Showing posts sorted by relevance for query bread pudding. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query bread pudding. Sort by date Show all posts
Sometimes you want a dessert that feels special but that won't take up a lot of time or ingredients. I confess, I can be rather lazy like that at times, in fact I would say most of the time.
My time is precious and I am so busy that it can sometimes be a struggle to get in all the things I need to get done! That's when desserts like Pain Perdu come in really handy.
In France, French Toast is actually called Pain Perdu, which loosely translated means lost bread. It was designed to use up every scrap of bread, especially stale bread.
With its sinfully crisp and buttery crust and exquisitely sweet custardy interior, it turns something which might be thrown away into something quite magical.
It makes a fabulous brunch or breakfast at the weekend, but let me tell you this. Something mystical happens when you make it with leftover cake or sweet loaves.
This isn't breakfast or brunch any longer. This is a fabulously quick, easy and delicious dessert! A dessert I would even serve to company!
If you are regular readers of mine, you will recall that the other day I baked Mary Berry's Swiss Roll cake. Oh my but it was some good.
But, like any cake, it was best eaten on the day. Its still good the second day, but by the third day it was needing some help. I was going to make French Toast for breakfast this morning and I did.
Using some stale Brioche that I had. And it looked really good. But then I spied the leftover swiss roll sitting on the counter and my wheels started to spin.
What if I used the same method to cook that? What if indeed!
You know me when I get an idea in my head. I won't rest until I execute it! The French toast could wait for another day.
I wanted Pain Perdu . . . made with cake . . . with some fruit and ice cream . . . dessert for breakfast and why not! Yes, I can be very naughty at times.
And so that is what I did and it was fabulous. I cut the leftover swiss roll into 1 inch thick slices and then I dipped it into the cream and egg mixture I had for the French toast and I fried it in butter.
I felt like that was okay because, the cake itself was fat free. Half a dozen of one, six of another.
I toasted it in a skillet in foaming butter until it was olden brown on both sides. The edges all crisp and caramelized.
The interior staying soft, fluffy and soufflé-like. Almost like a bread pudding. Rich from the cream and eggs.
Not overly sweet. It doesn't need to be. There was that sweet swirl from the jam already and then served with fruit and ice cream, you didn't need any more sweet.
This was quite simply fabulous and so quick to make.
I was only going to eat a tiny taste of it (I had only done one slice because I had already done two slices of French toast.)
But before I knew it, it was half gone. Oh my, but it was some good. I abandoned the idea of having French Toast for breakfast and just had this in its place.
I used a frozen mix of fruit on top. Mango, peaches, strawberries. I had bought some raspberries, but they went moldy overnight. I hate it when that happens.
I hate wasting money like that. It makes me not want to buy fresh fruit at all. I think sometimes because we live here, low in the valley we are at the bottom of the food chain or something. I have been very disappointed in the quality of fresh fruit and vegetables available, unless you get it at the Farm market.
Most of the stuff in the grocery shops is sub-standard. People told me before I went to the UK that their food was rubbish. I have news for them. It was a bazillion times better than what I am finding here. But I digress.
Before I knew it, frozen fruit or not, my plate was clean and my breakfast had been replaced with a delicious, quick, easy and fabulous dessert.
Some days are just like that n'est ce pas?
You don't have to use swiss roll cake for this tasty pudding. You can use any kind of cake you fancy that is going a bit stale. Gingerbread, pumpkin loaf, pound cake, etc. All would be exceptional.
A quick and easy dessert from what would normally be thrown to the birds. What more could you ask for!
Yield: 4
A Simple Pain Perdu
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 15 MinTotal time: 25 Min
A homey comforting dessert that is a cross somewhere between a bread pudding and French toast. A very simple make, this makes the ideal dessert served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and some fresh fruit.
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup (160ml) heavy cream (whipping cream)
- 2 large free range eggs, plus 1 egg yolk
- 2 TBS sugar
- 4 (1 inch thick) slices of your favorite plain cake (I used swiss roll, but you can use pumpkin loaf, pound cake, angel food cake,etc.)
- 1/4 cup (60g) butter for cooking
To serve:
- Icing sugar to dust
- a good vanilla ice cream
- fruit of your choice
Instructions
- Whisk the cream, eggs and sugar together in a large shallow bowl or container. Dip the first two slices of cake into the egg mixture and leave to soak up for 5 minutes.
