Ginger Lemon Grass Crème Brulée Food

GINGER & LEMON GRASS CRèME BRULéE

Steps:

• Pre-heat the oven to 325 degrees.
• Place ginger and the lemongrass into a medium saucepan.
• Add the heavy cream and simmer gently for 25 minutes to infuse the flavours.
• Remove the infusion from the stove and strain through a fine sieve.
• In a mixing bowl whisk together the yolks, the sugar the lemon extract and the bitters.
• Slowly mix in the heavy cream infusion.
• Pour into ramekins or an oven casserole dish. Remove any foam from the top of mixture with a teaspoon.
• Place ramekins into a large casserole dish and pour hot water until the level is halfway up the sides of the ramekin dish. Put into oven and bake until the custard is firm (the center should jiggle just a little when you shake it) approximately 40 -50 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the water bath and completely cool before you cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
• To serve.
• Sprinkle the top with granulated sugar and using a blow torch caramelize the sugar. The oven broiler can be used in place of the torch.
• Place the ramekins in a tray of cold water and ice and leave in the broiler for 3-5 minutes--just enough to caramelize the sugar.
• Variations: 1/4 teaspoon grated lime peel can be substituted for the lemon grass.

LEMON-GINGER CREME BRULEE

Steps:

• In a large heavy saucepan, heat the cream, 1/3 cup sugar and ginger until bubbles form around sides of pan. Remove from the heat; stir a small amount of hot mixture into egg yolks. Return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Stir in extracts., Transfer to six 6-oz. ramekins or custard cups. Place in a baking pan; add 1 in. of boiling water to pan. Bake, uncovered, at 325° for 25-30 minutes or until centers are just set (mixture will jiggle). Remove ramekins from water bath; cool for 10 minutes. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours., Combine brown sugar and remaining sugar. If using a creme brulee torch, sprinkle custards with sugar mixture. Heat sugar with the torch until caramelized. Serve immediately., If broiling the custards, place ramekins on a baking sheet; let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes. Sprinkle with sugar mixture. Broil 8 in. from the heat for 4-7 minutes or until sugar is caramelized. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours or until firm.

GINGER CREME BRULEE

Steps:

• Mix egg yolks, eggs and 6 ounces of sugar until combined. Heat the cream to scalding, add ginger and gradually pour into egg mixture, stirring constantly. Add vanilla and salt.
• Using creme brulee molds or another baking ramekin evenly distribute mixture. Place in a shallow baking dish and fill dish half way up with water, creating a water bath.
• Bake at 350 degrees F for approximately 30 minutes or until set. Sprinkle granulated sugar on top of molds after they have cooled. Place molds under broiler to caramelize sugar. Garnish with mint leaves.

ULTIMATE CRèME BRûLéE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Sit four 175ml ramekins in a deep roasting tin at least 7.5cm deep (or a large deep cake tin), one that will enable a baking tray to sit well above the ramekins when laid across the top of the tin.
• Pour the large and small cartons of double cream into a medium pan with the milk.
• Lay the vanilla pod on a board and slice lengthways through the middle with a sharp knife to split it in two. Use the tip of the knife to scrape out all the tiny seeds into the cream mixture. Drop the vanilla pod in as well, and set aside.
• Put the egg yolks and sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk for 1 min with an electric hand whisk until paler in colour and a bit fluffy.
• Put the pan with the cream on a medium heat and bring almost to the boil. As soon as you see bubbles appear round the edge, take the pan off the heat.
• Pour the hot cream into the beaten egg yolks, stirring with a wire whisk as you do so, and scraping out the seeds from the pan.
• Set a fine sieve over a large wide jug or bowl and pour the hot mixture through to strain it, encouraging any stray vanilla seeds through at the end.
• Using a big spoon, scoop off all the pale foam that is sitting on the top of the liquid (this will be several spoonfuls) and discard. Give the mixture a stir.
• Pour in enough hot water (from the tap) into the roasting tin to come about 1.5cm up the sides of the ramekins. Pour the hot cream into the ramekins so you fill them up right to the top - it's easier to spoon in the last little bit.
• Put them in the oven and lay a baking sheet over the top of the tin so it sits well above the ramekins and completely covers them, but not the whole tin, leaving a small gap at one side to allow air to circulate.
• Bake for 30-35 mins until the mixture is softly set. To check, gently sway the roasting tin and if the crème brûlées are ready, they will wobble a bit like a jelly in the middle. Don't let them get too firm.
• Lift the ramekins out of the roasting tin with oven gloves and set them on a wire rack to cool for a couple of minutes only, then put in the fridge to cool completely. This can be done overnight without affecting the texture.
• When ready to serve, wipe round the top edge of the dishes, sprinkle 1½ tsp of caster sugar over each ramekin and spread it out with the back of a spoon to completely cover.
• Spray with a little water using a fine spray (the sort you buy in a craft shop) to just dampen the sugar - then use a blow torch to caramelise it. Hold the flame just above the sugar and keep moving it round and round until caramelised. Serve when the brûlée is firm, or within an hour or two.

