Category: Desserts

Pumpkin Fluff

  • 2 C pumpkin puree
  • 1/3 C real maple syrup
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 TBL pumpkin pie spice
  • 2 C whipped cream
    • mix to combine
  • put into parfait cups (uncooked) and top with whipped topping, pecans and crushed ginger snaps

Carole Stubbs’ Cheesecake

This is hands down, the best cheesecake I’ve ever had.  She brought three to a party, and I ended up eating half of one of them.  I was soooo sick.

  • 8 ounce package Philadelphia Cream Cheese (room temp)
  • 1/3 C sugar
  • 1 TBL light Karo
  • 3 TBL sour cream
  • 1 large egg
  • zest and juice from two lemons
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Use my recipe for a graham cracker crust.

  1. Butter the sides and bottom of a baking pan.  Ideally, use a springform pan
  2. Cut strips of parchment paper about 2 inches wide and place around sides of pan.
  3. Prepare graham crackers – press into BOTTOM ONLY of the baking pan (not the sides)
  4. Beat cream cheese, sugar and Karo
  5. Add egg and sour cream and beat
  6. Add lemon and vanilla and beat to incorporate
  7. Pour into prepared graham cracker crust
  8. Place the baking pan in the bottom of a large casserole dish, and fill the dish with about one inch of boiling hot water
    NOTE:  If using a springform pan (or any pan that may leak) wrap the baking pan with foil to isolate it from the water.
  9. Lay foil lightly over top of the pan/dish
  10. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes
  11. Cool at least 2 hours before serving
  12. Top with fresh blueberries or lingonberry preserves

TOPPING OPTIONS

For the sour cream topping:

  • 2 cups sour cream (475 ml)
  • 1/3 cup powdered sugar (35g)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the raspberry sauce:

  • 12 ounces (340g) fresh raspberries
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar (100g)
  • 1/2 cup water (120 ml)

Caramel Ganache

  • 28 individually wrapped Kraft Caramel candies -Approximately 8 oz
  • 3 TBL butter
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
  1. Prepare an ice water bath for when the caramel is melted
  2. Bring whipping cream and butter up to 195º and add the caramel pieces and salt
  3. Stir until smooth
  4. Place the pan with the caramel mixture into the ice water bath and beat with an electric mixer, stopping to scrap down the sides
  5. This will take about 5 minutes but eventually the mixture will get creamy and thicken.

Pearl Tapioca

Ingredients

  • 3 1/2 oz pearl tapioca
  • 1 PT cold water
    Soak overnight on the counter – not in the fridge
  • Put drained tapioca into sauce pan
  • Add 2 1/2 C whole milk (not low fat)
  • Add 1/2 C heavy cream and a pinch of salt
  1. Turn the heat on the absolutely lowest temperature you can possibly attain
  2. Let cook for 2 hours – it should get hot, but not even simmer
  3. Mix 1 egg yolk with 1/3 C sugar
  4. Temper hot liquid into your eggs, then back into the pot
  5. Mix in the zest and juice from one lemon
  6. Cook uncovered for 15 more minutes
  7. Cool on counter for 1 hour and serve warm
  8. If planning to cool, cover surface with plastic and refrigerate

Caramel Pie

Use a prepared graham cracker pie shell for this recipe

  • 8 oz butter
  • 1 C brown sugar
  • 1/4 C heavy cream

Heat and melt first three ingredients

  • Drizzle in 3 C whole milk and bring back up to heat
  • In separate bowl combine 2 egg yolks, 3 TBL corn starch, 1/2 tsp vanilla and 1 C whole milk
  • Temper 1 C of the hot mixture into the egg mixture
  • Drizzle tempered mixture back into the pot, whisking continually
  • Whisk until it thickens, then pour into your pie shell
  • Refrigerate for at least an hour
  • Meanwhile, beat 2 egg whites till they start to firm, then add 1/2 C confectioner sugar, scant salt, and 1 tsp vanilla
  • Continue to beat until stiff peaks form
  • Spread onto pie, making a bunch of little waves or peaks
  • Broil for a few minutes, or torch to brown

Parnassienne au Chocolate

Christopher Gross’ Parnassienne au Chocolate Chocolate Tower

From Phoenix New Times:  October 21, 2010

Chocolate Tower

What’s better than chocolate? Three kinds of chocolate, of course.

