Cafe au Lait Pots de Creme

Doesn't this sound intimidating?  Well, it isn't.  Pots de Creme is just a really fancy way of saying, PUDDING!  Yet, with the volume turned up.

Isaac loves Pot de Creme.  I make mine in little 2 ounce custard dishes ( actually, they are Chinese tea cups ) and on a good day I can get 8 custards out of one recipe.  All 8 disappear within 2-3 days and most likely it is Isaac whom has eaten them all!

I licked the spoon.  These are creamy, flavorful from the espresso, and bowl lickin good!  I believe the secret ingredient in this recipe is the brown sugar.  I altered the original recipe just a tad, regardless the results were delicious!  This is the perfect week night dessert as it takes minutes to make and can be ready in a flash.

Cafe au Lait Pots de Creme
adapted from Melissa d'Arabian

ingredients:
3/4 cups milk
1/2 cup cream
2 Tbls. sugar
2 Tbls sucanat
1 Tbls. espresso powder
1/2 vanilla bean ( beans scraped from the pod)
pinch of salt
1 egg plus 2 egg yolks

instructions:
• preheat oven to 325*
• warm some water in a tea kettle
• in a small saucepan, combine the milk, cream, sugars, espresso, vanilla bean ( scrape the beans from the pod and put both the pod and the beans into the saucepan ), and salt.  Heat over low heat just until starting to boil.
• in a measuring cup whisk the egg yolks and the one egg.
• once milk mixture reaches the almost boiling point, pour about a 1/4 cup of the mixture into the egg mixture.  do this slowly, you don't want to "cook" the eggs.  keep adding the milk mixture a little at a time until all is incorporated.
• pour the custard into 8-2 oz. ramekins or 4-4oz ramekins and place in a baking dish.
• fill the baking dish to the halfway point of the ramekins with the heated water ( I like to put my ramekins into the baking dish and put it in the oven.  once steady, i pour the hot water into the pan.  push the oven tray back, gently and close the oven door).
• bake until the edges are set, but still a little wobbly, about 20-25 minutes.
• remove ramekins from the water and place on a small sheet pan filled with ice water.  let cool.
• refrigerate until serving

I dusted each custard dish with a little cocoa powder

Raspberry Swirl Ice Cream

Each week, Levi gravitates to the fresh raspberries at our local farmers market.  He insists on buying them claiming to "love them".  He eats 2 or 3 and then he is done.  I pack them in his lunch box and a few stragglers end up coming home with him.  I can't toss them.  So, I either eat them or throw them in a baggie and put them in the freezer.

I had just enough fresh and frozen raspberries to make David Lebovitz's Raspberry Swirl Ice Cream.  Doesn't that sound good?  I haven't made any ice cream this summer and it has been on my mind.  Today, the kids are going to arrive home from camp to a very, very, sweet treat.

This recipe calls for vanilla extract.  Instead, I steeped the cream with a fresh vanilla bean.  I cut the pod in half, scraped out the seeds and threw them in the bowl of cream along with the pod.  When it came time to add the custard to the cream, I removed the pod and saved it to make some vanilla sugar.

This ice cream is a small reminder that summer is here and it is here to stay for just a little while longer.

Raspberry Swirl Ice Cream
adapted from David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop
yield: 1 1/2 quarts

ingredients:
ice cream
1 cup whole milk
2/3 cup sugar
pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
5 egg yolks
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract (I replaced this with a 1/2 of a vanilla bean, beans scraped from the pod)

raspberry swirl
1 1/2 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen
3 Tbls. sugar
1 Tbls. vodka

instructions:
to make the ice cream: 
• warm the milk, sugar and salt in a saucepan.  pour the cream (this is when I added my vanilla bean and pod) into a large bowl.  set a mesh strainer over the top.
• in a separate bowl whisk the egg yolks.  set aside.  slowly pour the warm milk into the egg yolks.  i add the milk 1/4 of a cup at a time in order to temper the egg yolks.  otherwise you may cook the egg yolks and then you would have to start all over again.  scrape the warm egg/milk mixture back into the saucepan.
• stir the mixture over medium heat until heated and the custard coats the back of your heatproof spatula.
• take the vanilla bean pod ( if using ) out of the cream and set aside.  pour the warm custard through the strainer into the vanilla infused cream.  if not using the vanilla bean, add your vanilla extract here.
• cool over an ice bath.  when cool, chill thoroughly in the fridge.

to make the raspberry swirl:
• mash the raspberries together with the sugar and the vodka.  after mashing, i strained the mixture into a bowl and then re-mashed the fruit.  once finely mashed i added the fruit to the liquid.  chill in the fridge until ready to use.

