or a moderate oven gives flat, eggy pucks rather than hollow shells.
• The measurementsA pint is two cups. Two cups of flour is roughly 9 oz by weight, two cups of milk 16 fl oz. The batter should be thin, about the consistency of heavy cream, and pouring rather than spooning is the test.
• "Bake in cups"Nineteenth-century kitchens used earthenware custard cups, iron gem pans or muffin rings set on a sheet. A standard muffin tin or a modern popover pan does the same job; fill each cup no more than two-thirds.
• What is missingThere is no salt and no fat in the batter. A half teaspoon of salt and buttered cups bring it in line with modern expectations without changing the method.
• Resting the batterLetting the mixed batter stand about 30 minutes is often said to hydrate the flour and give a better rise. The original gives no timing either way.
• Baking time and the temptation to peekFigure 20 minutes at high heat, then 10-15 minutes lower, around 350F, to set the walls. Opening the oven in the first 20 minutes risks collapsing them.
• YieldRoughly 12 to 15 in standard muffin cups, fewer and larger in a deep popover pan. Serve straight from the oven; they deflate within minutes.