King of Puddings
I think I'll call my first attempt "King of Puddings". It was heartier and more full bodied....because I muffed the recipe and put in 3 times the amount of fresh breadcrumbs as the recipe called for. King of Puddings is suitable for a fancy breakfast...and would lend itself to being savory rather than sweet (especially if you leave off the meringue). A little bacon or maybe some sausage, a little cheese....I may have to go out and buy some one cup ramekins...individual serving dishes would look grand.
ANYWAY, back to the story...it's a bit of a challenge trying to recreate dishes that I've only read
about. I try and find several different recipes of the same dish, then compare ingredients and methods...then I have to convert the amounts into American units (thus the happy accident that resulted in "King of Puddings"). I look at pictures to get an idea of what the end product should look like, and off we go....Betty Debbie's Americanized version of....
Queen of Puddings
2 Tbsp sugar
zest from one lemon
2 1/2 cups half and half (you could try this with milk - I'm trying to use up a carton of half and half!)
1/4 cup butter (that's 1/2 a stick, girls)
1/2 tsp vanilla
4 eggs, separated
1/4 cup of my delicious homemade blackberry jam (or whatever store bought jam you have)
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 cup sugar (caster if you have it, but I didn't find it necessary)
powdered sugar for dusting
Preheat oven to 350'. Place the breadcrumbs, 2 Tbsp sugar and lemon zest in a large bowl. Scald the milk and butter, then stir into the breadcrumb mixture and let sit for about 10 minutes. Beat the egg yolks and vanilla together, then stir into the breadcrumb stuff. Pour into a greased 5 cup casserole (or 5 individual one-cup ramekins). I used a 9x9 pan for my first attempt.
Bake 30-35 minutes. Warm the jam in the microwave until it is soft enough to easily spread, then gently spread it on top of the cooked breadcrumb stuff. Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft mounds form, then gradually add the 1/4 cup of sugar while beating until stiff peaks form. Pile meringue on top of jam, forming peaks, if desired. Dust the top with powdered sugar, then place in the oven for another 15 minutes. Serve warm (that's the way we did it, I guess it could be cold, but I don't think I'd like it as well).I loved Alex's response to my first attempt "it's unoffensive". Steve and I found that "King of Puddings" tasted a lot like french toast with jam and meringue on top. It was good...but I sort of wondered why it was a popular dessert (at least in Neeldom)??? It was good, but not desserty. Much more breakfasty.
As I was describing my "Queen of Puddings" to Betty Sherri this morning, she clued me in on the goof I had made in the measuring of the breadcrumbs. Fine. Great. Another excuse to make it again? You betcha. Since I only had 2 eggs left in the fridge, I made a 1/2 batch. Okay. Okay...I understand a little better why it is a dessert. This effort resulted in a lighter (duh) custard, that tasted more custardy and less bready (duh). I could actually taste the delicate flavor of the lemon zest, and the meringue meshed much better with the lighter custard. I would make this as a dessert again - but man, do I want to get me some ramekins....
But if you're going to call something "Queen of Puddings" I expect nothing less than greatness.
ReplyDeleteYummers. So is the posted recipe the finished recipe with the correct amount of breadcrumbs? Should I the second batch for breakfast? FYI, I think cookies, cake and pumpkin pie are the perfect breakfast foods.
ReplyDeletePosted recipe has the correct amount...for the custardy kind, just add a couple more cups of breadcrumbs for the bready kind (if you want the base of this sweet - add another 1 or 2 tablespoons of sugar). After I go to the store tomorrow and get more eggs, I'm going to experiment with the bready kind...and make a savory breakfast "pudding".
ReplyDeleteOhmigod -- I finally looked at your ratings. Digestive biscuits are DIVINE. Um, how to explain -- think of a cross between a graham cracker and one of those poncy cracker that are very pale and bland so the flavor of your overpriced cheese dominates. In other words: whole meal (British word for whole wheat) but yummy. Not too sweet.
ReplyDeleteYes, I know -- boring. Now slather chocolate over it. Not quite to the point of chocolate-covered graham crackers, but just right. Serve with a good cuppa -- wonderful at tea time. Really, this is so much better than beans on toast that its standing in your ratings is unfair. It's right up there with Madeira cake. Let me know and I'll send you some. (Seriously.)