Chef Christopher Gross of Christopher’s Restaurant and Crush Lounge created his often-imitated  Parnassienne au Chocolate Chocolate Tower: Nearly half a foot of a dark chocolate lattice over a white chocolate tube that envelops a chocolate mousse center.

Today he shares the recipe for his signature tower — the same one he shared with Julia Child on her PBS master chef series — so you can try your hand at chocolatiering at home.

Click through for the three-part recipe: Mousse, lattice, and espresso sauce.

Chocolate Mousse

(Serves 8)
What you’ll need:
5-½ oz. semi-sweet chocolate, broken into pieces
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, sliced
¼ cup heavy cream
1-¼ cups egg whites (10 large)
4 Tbsp superfine sugar

What you’ll do:
1. Pour two inches of water into a saucepan and bring to a slow simmer. Set a stainless steel bowl on top of the pan, and add the chocolate and the butter. Stir occasionally as the chocolate melts; when smooth and lump-free, in about five minutes, remove and let the chocolate cool to room temperature.
2. Pour the cream into the stainless steel bowl set over ice and water. Beat by hand or with a portable beater, whipping in as much air as possible, until stiff peaks form.
3. Beat the egg whites to the soft peak stage; whip in two tablespoons of sugar; continue beating to stiff peaks form gradually adding the reminder of the sugar.
4. Whisk a quarter of the egg whites into the cool, melted chocolate, and then gradually add the rest. Fold in the cream quickly, deflating as little as possible.
5. Cut a piece of parchment paper into a rectangle 3-½ inches wide by 5 inches long. Form into a cylinder approximately 5 inches tall and 1-½ inches in diameter. Close the side with a piece of sticky tape and make sure that it stands up straight. Repeat to form 8 cylinders.
6. Fill a pastry bag with the mousse and pipe into the tubes, leaving a -½-inch space at the top. Drape the tops of the cylinders with a sheet of plastic and place in the freezer until frozen solid (approximately 1 hour).

Lattice

What you’ll need:
3 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, cut into pieces
6 oz. white chocolate, cut into pieces

What you’ll do:
1. For decorating the towers, cut eight 5-inch squares out of parchment paper.
2. Melt the semi-sweet chocolate over low heat.
3. Fill a decorating cone with some of the dark chocolate, and drizzle free form diagonal lines no more than 1/4 inch apart in a lattice pattern across each of the parchment squares. As each square is done, lay flat on one of the baking sheets.
4. When all squares are finished put the sheets in the freezer until the chocolate is set, or about 5 minutes. Reserve the remaining melted chocolate.
5. Melt the white chocolate over low heat.
6. Remove one dark chocolate lattice square from the freezer. And with the offset spatula, spread 2 to 3 tablespoons of the white chocolate in a very thin layer on top of the lattice, leaving a 1-inch strip uncoated at one side. Scrape off any excess chocolate.
7. Unwrap one frozen mousse tower and lay it on top of the white chocolate, parallel to and opposite the uncoated strip. Quickly wrap the parchment around the mousse, handling as little as possible and being careful to leave the uncoated flap overlapping.
8. Return each finished tower to the freezer, immediately after wrapping in parchment. Repeating steps 6 to 8 until you’ve latticed all the mousse towers.
9. The papers may be peeled off after five minutes in the freezer, and the chocolate lattice will remain in place around the mousse.
10. Then let the mousse defrost in the refrigerator for about an hour.

Espresso Sauce

What you’ll need:
1-½ cups half and half (light cream)
½ fragrant vanilla bean (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
6 egg yolks
⅔ cup sugar
1 cup ILLY espresso coffee beans (2 oz.)

What you’ll do:
1. Heat the half and half with the vanilla bean, when almost at a simmer remove from the heat and cover the pan.
2. Meanwhile, start beating the egg yolks with the hand held mixer in the pan until thick and lemon-colored.
3. Gradually beat in the sugar, and then slowly blend in the ¼ cup of hot cream to warm the yolks. Blend slowly to minimize air bubbles.
4. Remove the vanilla bean from the remaining cream and blend the cream into the yolk mixture.
5. Pour in the espresso beans and set over low heat, stirring slowly and constantly until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon.
6. Strain through the fine meshed sieve into a bowl and let cool. Serve warm, tepid or chilled.

