Summer Berries With Bay Leaf Custard Food

PEAR & BLACKBERRY CRUMBLE WITH BAY LEAF CUSTARD

Steps:

• First, make the custard. Whisk the egg yolks in a bowl until just broken up - they shouldn't be frothy. Pour the milk and sugar into a saucepan and warm over a low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar, until almost boiling. Add the bay leaves, remove from the heat, and leave to infuse for 10 mins. If the milk mixture has cooled after this time, briefly warm it up again until just steaming, then remove from the heat. Discard the bay leaves and pour a little of the mixture into the whisked egg yolks. Whisk in the splash of milk, then pour the yolk mixture into the milk pan, whisking continuously to combine. Cook over a low-medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, and silky smooth. Strain through a sieve and set aside. The custard can be served warm or cold - you can chill it at this stage, or set aside to reheat later.
• For the crumble topping, combine the flour, sugar, oats, pumpkin seeds, almonds, hazelnuts, spices and a pinch of salt in a bowl, then pour over the butter. Mix well. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
• Butter a large ceramic baking dish. Combine the pears, sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon and knob of butter in a medium pan, then set over a low heat. Cook for 4-5 mins, gently stirring, until the pears have released some juice and are slightly softened, but not falling apart. Remove from the heat and tip into the dish along with half the cooking juices released into the pan. Dot the blackberries among the filling.
• Scatter the crumble topping all over the filling, then bake for 25-30 mins until golden, crisp and bubbling at the edges. Leave to stand for 10 mins before serving with the custard, alongside the remaining pan juices.

SUMMER BERRIES WITH BAY LEAF CUSTARD

Steps:

• Beat together the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer until thick and pale, about 3 minutes.
• Transfer yolk mixture to a 2 to 3 quart heavy saucepan and stir in the milk, cream, and bay leaves. Cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat the back of the spoon and the mixture registers 175 F on an instant read thermometer. Do not let it boil. This should take approximately 8 to 10 minutes.
• Remove mixture from the heat and cool the custard to room temperature in pan, stirring frequently to prevent a skin from forming on the top, about 1 hour.
• Discard bay leaves and serve the custard over the mixed berries.

BAY LEAF SAUCE

Steps:

• Combine ingredients and cook slowly for 15 minutes.
• Strain.

SUMMER BERRIES WITH LEMON CREME FRAICHE

Steps:

• Place creme fraiche in a medium-size non-reactive bowl. Add sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice and whisk well to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold, 1 hour or longer. (Lemon Creme Fraiche can be prepared 2 days ahead; keep covered and refrigerated.).
• Rinse berries and gently pat dry. If using strawberries, rinse first then hull and halve (or quarter, if large) lengthwise. Place berries in a large bowl and gently toss to combine.
• Divide berries among four wide-mouthed wine glasses, martini glasses or dessert bowls. Drizzle each serving with about 1/4 cup of Lemon Creme.

BAY LEAF CREAMS

Steps:

• To make the syrup, dissolve the sugar in a pan with 150ml water over a low heat, and bubble until it reduces by almost half. Put the bay leaves in a bowl (scrunch them in your hands first), then pour in the hot syrup and lime juice, cover and leave in a cool place for at least 4 hrs to infuse (if you have time, do this ahead and leave it for at least two days). Strain into a bottle. Will keep chilled for up to a week. If you want to keep it for longer, then bring the syrup back up to the boil before bottling it.
• Soak the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water and set aside. Put the cream, milk, sugar and bay leaves (again, scrunch them as you add them) in a pan and bring to the boil. Stir to dissolve the sugar, then take off the heat. Gently squeeze the excess water from the gelatine, then stir into the hot cream until completely dissolved. Leave to cool for 10 mins, then fish out the bay leaves. Pour into six to eight decorative glasses and leave to set in the fridge overnight. Pour the syrup over the creams just before serving.

SUMMER BERRIES ON A CLOUD OF CHANTILLY CREAM

Steps:

• In a chilled bowl with chilled beaters, beat whipping cream until it begins to thicken.
• Add the liqueur, icing sugar, and extract, whipping constantly until soft peaks form. Do not over-beat. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Right before serving, alternately layer the fresh berries with the Chantilly cream, and the cake cubes (if using) in dessert glasses or a trifle dish.
• Top with a dollop of whipped cream and a berry.
• Garnish with your choice of chocolate or lemon curls, sliced almonds or pink rose petals, as desired.

FRIED FRUIT WITH BAY LEAF SAUCE

Steps:

• Sauce (can be prepared in advance): mix all ingredients in a small pot. Heat on medium high heat and stir all the time. The mixture will thicken during heating to a temperature of about 175 F (80 C). It is important that during heating the mixture will constantly be stirred. Do not let the sauce boil. The sauce has the right conistency, if it builds a thick film on the backside of a tablespoon.
• Remove sauce from heat and stir for 2 minutes. Set aside and let cool down completely.
• Prepare berries: Wash small panicles of red currant and pat dry with paper towels. Wash grapes and cut into clusters of 3-5 berries.
• In a suited pot or deep fryer heat about 2 inches high oil for frying.
• Combine flour, sugar, ground nutmeg and ground cinnamon.
• Mix egg, milk and 1 tablespoon oil. Add to flour mixture and beat until smooth.
• Dip berries and sage leaves into batter.
• Fry berries in hot oil for about 1 minute or until batter is light golden brown. Fry sage leaves until batter is light golden brown and puffed up.
• Remove with slotted spoon; drain on paper towels.
• While still warm sprinkle the fired red currant berries and the sage leaves slightly with some sugar.
• Serve berries and sage leaves still warm with the cold bay leaf sauce.
• NOTE: You can replace the berries in this recipe against others of your choice, but use fresh ones. They should not be to sweet. Or choose a sweet and a more tart one.
• NOTE: I used fresh bay leaves. If you have no fresh leaves, you can use dried ones, but you may have to use more leaves. Try the sauce during heating and add more leaves to your taste. The sauce should have a delicate vanilla taste and additional notes.