Burnt Cream

Before my boyfriend and I piled in the car to head down to my parents' for Christmas, we stopped at the mall to finish up our holiday shopping.  Unfortunately, that was the day I had found out I did not get the job I had applied for (no worries!  I've since gotten another, even better opportunity!)--and after some tears and heavy lunch drinking, I wandered off to buy him Celtics cufflinks he didn't need.  Despite the fact that he had already bought me enough Christmas presents, my boyfriend felt so bad for me that he did what all good boyfriends do: he went to Williams Sonoma.  And on Christmas Day I unwrapped an entirely unnecessary, completely extraneous present.  Yes, you guessed it---a blowtorch.

Why a blowtorch, you ask?  Why not a knife, peeler, or pancake mold in the shape of Darth Vader?  These are all great questions.  I'm not sure even he knows.  He simply plucked it off the shelf and asked for it to be gift wrapped.  And yes.  I am now the proud owner of a blowtorch.  My mother was absolutely horrified.  My brother promptly went to look for lighter fluid and things to light on fire.

Why the back-story?  Because for a Parisian film, what better treat to make than crème brûlée?  And so, never having attempting such a difficult, and, well, blow-torchy dessert, I thought--why not?  And while it did not end up exactly perfect, I do present to you my recipe for crème brûlée.  Oui Oui.  Eiffel Tour.  Berets.  Feeling french yet?

Vanilla Bean

Vanilla Bean Crème Brûlée
(Adapted from Williams Sonoma Recipe in the blowtorch box.)

You'll Need:
1/2 vanilla bean
2 cups heavy cream
3 egg yolks
Pinch of salt
1/4 cup plus 4 Tbs. sugar

1. Preheat an oven to 300°F. Have a pot of boiling water ready. Line a baking pan that is 2 to 3 inches deep with a small kitchen towel.
2. Using a small knife, split the vanilla bean lengthwise down the middle and scrape the seeds into a 2-quart saucepan. 
3. Add the cream, mix together and then turn on the heat to medium-high. Warm the cream until bubbles form around the edges of the pan and steam begins to rise from the surface. Remove from the heat and set aside, about 15 minutes.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, salt and the 1/4 cup sugar until smooth and blended. Gradually whisk in the cream to the egg mixture, continuing until blended. 
5. Pour the custard through a fine-mesh sieve set over a bowl. Divide the custard among four 5- or 6-oz. ramekins and place the ramekins in the prepared baking pan. 
6. Add boiling water to fill the pan halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil and bake until the custard is just set around the edges, 35 to 40 minutes.

7. Transfer the ramekins to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 3 days.
8. Just before serving, sprinkle 1 Tbs. of the sugar evenly over each custard. Using a kitchen torch (woohoo, open flame!), torch the sugar until it hardens and is slightly golden brown.  Do not burn--no matter how much fun the torch is.  Serve immediately and enjoy!

Despite my best efforts, the custard did not completely harden and took on an almost yogurty texture.  I was also a little overzealous with my first torching, and used too much sugar and too much flame.  (Note to boyfriend: I can totally use the torch.  You don't need to hover next to me, eyes wide with terror.)  Burnt sugar=yuck.  Still, though a little burnt and soupy, the taste was delicious.  Make sure you use real vanilla beans instead of vanilla extract.  It makes a serious difference.  I also used some leftover strawberries as garnishes, as seen below.  Now I just have to figure out--what else can I torch?  Muhuhahahahaha....

There are several very helpful videos online, and I've put the one I used below.  Check him out--doesn't he look official?

Mutiny with Bananas

Well, it was destined to happen eventually.  Complete and abject failure.  Because Mutiny on the Bounty takes place in Tahiti, I thought it would be a nice idea to try something Tahitian.  I thought first to do something with breadfruit, as that plant figures so prominently in the film, but do you have any idea how difficult it is to find breadfruit in Boston?  After giving up that route, I found a recipe called a Po'e, a traditional Tahitian bread pudding.  The instructions were pretty easy, and I happily put my pudding in the oven, expecting exotic results.  I'll provide the instructions, should you feel intrepid.

Tahitians presumably making Po'e in Mutiny on the Bounty

Traditional Po'e

You'll need:
Ripe bananas, peeled and cut into chunks, 6-8
1 papaya
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup coconut cream

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Puree the bananas and papaya in a blender or food processor. There should be enough puree to make 4 cups.
2. Mix together the brown sugar and cornstarch. Add this mixture and the vanilla to the bananas and process well. There should not be any lumps of starch. Adjust sugar to taste.
3. Butter a 2-quart baking dish and pour in the puree. Bake for 30-45 minutes, or until the pudding is firm and bubbling. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until well chilled.
4. Cut into cubes and place into a large serving bowl or in individual bowls. Top with a dollop of coconut cream, a little more brown sugar and serve.

Po'e pre-oven...you don't want to see the after...

What resulted was a kind of brown rubber hockey puck, vaguely tasting of bananas and glue.  I think I might have added too much cornstarch.  Picture a bananay cake thing that looks and tastes like an the inside of an old Fig Newton.  Fail.  I take it it does not taste this way when Tahitians bake it in banana leaves.  So much for being exotic.

So after throwing a temper tantrum, I made my own pudding dessert.  Screw the Tahitians.  But I added bananas because, well, at least it's a little tropical.

My Improvised Far-Cooler-Than-The-Po'e Pudding Pie
You'll Need:
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 tbsps sugar
1 ready-made graham cracker crust, or Pillsbury regular crust
1 packages of instant chocolate pudding, pie filler
2 cups milk
Some graham crackers
A few bananas
A bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. If you are using a Pillsbury crust, like I did, put the crust in a pie tin and bake for approximately 10 minutes.  Cool completely.
2. Follow the instructions on the pudding box and make it using the milk.
3. Usually some kind of electric mixer, whisk the heavy cream and sugar until it forms stiff peaks, making whipped cream.
4. Mix some of the whipped cream with the pudding to make it more mousse-like, about 1/2-1 cup.
5. Pour the pudding mixture into the crust.
6. Cover the top with the rest of the whipped cream.
7. Crush up some graham crackers and sprinkle them over the top.  Slice up the bananas and add them as well.
8. Melt the chocolate chips and drizzle that over the pie as desired.  Refrigerate at least an hour, until firm.

This recipe, or some variation of it, is my go-to dessert if I'm ever in a pinch.  It is easy, cheap, and quick to make.  Often, if I'm trying a new dessert for a party, I'll have a back-up dessert handy (like this one).  More than once, I've slaved all day making some extremely complicated torte or souffle, only to have it fall or crumble.  This is why it's always good to have a back-up dessert that is easy, quick and that everyone loves.  Who doesn't like chocolate pudding pie?  No one.  This way, you can still say you worked hard and made a dessert from scratch (kind of).  So once again, my pudding pie has saved the day.  Take that, Tahitians.

 PS-  If you're wondering why there are only bananas on half the pie, it's not because I'm trying some advanced pie aesthetic, it's because my roommate hates bananas and I didn't want to eat the whole thing myself. :-)