- Melt half of the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Once the butter begins to foam, add the cake slices. While they are cooking soak the remaining slices of cake.
- Brown the slices of cake over medium heat, until golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towel and keep warm in the oven while you cook the remaining slices of cake in the remaining butter as above.
- Place one slice on each of four dessert plates. Dust with icing sugar. Top with some fruit an a scoop of ice cream and serve immediately. Deliciously simple!
I just love buying all the Christmas Cookery Magazines. It doesn't matter that I probably won't cook even a fraction of the recipes in them, if any . . . but I do love to look at all the different ideas that are presented in them each year.
Our Christmas Lunch stays basically the same each year . . . Roast Turkey, stuffing, roast potatoes, glazed parsnips, Brussels Sprouts, carrots. bacon wrapped chipolatas, cranberry sauce, bread sauce . . . and as if that weren't enough I also like to serve several desserts.
There is always a Christmas Cake and of course Christmas pudding . . . let's not forget the mince pies and I always like to make a Trifle of sorts.
One year a few years back I made a tasty Turkish Delight Trifle. You can find the recipe for that here. It was very lovely . . . sticky and sweet and almost over the top!
I often do a trial run of any new recipe I am hoping to use, ahead of the day just so that I can iron out any problems with a recipe . . . making absolutely sure that it is worthy of a place on my Christmas Lunch menu.
I was greatly intrigued by the Christmas Pudding Trifle recipe in the Nov/Dec issue of Jamie Magazine. (That's one of my favourite cookery mags.) There was a delicious article on using up your Christmas lunch leftovers. Tristan Welch, head chef of Launceston Place had what looked to be a lovely recipe for this interestingly different sounding trifle and I just had to try it.
His was beautifully presented in 200ml canning jars, each one tied up with a pretty red ribbon. I didn't have any canning jars, and I only wanted to make a half recipe for this trial and so I just used some 200ml ramekins with great success.
Without a doubt, hands down . . . this has to be the most delicious Trifle ever! There is just enough Christmas Pudding in it to give you a gentle hint of spicy flavour, without it going over the top. I don't think any die hard Christmas Pudding hater would be assaulted by it in the least . . . don't even tell them it's there. They probably won't even notice what it is, and even if they do, they will forgive you because it is that delicious that they will wonder how they ever got by in life without it thus far!
Imagine a rich custard, baked until slightly wobbly, atop some scrummy Christmas Pudding . . . chilled and then topped with crushed amaretti biscuits, brandy whipped cream, toasted flaked almonds and a few silver balls . . . yes . . . this is heaven.
All conversation will stop . . . amidst the sighs and satisfied drooling noises . . . this is a winner, pure and simple, and it will deffo be gracing my Christmas Lunch buffet! Nothing could be easier or tastier!
*Christmas Pudding Trifle*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe
A delicious trifle which consists of a lovely rich custard baked over top of some crumbled Christmas pudding until wobbly. Chilled and then covered with amaretti biscuits, brandy cream, flaked almonds and silver balls, this is probably one of the nicest trifles I've ever eaten . . .
300ml of milk (1 1/4 cups)
200ml of double cream (3/4 cup whipping cream)
freshly grated nutmeg
6 large free range egg yolks
70g caster sugar (about 1/3 cup)
Leftover Christmas pudding (It's up to you how much)
12 crisp amaretti biscuits
150ml of double cream (about 2/3 cup), whipped lightly with a dash of brandy
1 TBS Toasted Flaked almonds
Silver balls
Preheat the oven to 110*C/225*F/ gas mark 1/4. Place 6 200ml containers on a baking tray. Crumble some Christmas Pudding into the bottom of each. You can use as much as you want. I crumbled about 1 TBS of the stuff into each container, so that it was about 1/2 inch deep. Set aside.
Heat the milk and double cream together, along with a grating of nutmeg, just to the boil. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together until pale. Whisk in the heated milk mixture, whisking constantly. Strain this mixture into the prepared pots, dividing it equally amongst them. Grate a little more nutmeg on top. Bake in the heatred oven for 30 to 40 minutes, just until set. The centre should still have a slight wobble. Remove from the oven. Cool to room temperature and then chill in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.
