Cinnamon Sugar Popovers

These Cinnamon Sugar Popovers are a delicious treat, perfect for brunch or just about any occasion! You only need a few basic ingredients to make them, and you can use a muffin tin instead of a popover pan if you don't have one.

Popovers are essentially the Americanized version of a British Yorkshire pudding, which is traditionally made with beef drippings. Popovers became a popular side dish for English settlers, especially in Maine, where the Jordan Pond house has been serving popovers since the late 19th century.

What makes popovers so great is the simplicity of the batter: it just takes eggs, butter, milk, salt and flour. As the liquid in the batter evaporates, it creates air bubbles that cause a dramatic natural leavening, causing them to "pop over" the sides of their pan! This results in a slightly crispy exterior and a soft, custardy interior. If I could have something for breakfast every day, popovers would be my choice!

If you're looking for some other breakfasts to cook for a crowd, check out our Sheet Pan Frittata, Waffle Brunch Board or Winter Fruit Salad.

Jump to:

• Cinnamon Sugar Popover Ingredients
• How to Make this Cinnamon Sugar Popovers Recipe
• Substitutions and Variations
• What to Serve with Cinnamon Sugar Popovers
• Equipment
• Storage
• Tips and FAQ
• Make sure milk and eggs are at room temperature
• More breakfast recipes
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Reviews

Cinnamon Sugar Popover Ingredients

For the Popovers

• All-purpose flour: Regular all-purpose flour is all you need.
• Milk: We used whole milk, but it will also work with a lower-fat variety. Just make sure you've allowed to milk to sit out to reach room temperature. This will help the liquid in the batter evaporate faster, thus providing more "pop."
• Eggs: Like the milk, make sure these are at room temperature.
• Butter: We used unsalted - this will be melted before being added to the batter.
• Salt: A touch of salt helps balance out the flavor.

For the Cinnamon Sugar

• Granulated sugar: We used regular white sugar, but brown sugar would also be delicious.
• Cinnamon: A 1:4 ratio of cinnamon to sugar is the ideal ratio to coat these popovers.
• Butter: You'll need a bit of melted butter to coat the popovers. A little goes a long way, and too much butter will just make the sugar look soggy.

How to Make this Cinnamon Sugar Popovers Recipe

STEP 1: Preheat your oven to 400˚F / 205˚C. Add flour, room temperature milk, room temperature eggs, melted butter, and salt to a blender, and blend until combined, scraping down the sides if the flour clumps to the sides of the blender.

STEP 2: Lightly grease popover pan with a high-heat oil. Place popover pan or muffin tin into the oven for 5-10 minutes so that it's preheated. Carefully remove it from the oven, then pour popover batter until it reaches the halfway point of each individual popover slot.

STEP 3: Place pan in the oven, making sure there isn't a top rack that's too close to the top of the pan, as these will expand up to 3 inches above the height of the pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the tops of each popover are golden brown. Some spots where the popovers are the tallest may look a touch overdone.

STEP 4: Remove the popovers from the pan and let them cool slightly. Mix together the cinnamon and sugar and melt your butter. Brush each popover with a small amount of butter, then roll in, and sprinkle over, cinnamon sugar mixture until coated.

Substitutions and Variations

• No sugar: If you don't want to add the cinnamon sugar, these are delicious plain!
• Dairy free: We haven't tested it, but these should work with a nondairy milk and butter. There's no way to substitute out the eggs, though.
• Muffin tin: If you don't have a popover pan, you can also make these in a muffin tin, just make sure to only fill the batter up halfway in each muffin slot.

What to Serve with Cinnamon Sugar Popovers

These are amazing on their own, but they're also great with a little extra butter, or a jam like this Easy Strawberry Rhubarb Jam (No Pectin). If you have some on hand, apple butter is also an amazing accompaniment.

Equipment

If you want these popovers to be authentic, you'll need a popover pan. This is the pan we use, we've had it for years and it's still going strong.

Storage

If we're being honest, these aren't going to last longer than 15 minutes. But if you do have leftovers, store the popovers in an airtight container, and enjoy within 2-3 days.

You can also freeze these in an airtight container and enjoy within 3 to 6 months. To reheat, place them back in the popover pan and cook in a 350˚F until warmed through, about 10 minutes.

Tips and FAQ

More tips

• Make-ahead: You can make the batter the day/evening before baking these. Keep it in the refrigerator, then let it come to room temperature before baking. 
• Preheat the popover pan: Just like making sure the eggs and butter are at room temperature, preheating the popover pan will help create more early steam!
• Make sure there's space above the popover pan. The popover pan is pretty tall, and the popovers themselves will pop over anywhere from 1-3 inches above the pan, so make sure there isn't another rack in your oven that the popovers will rise into.
• Grease the popover pan: Most popover pans are nonstick, but we don't like taking the risk of having them get stuck. We coat a paper towel with a little bit of olive oil and run it along the inside of each popover cup before preheating the pan in the oven.
• Some recipes call for cutting a slit in the side of the popovers once they're out of the oven, we've never done this and don't think it's necessary.

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