Plate the chocolate tower plain or with fruit of your choosing. Then drizzle the espresso sauce over the components as desired.

This is one to bust out for dinner with the in-laws, your boss, a significant other, or anyone else you might be trying to impress. Can’t quite nail the presentation? Head over to Christopher’s instead.

(This is part three of our Chef Chat with Gross. Check out parts one and two for more about how he made the transition from picky eater to worldly chef and his foie gras battles.)

Trifle

SEE A SIMPLE RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE

From AmandasCookin.com

This is a very simple and elegant dessert.  You can make a large trifle that will serve everyone, or individual dessert cup trifles.

From BBCGoodFood.com

A TRIFLE is a general category of recipe, kind of like “a casserole” – “a burrito” – or “a beverage.”

From RealFood.Tesco.com

It simply describes a layered desert, usually with a cake layer, a pudding layer, a fruit layer and a few other layers thrown in for good measure.

From taste.co.au

I’ve included photos from other websites so that you can get an idea of what a trifle is, and create your own.  You will see that the key is to maintain distinct layers.  If you browse all of these GOOGLE IMAGES you will see that some trifles are not clearly labeled at all, which makes it not really a trifle.

CLICK ON AN IMAGE FOR AN ENLARGEMENT

Food Network Canada

A simple recipe that you can follow, if you want a no-fail first attempt.

SIMPLE TRIFLE

  1. First, decide if you want one large dramatic trifle to share, or individual trifles.  You definitely want it to be clear glass though.  Be very careful to not fill any layer too deeply, or you will run out of space.
  2. SPONGE LAYER:  Traditionally you use Lady Fingers in a trifle, but you can buy angel food cake or use the recipe below and it will be just as tasty.  You can also simply use Vanilla Wafers.  Use a knife and cut prepared angel food cake into 1/2 to 1 inch slices.
  3. If you want to try to make your own sponge layer, here is a recipe for LADY FINGERS.
  4. If you don’t have a biscuit cutter, a single biscuit cutter is a good addition to your arsenal.  Cut circles from the angel food cake.  If they are too big for your container, cut them into geometric shapes and put them against the wall of your glass.
  5. PUDDING LAYER:  Spoon pudding into the bottom of your glass to hold your sponge in place.  Pudding can be from scratch or even a box instant pudding.  Both will work well.
  6. COOKIE LAYER:  You can use crushed Oreo’s or Graham Crackers.  You can even use granola.  The thing is that you want something with crumbly pieces to create a completely different texture.
  7. FRUIT LAYER:  For this, you want a soft fruit like peaches, strawberries, kiwi, and so forth.  The fruit should be in bite-sized pieces.
  8. WHIPPED CREAM LAYER:  You really don’t want to use spray canned whipped cream, as it breaks down too quickly.  Cool Whip is not a bad choice, but making your own whipped cream is actually pretty easy.  CLICK HERE for a simple three-ingredient whipped cream.
  9. OPTIONAL:  CREAM CHEESE LAYER:  Alternately, you can use Cream Cheese, Yogurt, cooked (cooled) Vanilla Pudding, and powdered sugar.
  10. FRESH FRUIT:  Top the whipped cream with something like blueberries, strawberries, cherries, etc.  Something small and colorful.
  11. GARNISH:  You can garnish with more crushed cookies, or even chopped nuts if you want.  You can also place a single mint leaf on the very top for an elegant presentation.

STEP BY STEP – OVERVIEW

  1. For a large trifle, put a layer of angel food cake in the bottom
  2. Add a layer of your white mixture cream cheese or whipped cream.
  3. Stack strawberries against the side so they can be seen
  4. Add strawberry pieces and blueberries
  5. Repeat with layers of cake, cream mixture, more fruit
  6. Finish with a layer of cake, cream mixture, and decoratively place fruits

Chef’s Notes

DO NOT USE ANYTHING BELOW THIS LINE IN MY COOKBOOK.