• churn the cooled custard in your ice cream maker for about 20-30 minutes.  as you remove it from the machine, layer it in your container with spoonfuls of chilled raspberry swirl.  do not mix.
• freeze for several hours before serving.

Caramel Bread Pudding

This dish is so good that I had to hold my self back from eating the entire dish.  A new Sunday morning favorite has just arrived.  I inevitably always have left over Challah.  We start our weekend, each Friday night by celebrating Shabbat dinner, thus having Challah.  Eli usually gets egg in the hole on Saturday mornings, Isaac and Levi like it toasted with a little cinnamon butter smeared on top and sometimes I make croutons or bread crumbs with the left overs.  

Last night, I was watching an episode of Nigella Lawson.  She was making a caramel croissant bread pudding.  Bingo.  I was inspired to use up our challah and make something similar for breakfast.  I changed it a bit yet I am sure the results are just as good as the original!  

Caramel-Challah Bread Pudding

adapted from nigella lawson (original recipe here )

yield: 4-6 servings

ingredients:

1/2 cup sugar

3 Tbls. water

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 milk

2 eggs

1 tps. vanilla

pinch of fleur de sel

handful of chocolate chips ( I used bittersweet)

handful of slivered almonds - toasted

stale bread - enough to cover an 8 x 8 porcelain baking dish

instructions:

• preheat oven to 350*.  butter an 8 x 8 porcelain baking dish

• put water and sugar in a heavy duty pan.  swirl a bit to combine.  place over medium high heat and caramelize the sugar.  the mixture will start to bubble.  don't walk away, this process happens very fast.  you want the mixture to turn a light amber color.

• take the pan off the heat and slowly pour in the cream, little by little, whisking as you pour.  once combined add the milk.  let the mixture cool a bit.

• while the mixture is cooling, butter your baking dish.  cut up your challah and scatter in pan.  add chocolate chips.  set aside

• add milk to cooled caramel.  add eggs and whisk quickly.  add a pinch of fleur de sel.  pour over bread and submerge the custard to cover all the bread.  let sit for 10 minutes so the custard soaks into the bread.

• sprinkle the top with almonds and dust with a little sugar.

• bake for 20 minutes or until the custard sets.

• serve, dusted with powdered sugar!

So good!

Chocolate Bread Pudding

I had two 1/2 challah's in my freezer and I needed the space. I had froze them hoping that I had a reason to make bread pudding using the remnants of past Shabbat dinners. I got the urge and tonight was that night.

I love bread pudding but it is so rich. I feel my thighs expanding with each bite that enters my mouth. That's why I had only one bite with a little dab of french vanilla ice cream. Really, really good with the ice cream. Wouldn't really recommend it without it.

Bread pudding is a really easy, quick dessert option. I took the challah's out of the freezer and cut them in one inch cubes. Toasted them in the oven for 10 minutes and then started making the custard. This recipe is so gooooood. You can't eat too much of this without falling into a deep, dark, sugar coma. Hell, it's worth it.

I made this recipe in a 13 x 9" pan. After it cooled to room temperature I cut them in to 3" circles. This way everyone felt as though they had individual servings. I took the scraps from the pan and I am freezing them. Anyone out there have any suggestions or ideas on what to do with the scraps, I am open!

Need to go to bed so I can wake up in the morning and have chocolate bread pudding french toast. Might even make a little chocolate ganache to drizzle over it.

Night Night!

ingredients:

12 oz bread (brioche or challah)

1/2 cup raisins or dried cherries (I omitted cuz of the kids)

3 cups whole milk

1 cup heavy cream

3 large eggs

4 large egg whites

1/2 cup sugar

6 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

directions:

1. have a 9 x 13" baking pan ready and a large roasting pan. Line roasting pan with paper towels.

Pre-heat oven to 350*.

2. Cut bread into one inch pieces. If not "stale" toast in oven on a baking tray for about 10 minutes.

3. If using the fruit, toss bread crumbs with it.

4. Bring milk and cream just to a boil.

5. Boil some water. when boils, set a side. Whisk eggs, yolks & sugar together in a bowl. While whisking, slowly add a little of the hot milk to the eggs. Do this slowly to avoid scrambling the eggs. Once the egg mixture is tempered slowly pour the remainder of the milk. Add the chocolate and whisk until it melts and the custard is smooth.

6. Pour the custard over the bread and press the bread gently with the back of a spoon. Let sit for 3o minutes.

7. Put bread pudding pan inside roasting pan and put in the oven. Once level, pour the hot water around the outer edge of the bread pudding, filling the roasting pan up about 1/2" - 1". Bake for 35-45 minutes. The top should be dull and dry. Cool on a wire rack. Remove roasting pan.