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Leo Dinner Party Blog

CARDAMOM AND CINNAMON SPICED PUMPKIN CUSTARD IN A MOAT OF RUNNY CREAM SERVED WITH PASTRY FINGERS OF HONEY CARAMELISED APPLE AND NUTS.

Stephen Doyle

Serve with Bloodwood's 2013 Silk Purse.

The following web address shows how to make the creme caramel:

http://www.bhg.com/recipe/desserts/pumpkin-creme-caramel/

And here is the recipe:

Pumpkin Creme Caramel

  • Makes: 8 servings

  • Prep: 25 mins

  • Bake: 40 mins

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/3 cups sugar

  • 6 eggs, beaten

  • 1 1/2 cups pureed baked pumpkin

  • 25 ounce cans (1-1/3 cups) evaporated milk

  • 1/2 cup sugar

  • 1 teaspoon each of cardamom and cinnamon

  • 2 teaspoons finely shredded orange peel

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla

  • Pomegranate seeds (optional)

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degree F.

  2. To caramelise sugar, melt the 1-1/3 cups sugar in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat, shaking the skillet occasionally. When the sugar starts to melt, reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, until sugar is golden brown. Remove skillet from heat and immediately pour the caramelized sugar into eight un-greased 6-ounce custard cups. Holding the cups with pot holders, quickly tilt to evenly coat bottoms of cups.

  3. Place cups in two 2-quart square baking dishes. Stir together eggs, pumpkin, evaporated milk, the 1/2 cup sugar, cardamom, cinamon, orange peel, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Pour the pumpkin mixture over caramelised sugar in the cups. Place the baking dishes on the oven rack. Pour boiling water into the baking dishes around cups to a depth of 1 inch.

  4. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes or until a knife inserted near the centres comes out clean. Remove cups from water. Cool slightly on wire rack. Cover and chill for 4 to 24 hours.

  5. To serve, loosen edges of custards with a knife, slipping the point of a knife down the sides to let in air. Invert a dessert plate over each custard, turn cup and plate over together. Scrape the caramelized sugar that remains in cup onto the custard.

  6. If desired, garnish with pomegranate seeds. 

PS. If you don't like carnation milk (Mum used it for lots of baking so it has sentimental value for me) I'd use half milk and half cream.

HONEY CARAMEL FRUIT AND NUT PASTRIES

Serves 6

Ingredients:

  • 1  large apple
  • 1 t cinnamon
  • 250g pepitas, chopped hazelnuts, almonds etc
  • 150 mls light honey (enough to coat the apple and nuts) 
  • Pastry.. either buttered fillo layers or rolled out puff pastry

Directions:

1. Line a greased lamington tin with 5 layers of fillo pastry or one of puff pastry to cover all the edges. Prick the puff pastry with a fork. Bake first at 200 degrees C.

2. Lightly toast the roughly chopped nuts eg. hazelnuts, almonds, pepitas.

3. Dice apple and sauté pieces with scant butter to reduce the liquid. Add the cinnamon. Add the honey to the mixture and heat through. Add the nuts, stirring until all the ingredients are well coated.

4. When the pastry is just cooked, spread with the honeyed fruit and nut mixture in the tin over the pastry and bake just for 5 or 10 minutes.

5. Cool and cut into fingers and serve them with the pumpkin Creme Caramel.

 

Shortcuts:

Make one large custard and serve with runny cream

Delete the apple and nut pastry fingers and decorate the Pumpkin Creme Caramel with pomegranate seeds instead.