These notes are gleaned from PBS The Great British Baking Show

  • A Trifle should have well-defined layers
  • Trifles are a West Wales staple – placed on tables several times each week
  • Trifles traditionally use lady fingers for the cake layers
  • Another option is Vanilla Wafers
  • Use a shallow disk to serve many and to all all flavors in a single serving
  • Biscuits need to absorb the liquid without disintegrating
  • Many of the chefs used lemon meringue or lemon curd – The custard should be thick
  • Recipe 1: layers of biscuit/cake, strawberry, whipped cream and blueberry
  • Recipe 2: Recipe featured a praline circle on the top
  • Recipe 3: bananas, strawberries, mangos with Lemon Macaroons on top
  • Recipe 4: Ginger cake with fruit and creme anglaise
  • Recipe 5: Spray the layers with cointreau
  • Recipe 6: Peach, almond and ginger – with browned butter
  • Recipe 7: Cake layer was a lemon Swiss roll
  • Recipe 8: Amaretti Bisquits on top
  • Recipe 9: Chef used a jelly layer

If you are interested, you can MAKE YOUR OWN LADY FINGERS rather than using pound cake

 

Recipe from Wall Street Journal

Dec 20, 2016 – CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE
Trifle 1 Trifle 2 Trifle 3
What they are calling their Christmas Pudding was defined in a previous publication. You can use slices of Angel Food Cake, Vanilla Wafers, or more traditionally Lady Fingers. This goes over GREAT at parties. Make sure you assemble it into a clear glass bowl or the WOW factor is lost.

Lemon Bar

Barb Fenzel of Les Gourmettes Cooking School (here in Phoenix) prepared this recipe.  This is my best attempt at recreating it from what I observed.

  1. Grease a 9×12 glass baking dish with butter.
  2. Pulse in your food processor: 3/4 C flour, 1/2 C confectioner sugar, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 stick (cut into 8 pieces) cold butter.
  3. Press into pan using an offset spatula.
    Don’t bother cleaning the food processor basket yet.
  4. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes.
  5. Meanwhile prepare your lemon filling.
  6. Combine in a large mixing bowl: zest and juice from two lemons, 1/2 C sugar, 1 egg plus 1 egg yolk, 1/2 tsp salt and 1 TBL corn starch.
  7. Dump onto your baked base and spread with a spatula.
  8. In your food processor, combine:  1 brick softened cream cheese, 1/2 C sugar, and 1 egg.
  9. Drop it onto your lemon filling by spoonfuls.
  10. Bake at 350º for another 30 minutes.
  11. Rest 1 hour before putting into refrigerator, and then chill 2 hours before serving.
  12. Cut into squares and serve.

Maple Glazed Apples

Chef Maggie Norris of Whisked Away Cooking School (here in Phoenix) prepared this recipe.  This is my best attempt at recreating it from what I observed.

Combine in a bowl – your Maple Glaze:

  • 1 block of cream cheese
  • 4 TBL butter
  • 1/2 C brown sugar
  • 1/4 C maple syrup
  1. Preheat your oven to 350º
  2. Cut out the stem of your apple
  3. Cut a cylinder down into the core of your apple, being careful to not go through the sides or bottom.
  4. Cut a circle surrounding the core – halfway between the peel and the core
  5. Cut slices into the peel of the apple, about 1/4 inch in
  6. Cut slices from the core, going to the outside about 1/4 inch out
  7. Your goal is to create nooks and crannies without allowing any of the glaze to leak out.
  8. Place the apple in a small square of foil and fill all the nooks and crannies with your Maple Glaze
  9. Bake for 45 minutes
  10. Carefully plate and top with more Maple Glaze.

Here is an easy alternate

Combine in a bowl – your Maple Glaze:

  • 1 block of cream cheese
  • 4 TBL butter
  • 1/2 C brown sugar
  • 1/4 C maple syrup
  1. Preheat your oven to 350º F.
  2. Cut your apple in quarters.
  3. Cut the seeds out.
  4. Cut three of the wedges into thin slivers.
  5. Grate the fourth wedge using a large hole grater.
  6. Place the apples in a pretty pattern in a greased ramekin.
  7. Sprinkle the grated apple over top of the slices.
  8. Drizzle the top of the apple heavily with your Maple Glaze
  9. Sprinkle to top of the Maple Glaze with Turbinado Sugar
  10. Bake for 45 minutes
  11. Serve hot, but warn your guests of the molten filling.