GINGER CRèME BRûLéE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F. Combine cream and ginger in heavy medium saucepan. Bring to simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat; let stand 20 minutes. Strain cream into small bowl, pressing on solids in sieve. Whisk yolks and 1 cup sugar in medium bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in warm cream. Divide custard among eight 3/4-cup ramekins or custard cups. Place ramekins in large roasting pan. Pour enough warm water into pan to come halfway up sides of ramekins.
• Bake custards just until set in center when pan is gently shaken, about 45 minutes. Remove custards from water bath; chill uncovered until cold, at least 3 hours. Cover and chill overnight.
• Preheat broiler. Place custards on baking sheet. Sprinkle each with 1/2 teaspoon of remaining sugar. Broil until sugar melts and caramelizes, turning sheet for even browning, about 1 minute. Refrigerate custards until topping is cold and brittle, about 1 hour and up to 2 hours. Garnish custards with strawberries and mint and serve.

GINGER AND VANILLA BEAN CRèME BRûLéE

Steps:

• Make custard:
• Preheat oven to 325°F. Place three 4-inch-diameter fluted flan dishes* in each of two 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pans or place six 3/4-cup ramekins in 1 pan. Mix cream, sugar and ginger in heavy medium saucepan. Using small sharp knife, scrape seeds from vanilla bean. Add seeds and bean to saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture comes to simmer. Cover pan, reduce heat to very low and simmer gently 10 minutes to infuse flavors. Strain into large measuring cup.
• Whisk yolks in medium bowl until well blended. Gradually whisk in hot cream mixture just to blend. Return custard to measuring cup; divide among dishes. Pour enough hot water into pans to come halfway up sides of dishes. Carefully transfer pans to oven.
• Bake custards until almost set in center when pans are gently shaken, about 30 minutes for fluted flan dishes and 35 minutes for ramekins. Using metal spatula, transfer custards in dishes to work surface; cool 30 minutes. Chill at least 3 hours and up to 2 days.
• Make Crème Brûlée:
• Sprinkle 2 teaspoons sugar evenly over each custard. Working with 1 custard at a time, hold blowtorch** so that flame is 2 inches above surface. Direct flame so that sugar melts and browns, about 2 minutes.
• Refrigerate until custards are firm again but topping is still brittle, at least 2 hours but no longer than 4 hours so that topping doesn't soften. Garnish crème brûlées with fruit.
• *Four-inch-diameter fluted clear glass flan dishes are available at cookware stores and many hardware stores. They are about 2/3 inch deep and hold about 1/2 cup liquid.
• **Available at some cookware stores.

LEMON GINGER CREME BRULEE

Steps:

• Heat the cream in a saucepan with the ginger. Bring it just below boiling. Don't let it boil. Stir it occasionally to prevent a skin from forming. Simmer for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile cream together the egg yolks and 5 tbsp sugar in a mixing bowl.
• Remove saucepan from heat and add lemon. Strain into a bowl.
• SLOWLY pour the cream into the egg, whisking gently with a fork to mix evenly. Be careful not to incorporate any air into the mixture or you'll have bubbles in your custard. And be careful not to pour too quickly or you'll cook the egg.
• Divide the mixture evenly between 4 ramekins and place in a lasagna pan (something with high sides). Pour water into the pan (but don't get any into your ramekins) until it comes about halfway up your ramekins.
• Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes (more or less depending on the shape of your ramekins - short wide ones cook faster than taller narrower ones). They're done cooking when they are set, but the center is jiggly.
• Remove from the water bath and cool, uncovered, on the counter until they reach room temperature. Then cover with plastic wrap and store in the fridge for up to 2 days (they need to chill for at least 4 hours).
• When ready to eat, remove from the fridge, take off the plastic wrap, and top with a thin layer of white and brown sugar. Use a torch to caramelize the sugar, or you can place them under the broiler (but you have to watch them constantly to make sure they don't burn).