Custard Crown Food

DANISH PASTRIES

Steps:

• Pulse together the dry ingredients plus 2 tsp salt in a processor, then pulse in the milk and egg, plus 100ml water, until you have a smooth, slightly sticky dough. Knead for 1 min, using a little flour, until just smooth. Put into an oiled bowl, cover with oiled cling film and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 hr until doubled in size (overnight in the fridge if you like).
• Flour your surface, then pat the dough out to a rectangle, 1cm thick. Lay the butter slices out over the middle of the dough, in a rectangle. Fold the pastry over the top, bottom and then sides until the butter is completely hidden. Press the edges down.
• Roll the dough out to a 50 x 30cm rectangle, first tapping out the dough with the rolling pin in gentle ridges, so that you can tell the butter is being squashed out evenly inside the pastry, before rolling properly. Turn dough 90 degrees, then fold the right third over and the left third over that. Do this three times, chilling for 15 mins after each roll.
• Cut the dough in half, into 2 squares. Roll one piece of dough to 35 x 35cm. Cut into 9 squares, then follow the instructions below for each filling and shape. If you want to make more than one shape, it's easy to divide the filling quantity. Don't worry if your squares rise as you work, just roll them out a bit again.
• To make 18 pecan pinwheels, whizz 85g pecans until fine, then stir in 50g light muscovado, 1 tbsp maple syrup and 25g softened butter. Cut each square of pastry almost to the middle from each corner, spoon on 1 tsp filling, then fold each point over and press into the middle. Scatter more chopped pecans and a little sugar over before baking. Drizzle with a little maple syrup to serve.
• For 18 apricot custard turnovers, you will need 150g tub custard, 2 x 320g cans apricots and a few tsps apricot jam. Put 2 tsp custard in the middle, sit two apricot halves on top, dot with jam, then pull 2 corners over and pinch to seal.
• To make 18 raisin swirls, mix 50g raisins, 25g caster sugar, 1 tsp mixed spice and 50g soft butter. Instead of cutting the dough into 9, leave it whole and spread the filling over. Roll up, slice into 9 rounds, then squash each one. Blend 50g icing sugar and a few drops of water to drizzle over once baked.
• Once shaped and filled, let the pastries rise for 30 mins until puffed and doubled in size. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Brush with beaten egg, make sure you pinch any edges together again, then bake for about 20 mins until golden and risen.

SIMPLE CUSTARD

Steps:

• Cook and stir milk, vanilla extract, and butter in a saucepan over medium heat until simmering. Remove mixture from heat before it comes to a boil.
• Whisk eggs, sugar, and cornstarch together in a bowl until sugar dissolves.
• Set saucepan back over low heat. Pour in egg mixture slowly, whisking constantly, until custard thickens enough to coat the bottom of a spoon, 5 to 10 minutes.

CHEF JOHN'S CREAMY CORN CUSTARD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Butter six 6-ounce glass or ceramic ramekins. Set ramekins into a 2-inch deep baking dish.
• Place corn into a large saucepan and stir in cream, salt, and cayenne pepper. Bring to a simmer and remove from heat; stir in milk.
• Transfer corn mixture to a blender and pulse several times to get the mixture moving. Blend on high speed until smooth and creamy.
• Whisk egg yolks with eggs until smooth in a mixing bowl. Slowly whisk about 1/4 cup hot corn mixture into eggs until the corn mixture is incorporated. Repeat several times more until all the corn mixture is combined with eggs.
• Divide corn mixture equally into the 6 ramekins. Pour hot tap water into the baking dish to come about halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
• Bake in the preheated oven until custards are just set, 30 to 35 minutes. Let custards cool for about 10 minutes before serving in ramekins or unmolding onto serving plates. To unmold, insert a knife between the custard and the ramekin, go around the edge with knife to loosen, and turn over onto a plate to unmold.

VANILLA CUSTARD

Steps:

• Heat the milk in the saucepan until it comes just up to the boil, then take off the heat immediately. In a bowl, beat together the egg yolks, vanilla sugar and flours. Pour the milk slowly over the egg mix, beating well.
• Return the mixture to the pan and place over a low heat, stirring for 8-10 mins until the mixture begins to thicken. Remove and serve with the dumplings.

HOMEMADE CUSTARD

Steps:

• Put the cream and milk into a large pan and gently bring to just below boiling point. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk the yolks, cornflour, sugar and vanilla. Gradually pour the hot milk mixture onto the sugar mixture, whisking constantly.
• Wipe out the saucepan and pour the mixture back into it. Heat gently, stirring with a wooden spoon (see Steps 1 and 2, for stirring tips) until the custard is thickened, but before any lumps form. Eat hot or cold.

CUSTARD

Steps:

• Mix 2 tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch in a heavy-bottomed saucepan.
• When the cornstarch is dissolved, slowly add the rest of the milk and sugar, and cook over moderate heat until the sauce starts to thicken and comes to a boil.
• Remove from heat.
• In a small bowl, beat egg yolks with a fork.
• Take a cup of the sauce, and slowly add to the eggs, beating briskly as you pour.
• Return the egg/sauce mixture to the saucepan, stirring into the hot sauce.
• Bring back to a boil, stirring constantly.
• Remove from heat, and add the vanilla extract.
• Pour custard into a jug or pitcher, and serve.
• Tip: To prevent custard forming a skin as it cools, cover jug with plastic wrap.

CUSTARD CROWN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F.
• Place raisins in a small saucepan; cover with water. Heat to boiling; remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Drain and discard water.
• Combine raisins, pineapple and preserves in small food processor; pulse until almost smooth.
• Butter the bottom and sides of a 6-cup ovensafe mold. Line bottom with baking parchment or waxed paper. Place a layer of ladyfingers in bottom, covering bottom fully. Spread 3 tbsp of fruit mixture over ladyfingers. Stand ladyfingers, touching side by side, around sides of mold, lining it completely.
• Beat eggs in a medium bowl. Add 1/2 c sugar, milk and Cointreau.
• Ladle 1 c of custard mixture into mold. Top with another layer of ladyfingers. Spread another 3 tbsp fruit over ladyfingers. Pour in ½ c custard mixture. Continue layering ladyfingers, fruit and custard until all are used up.
• Cover mold tightly with aluminum foil. Place mold in large roasting pan. Place pan on oven rack and pour boiling water around mold to 1" below the top of the mold. Bake in preheated oven 2 hours or until top is firm. Transfer mold to a rack and cool 1 hour. Place mold in refrigerator and chill at least 4 hours or overnight.
• To unmold, run a thin knife around the inside of the mold. Place a plate over the top of the mold and invert; remove mold.
• Chill beaters and bowl thoroughly. Beat whipping cream with 2 tbsp sugar and vanilla extract until stiff. Spoon whipped cream into piping bag with star tip. Pipe ribbons of cream around sides of mold; pipe circles of rosettes around the top of the mold. Garnish with candied pineapple or glacéed cherries.