Pineapple Dessert

INGREDIENTS

  • Pineapple
  • Honey
  • Dark Rum
  • 1 lime
  • Marscapone cheese

STEP BY STEP

  1. Slice your pineapple in half
  2. Remove skin and eyes
  3. Slice thin sheets of the pineapple
  4. Put onto a place and drizzle with honey
  5. Next drizzle some rum over top
  6. Top with lime zest and lime juice from one lime
  7. Let marinate for about an hour
  8. Position sheets of pineapple to create a wheel on a dessert plate
  9. Drizzle some of the marinate over top
  10. Put a dollop of marscapone in the center
  11. Garnish with a slice of lime

This recipe is from Jacques Pepin

 

Gingerbread

  1. Butter and flour your ramekins.
  2. Whisk together
    • 2 C AP flour
    • 1/4 C instant coffee
    • 3 TBL cocoa
    • 1 TBL dried ginger powder
    • 1 tsp black pepper
    • 1/2 tsp salt
    • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  3. Cream together
    • 2 sticks softened butter
    • 1 C dark brown sugar
    • Mix for 5 full minutes
  4. Beat 4 eggs into the sugar mixture – one at a time
  5. Add 3 TBL fresh grated ginger and 2 C molasses
  6. Mix till combined, then mix into dry ingredients
  7. Fill each ramekin about 2/3 full
  8. Bake 20 minutes at 350º

Norwegian Cheesecake

  1. Mash 4 graham crackers and mix with 1 TBL melted butter.
  2. Press crust into two ramekins
  3. Mix together 1 C creme fraiche and 1 C cream cheese
  4. Melt 1/3 C sugar with 5 TBL hot water in a pan
  5. Add big wide strips of lemon zest (to be removed later)
  6. Put 1 sprig of rosemary into water mixture.
  7. Add 2 tsp gelatin and bring sugar water mixture to a boil.
  8. Strain solids out and cool for 15 minutes
  9. Mix gelatin mixture in with cream cheese
  10. Pour into pie crusts and chill overnight
  11. Top with lingonberries or other fresh fruit (or preserves)

 

Creme Fraiche Custard

Ingredients

  1. Mix 1 egg and 1 C créme fraiche and put into greased pie pan
  2. Sprinkle lightly with Turbinado sugar (approx 1/2 C)
  3. If in a pie shell, wipe down the edge of the shell with egg white and sprinkle with more Turbinado
  4. Put a pan of hot water in the bottom of the oven
  5. Bake at 275º for 30-40 minutes or until it starts to brown
  6. Custard should jiggle slightly, but not appear to be too liquid
  7. Turn off oven and open door halfway to let cool

Meringue Cups

The base for this dessert is from Martha Stewart.

INGREDIENTS

  • 6 egg whites
  • 2 T agave syrup or pure maple syrup
  • 1 tsp cream of tartar
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 egg yolk (topping)
  • 1/2 C heavy cream (topping)
  • 1 C creme fresh (topping)
  • zest from one lemon (topping)

STEP BY STEP

  1. Beat egg whites
  2. Halfway through, add your sugar, tartar, cornstarch and vanilla
  3. When you have stiff peaks, put the mixture into a pastry bag with a 3/4 inch tip
  4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper with an outline of your serving tray (put paper upside down if it has pencil marks on it)
  5. Create two-inch decorative mounds around the edges leaving some space in the center for macerated fruit when this is all finished.
  6. Hollow out “dishes” in the center of each mound
  7. Bake at 250º for 60 minutes
  8. Leave oven door closed, turn off oven, and wait another 60 minutes
  9. Toss strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, blackberry, peaches, etc – – – whatever – – – – with 1/4 C granulated sugar
  10. Meanwhile, beat 1/2 C heavy whipping cream to soft peaks, and fold in 1 1/2 C creme fresh and zest and juice from one large lemon
  11. Spoon the cream into the hollow dishes
  12. Place multi-colors of fruit onto the cream topping
  13. Serve all the extra fruit in the vacancy in the middle of the batch.

Tarts – COLLECTION INDEX

Lemon Curd and Tart Collection

More tart recipes and stand-alone lemon curd

Sweet Tarts

  • Pear and Pumpkin Tart
    The information below this section is from a third party. It is part of Grandpa's Personal Recipe box. Feel free to browse, but know that this information is from someone else.

