Tuesday, July 21, 2009 1:33:18 AM
Milk, fruit, Sauce, Strawberries
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First of all: What on Earth happened with Queijadinhas, in North America?
I mean, just today, I have already got more than 10 searches for that recipe. It’s a Brazilian typical sweet, mostly unknown by the rest of the world (except for Portuguese people). Was it some kind of appearance in the News? Was it Martha Stewart or Nigella Lawson suggestion? Really, guys, I got really curious about that! XD
So, if you are one visitor who were looking for my Queijadinha recipe, please, leave a comment! Allow this poor Brazilian blogger discover what made Queijadinha so famous!
Well, now, off to today’s topic. Crème Anglaise is one of the basic dessert sauces. Dessert sauces can be both fruity or creamy. Among the fruity ones, there are the jams / compotes, which are cooked, and the coulis, which is the raw fruit’s sauce, made by puréeing and straining it. Among the creamy sauces, the most common are chocolate (like a fudge) or the vanilla custards. Crème Anglaises are among this later one, being it a liquid custard, made from milk, yolks, sugar and vanilla.Read more...
Tuesday, April 7, 2009 2:06:05 AM
Easy, Ice Cream, Vanilla
Do you need some quick Ice Cream? Have your friends come to your house and you need to fix up a quick dessert? Your problems are over! This will be a quick post about a quick recipe!
Impress your friend with this Gelato-quality Ice Cream that you can make in less than 10 minutes! (freezing time not considered)
This is based in David Lebovitz's version, from his book The Perfect Scoop. (Although I must say, there isn't much room for changes, in such a basic recipe)
Read more...
Monday, November 3, 2008 12:30:27 AM
vanilla ice cream, Homemade Ice cream, Ice Cream, basic custard
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Natural vanilla beans are reall expensive here in Brazil. Each pod costs from R$10 to R$15, which is nearly US$5 to US$7. C'mon, that's outrageous!
But one day, I was walking in a mall and one of my favorite stores is a grocery store, which brings, mainly, imported goods. They have lots of stuff, including European cheeses, Swiss chocolates, English teas, Danish cookies, and all the rest of intersting goods, foods and liquors. While looking at their spices stand, I found a nice and shiny tube, with two pods of fleshy vanilla... And for only R$10! C'mon, that's half the cheapest prices, here... So I bought it!
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Thursday, September 25, 2008 3:08:39 AM
Orange Blossom, Spanish, Catalana, Lemon
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Last weekend, as I had told, was a busy one. The main reason? I invited some friends to have dinner in my house. One of these friends is studying to be a cook, so, when we meet, we usually split the jobs. I left him with the main dishes and all that stuff, and I took care of desserts. Of his part, we had some delicious empanadas. I really should have taken some pictures of those beautiful pastries. Italian sausage, chicken, cheese and palm heart were the four different fillings we made, for the Empanadas. I deided to add a ceviche (a fish that has been "cooked" in a lemon marinade, and is very traditional in the Andinean countries), which I found among Laylita's Recipes, and served with some sweet potato and a thin baked pastry common here in Brazil (pastel).
Well, about the dessert, since we were going to Spanish colonies traditional food, I decided to go for a recipe from Spain, and went for a Crema Catalana. In fact, it is a cousing of the French Crème Brûlée, but it keeps more liquid and has a delicious and fresh citric accent in it. The problem was: I made a small recipe, and wouldn't have time to make more (EMERGENCY! Calling all creative cells!). I had to find out one more thing to help fill the ramekins I was using (actually, when I finished cooking the Crema, I already found out that would happen). So, I went for a fruit compote (I love using fruits to add some nice flavors and textures), and searched my freezer for anything useable. I usually keep some strawberries and blackberries, but this time, I hade freezed two packs of "Champagne Grapes" (They're tiny little seedless grapes imported from California. How do you breed all these nice stuff, there?), so I used one of them for this time. The final result was very nice, fresh and sweet, and with a lovely orange blossom scent.
Try this out, folks, you'll have fun with it!
- Higa
Crema Catalana
Makes 6 individual ramekins (This is the full recipe)
750ml Whole Milk
1tbsp Orange Blossom Water (You can use vanilla essence)
Thin Rind of 1/2 Lemon
7 Large Yolks
200g sugar
3tbsp cornstarch
1 - A day in advance of serving, pour the milk into a pan with the orange blossom and the lemon rind. Bring to a boil, remove from heat and let stand for 30 minutes to infuse.
2 - Put the egg yolks and half of the sugar in a heatproof bowl that will fit over a pan without touching the bottom, and beat untill sugar dissolves and the mixture is creamy.
3 - Return the milk to the heat and bring it to a simmer. Then, stir 4tbs of milk into the cornstarch in a bowl until a smooth paste forms. Stir into the milk over medium-low heat for 1 minute. Strain the milk into the egg mixture and whisk until well blended.
4 - Put the bowl over a pan of simmering water and stir the mixture for 25 or 30 minutes or until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. The bowl must not touch the water, or the eggs might scramble. Pour the mixture into 6 ramekins, let cool and chill for at least 12 hours.
5 - To serve, sprinkle it with a thin layer of sugar and use a kitchen blowtorch to caramelize the top.
My Opera
