Creme Brulee....

One of my hubby and son's favourite dessert happens to be Creme Brulee. I've seen my husband literally grow devil horns when it appears on a restaurant menu and no matter how full he is, he still has to give it a taste...just to see if it compares...to what I'm not sure, but that's his excuse!
I say it's one of their favourites but there happens to be quite a few others desserts on they're list.
As you may be aware if you're a frequent visitor to my blog, I haven't been baking lately, but at the weekend I thought I'd give them a treat.Well I am watching Masterchef every night, so I suppose I should make an effort now and again.
Unfortunately the whim only came on me once the roast dinner was well under way and hence the daylight was fading, so there aren't my usual photos showing the whole process...forgive me please?
This photo was taken the next day after it had been setting in the fridge overnight, Besides although they do adore this dessert, there's no way they couldn't manage all of the six I baked! Well not after a full pork roast dinner anyway.

Thankfully I had all of the ingredients in the kitchen already....so....I made this one plain vanilla but you can add different favours...ie lemon, chocolate, nuts, fruit, lavender, orange and my favourite...a drop of liqueur...oh or maybe a splash of whisky ;D

I didn't have the heart to tell my boys they would be better served the next day, leaving them overnight to set in the fridge ...well I couldn't stand the tizzyfits that would have ensued, so I let them have one on the same day. I know call me a coward...but anything for an easy life!

Crème Brûlée (serves 4 larger or 6 smaller portions)

Ingredients: 

• 600ml thickened cream
• 1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped
• 6 egg yolks
• 1/4 cup caster sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 120 degree's celcius.
2. Place the cream in a saucepan and add the vanilla seeds and pod. 

3. Place over a medium heat and bring to scalding point, (this is where the name crème brûlée comes from meaning burnt creme)

4. Remove from the heat and set aside to infuse for 5 minutes or so.

5. Place egg yolks and caster sugar in a seperate bowl and beat with an electric whisk for  2-3 minutes or until pale.

6. Remove the vanilla pod from the saucepan and discard, then pour the hot cream over the yolk mixture and whisk to combine.

7. Remove the foam from the top of the mixture with a large spoon. This happens during the beating process but isn't needed. 

8. Strain the mixture into a large jug, then carefully pour mixture into your containers whether 4 x 150ml or 6 smaller ovenproof ramekins.

9. Place ramekins in a deep roasting pan. Pour boiling water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. This will bake the cream without direct heat.  Cover the pan loosely with foil, allowing some air to enter in at the sides.

10. Bake in the oven for approx 40 mins ~ the custards should still have a slight wobble when done. Carefully remove the ramekins from the oven and empty water bath setting aside the creme brulee to cool.

Topping 

Place brown sugar on a baking tray, turn off oven and place sugar in the oven for approx 15 minutes or until the sugar is completely dried out. Allow to cool, then place in a processor and whiz until it is like fine powder. Store in an airtight container. 

Once the custards have cooled, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge to set and chill overnight.

Method for topping:

1. When ready to serve, preheat grill to high.
2. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of the brown sugar evenly on top of each custard, and use the back of a teaspoon to spread it evenly. 
3. Place the custards under the grill until the sugar melts and caramelises. 
Keep an eye on them because they can burn very easily. Alternatively, use a domestic blow torch to caramelise but if you're like me it always seems to be empty. 

Verdict..... I think you get the idea...

 Enjoy! ;D

Fresh Fruit Platter

Whoohoo...I made it through another weekend without having any alcohol AND I went to a party too. Didn't I do well? Actually its been easier than I thought. Only one weekend to go....but we've still got a few events to attend within that time, so I'll not blow my own trumpet too loudly just yet.

Today is another colourful post but not of the arty kind. This time it's the healthy kind. I thought I'd show you the fruit platter that I made for Sunday afternoon.

I just made a quick trip to the local veggie shop to see what was available...Pineapple was a must because I wanted to use the top as part of the decoration. Not in the 70's style or like Carmen Miranda...but just a little different. Besides pineapple is one of my favourite fruit.
I was going to use a white serving platter but then thought I should use a large silver serving platter instead. I thought I'd dress it up even more with a large leaf from the bird of paradise plant in the garden...to give it a tropical look. If you look towards the back of the photo above, you can see the platter and the leaf.
The leaf had a tendency to curl up at the edges, but I persuaded it to lie flat by gently pressing...once all the fruit was placed on top it wasn't a problem.
Next, I started to deseed the melons and cutting them into bite size pieces. I didn't put them straight onto the platter because I wanted to leave the fruit in the fridge until the last few minutes before serving, also the platter was quite large and would have taken up too much room in the fridge. I placed all the prepared fruit into a bowl which didn't take up too much room. It's easier if you group all the same fruit together in the bowl ~ this saves time when arranging onto the platter.
I love fresh pineapple but I never used to like preparing them....that was until my sister introduced this brilliant gadget to me. I know yet another gadget but this one is really brilliant and I can't sing it's praises enough.

(unfortunately the sun didn't come out until I'd finished preparing and taking the photos ~ so apologies for the quality of shot)

With the serrated corkscrew-like tool it easily cores and slices a fresh pineapple quickly and easily. All you have to do is snap on the handle, insert into the pineapple, and twist. 

The results of this simple effort: one perfect spiral of sweet pineapple, complete with healthy juices!

 This is what's left once the flesh has been taken out....

 Clever eh?

 

There are three different sizes too....

I just need to state here that I'm not being sponsored to review this product....I just like to give praise where praise is due.

So back to the platter....

Now you can get arty and let your creative juices flow....the fruit juices certainly will. I cut another part of the pineapple skin to use as a bowl for the blueberries. I've seen platters where the blueberries are scattered randomly around the platter, but I liked the idea of using this bowl to contain them all in one place. A good tip I think is to buy more fruit than you think might be necessary, because it can take quite a lot to get the right effect plus if you're like me you eat a far few chunks before the platter is complete.  I certainly had more than my five portions yesterday!

 And there you have it....I really enjoyed both the making and the eating of this platter and I hope you give it a go with whatever fruit is in season in your part of the world. 

Tomorrow is Shrove Tuesday (or Pancake Tuesday) so my boys have placed a request into the kitchen for Crêpes (french pancakes) tomorrow. They'll be happy bunnies if they get their wish...I haven't promised as I like to keep them on their toes ; )

Have a fun day and keep smiling : D