    • A third-party recipe baked on Puff Pastry
  • Tortilla Pear Tart
    • A sweet tart baked on a flour tortilla
  • Cran-Apple Tart
    • A third-party recipe using easy ingredients on Puff Pastry
  • Rustic Freeform Tart
    • A tart with Panko bread crumbs and whatever fruit you have on hand
  • Breakfast Tart
    • Food processor dough that uses fruit
  • Apple Tart
    • Granny Smith apples on Puff Pastry
  • Peach Tart
    • Peaches on a simple pie dough

Savory Tarts

  • Onion Tart
    • Lightly cooked onions on a pizza dough base

Salted Caramel Mousse

INGREDIENTS to make four dessert cups

  • 1 C granulated white sugar
  • 6 TBL (1/2 C) salted butter – pieces
  • 1 C heavy cream
  • 1 C 85% cooking chocolate
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 3 egg whites

STEP BY STEP

  1. Melt sugar over medium heat until it starts to brown
  2. Add cold butter and continue to stir
  3. Once butter has completely melted remove the pan from the heat
  4. Stir in heavy cream – whisking continually
  5. Put 1-2 TBL of the mixture into the bottom of each dessert cup
  6. To the remaining caramel; add chocolate and stir to melt
  7. Pour into a glass bowl to cool to about 100º
  8. Meanwhile, whip up 3 egg whites plus 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
  9. Add 1/2 tsp salt and egg yolks to the chocolate bowl and whisk to combine
  10. GENTLY combine (fold) the whites into your chocolate
  11. Pour into cups and refrigerate for about 8 hours
  12. Add shaved chocolate, salt flakes, or crushed Oreo on the top
  13. Serve with small dessert spoons

Key Lime Pie – Easy

SALTINE CRUST

  • 1 1/2 Sleeve square saltine crackers
    – crush and pulse in food processor till coarse crumbs
  • Add 1/8 tsp salt
  • Add 10 TBL melted butter
  • 1/3 C Sugar

GRAHAM CRACKER CRUST

  • 8-10 graham crackers
  • 1/3 C Sugar
  • 1 stick melted butter

STEP BY STEP

  1. Press crust into 9 inch pie plate
  2. Blind bake at 300º for 10
  3. In mixing bowl combine 1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk, 4 egg yolks, 1/4 C heavy cream, 1 TBL lime zest, 1/8 tsp salt and 1 C fresh lime juice
  4. Pour into warm pre-baked pie shell
  5. Bake at 350º for 15-17 minutes
    – Should jiggle in the center, but the outside should be set
  6. Cool completely on the counter, then transfer to refrigerator for 4-6 hours

WHIPPED TOPPING – OPTIONAL

  • Put into kitchen aid – 1/2 C heavy cream, 2 tsp sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla – Start on low speed, and increase to high – until stiff peaks

 

Candied Lemon Peel

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 lemons
  • 2 cups cold filtered water PLUS lot of tap water
  • 2 cups white sugar

STEP BY STEP

  1. Cut lemons into quarters.
  2. Remove the fruit pulp, leaving the yellow peel and the white pith.
  3. Cut the quarters into 1/4 inch crescent strips.
  4. Put strips in a small pan, and cover with tap water.
  5. Bring water and lemon peel strips up to a boil in a small pan.
  6. Simmer 2 minutes.
  7. Drain as much of the water, as you can.
  8. Fill the pan with more water
  9. Bring water up to a boil and simmer 2 minutes
  10. Drain most of the water.
  11. Fill the pan up with cold water
  12. Rinse for a few minutes, and dump water.
  13. Fill up the pan again, rinse for a few minutes, then dump water.
  14. This time, use a colander so that you get as much of the water off the lemons as possible.
  15. Combine 2 cups of cold filtered water with 2 cups sugar.
  16. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
  17. Reduce heat to low simmer and stir in citrus peels
  18. Simmer for 20 minutes.
  19. Strain lemon strips, dumping water, but DO NOT RINSE THE PEELS.
  20. Set peels on clean printer paper to dry slightly.  About 15 minutes.
  21. Toss the candied peels in 1/2 C Turbinado sugar, granulated sugar, or powdered sugar (different textures) and let dry for another 6-8 hours.
  22. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a month.

Bird’s Custard Powder – Pudding

INSTRUCTIONS

Grandpa’s Custard for Two

A microwave oven actually does a better job of preparing this than a stovetop.  Microwave instructions are in bold italic letters.

  • 2 rounded (or 3 level) TBL Birds Custard Powder
  • 1 TBL Granulated Sugar
  • 1 C  (8 oz) milk
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla
  • optional:  1 egg yolk
  • optional:  1/2 C cooked white rice
  • optional:  raisins
  • optional:  flavoring syrup
  1. Mix custard powder with sugar
  2. Mix 1-2 TBL cold milk and vanilla into custard powder
  3. OPT:  Add egg yolk to the mixture
  4. Heat larger portion of milk to a simmer (about 90 seconds in microwave)
  5. Temper hot milk into the custard mixture
    – Pour hot milk into the colder slurry, stirring continually – then return the tempered mixture into the remaining hot milk
  6. Add rice if making rice pudding or prickly pear syrup for a SW flavor
  7. Return to pan and cook, stirring until thickened, or put into microwave for 11 second intervals.  Start with 4 cycles.  5 might be necessary, especially if preparing with rice.
  8. Whisk in your raisins or 1/2 tsp flavoring syrup
  9. Pour into serving bowl and let cool 5 minutes.

Step by Step Instructions from the label on the Box/Can

BIRD’S CUSTARD POWDER

  • 1/4 Birds Custard Powder
  • 1-2 TBL Granulated Sugar
  • 1 pt (16 oz) milk
  1. Mix custard powder with sugar
  2. Mix 2 TBL cold milk into custard powder
  3. Heat larger portion of milk to a simmer
  4. Temper hot milk into the custard mixture
  5. Return to pan and cook, stirring until thickened

Vanilla Cream Sauce

    1. Mix 2 TBL water, 2 tsp corn starch, 2 level TBL Bird’s Custard
    2. Micro 1/2 C milk for 60 seconds
    3. If not foaming (scalded) micro 15 more seconds
    4. Add 2 TBL butter to milk
    5. Temper hot milk into BIrd’s concentrate and then return to the hot liquid
    6. Micro at 10 second intervals until thickened
    7. Add a few drops of vanilla, then stir

Homemade Custard Powder

GRANDPA’S CUSTARD POWDER

  • 4 oz (1/2 C) Confectioner sugar
  • 1/4 C dried milk powder
  • 1/4 C corn starch
  • 1/4 maple sugar (fine is preferred)
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • 1 tsp almond powder or instant pudding of your choice
  • OPTIONAL:  3 oz Dutch cocoa plus 1/4 additional confectioner sugar
  • OPTIONAL:  Quarter teaspoon of Carmencita Colorante

RECIPE:

  1. To 1 C mix, add 1 C milk and 1/2 C heavy cream
  2. Whisk together, then bring to boil over medium heat
  3. Simmer on low for about 4 minutes or until thickened
  4. Stir in 1/2 tsp vanilla and sieve into cups
  5. Refrigerate at least an hour

What does Temper mean?

TEMPER BRINGS HOT AND COLD TOGETHER

Tempering is a way to mix hot and cold liquids and keep them from forming lumps.  The most common thing where lumps can be prevented is gravy.  We’ve all had lumpy gravy, but if the flour had been TEMPERED into the liquid, lumps would not have formed.

As far as eggs, that is another very common thing needing tempering.  When you add a hot liquid to your eggs, or add your eggs to a hot liquid, you will generally end up with scrambled eggs.  The goal is to combine the ingredients of two different temperatures.

Tempering is quite easy.  It just takes you an extra minute of cooking time, but the results are worth it.   In the case of Birds Custard Powder, if you just put the powder into the hot liquid lumps will form.  If you dump the mixture into the hot liquid all at once lumps will form.

To temper the two together, pour the hot liquid into the colder liquid VERY VERY SLOWLY while whisking continually.  You can speed up a little bit as you continue to pour, but never EVER stop whisking.

Once the liquids are combined, continue to cook until thickened.  Not too quickly again because haste makes waste… and lumps will form.

 

Pillsbury Doughnut Drops

  • Open a package of Pillsbury Dinner Rolls or croissants
  • Cut into quarters and shape roughly into a ball
  • Drop into hot oil – about 375º – and cook until browned
  • Flip if necessary
  • Drop into a bag of cinnamon mixture
    2 parts sugar and 1 part cinnamon
  • Shake donuts and then place on towel to cool a bit before eating

 

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