Just before serving, whip the cream softly along with a dash of brandy, or brandy flavouring. Crumble 2 amaretti biscuits over top of each pudding, then top with some whipped brandy cream. Sprinkle some toasted almonds and silver balls over top of each and serve.
In North America, a pudding would be described as being a dessert . . . created from milk, sugar, eggs and flavouring . . . soft and spoonable . . . not quite a custard, but . . . very similar.
Over here in the UK, however . . . the term pudding is used to describe any manner of prepared sweets that would come under the classification of desserts.
In fact . . . the dessert course is, more often than not, referred to as . . . "the Pudding."
If there is one thing that the British do better than any other culture, it is puddings!
Oh my goodness, they make my head swoon . . . delicious cakes and crumbles . . . pies and tarts . . . custards and flans . . . there is no end to the variety of puddings available to drool over.
British puddings have a very long and honourable tradition. Comforting, and homely, they are a well anticipated part of any meal, celebratory or otherwise . . . and for a great many children throughout the years, they have been the best part of most School dinners!!
One of our favourite puddings has to be Queen of Puddings. A delicious, old fashioned baked pudding composed of simple and humble ingredients . . .
soft bread crumbs, eggs, milk and jam. Only the British could take such something as simple as these things, and create something totally scrumptious.
One spoonful and I think you'll agree that it is not hard to reason why this pudding is called the Queen . . .
"We" are most impressed . . .
*Queen of Puddings*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe
With it's beautiful cloud of meringue floating on top, it's not hard to see why this is called "Queen of Puddings." It is certainly one of the lightest and most mouthwatering puddings ever . . certainly fit for the royalty in this house!
1 pint whole milk
1/2 ounce butter
4 ounces fresh white bread crumbs
2 ounces caster sugar, divided, plus 1 tsp.
the grated rind of one unwaxed lemon
2 large eggs, at room temperature
pinch of salt
3 TBS of raspberry jam
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Generously butter a 1 1/2 pint glass baking dish. Set aside.
Place the milk along with the lemon rind and bring just to the boiling point over medium heat. Remove from the heat and stir in the breadcrumbs and 1 ounce of the sugarsugar. Set aslide to infuse for 20 minutes.
Separate the eggs, putting the whites into a clean glass bowl, free from any grease. Beat the yolks and then beat them into the breadcrumb mixture. Pour this bread custard into the prepared baking dish, spreading it out evenly. Bake in the centre of the oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or just until set. Remove from the oven.
Heat the jam until it melts and then spread it evenly over top of the baked pudding.
Beat the egg whites along with a pinch of salt until foamy. Continue to beat, adding the remaining 1 ounce of sugar slowly, beating them until they form stiff peaks. Spoon this mixture evenly over top of the jam. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining tsp of sugar.
Place back in the oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes, until the meringue is golden brown. Serve warm to 4 lucky people!
We love banana loaves in this house. I am not overly fond of eating bananas themselves, but bake them into a loaf or pie or cookie and I am all over them. The Toddster could eat a raw banana every day. I actually have to hide bananas so that I can bake with them . . .
This is my all time favourite banana bread. Okay . . . I know . . . I say that about every banana bread I bake. I guess I just love banana breads and this one shines!
Stogged with beautiful jewel-like dried cranberries, and crunchy toasted English walnuts, it is pleasing on many levels!
It's moreishly moist . . . with sticky little sweet bits and crunchy nutty nobbles scattered throughout. It's lovely eaten plain and out of hand . . .
Or gently warmed and spread with cold butter . . .
It's gorgeous toasted and spread with butter . . . the stale bread makes great French Toast, or bread pudding . . . I hardly ever have any that goes stale however, it's that good.
It's also my next door neighbors' favourite banana bread that I bake for them. I usually send half of it over to them every time I bake it. They love it and I love to give. It's win/win really! Put it this way, they've never turned the gifting of it down . . . never.
*Marie's Best Banana Bread*
A moist banana loaf chock full of sweet cranberries and crunchy walnuts.
4 ounces butter, at room temp (1/2 cup)
175g of caster sugar (3/4 cup)
2 large free range eggs, beaten
1 tsp milk
300g of plain flour (2 1/4 cups)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp mixed spice (see my recipe in the side bar on the right side
of the page)
3 ripe bananas, peeled and mashed
85g dried cranberries (generous 1/2 cup)
60g toasted walnuts, chopped (scant 1/2 cup)
Preheat the oven to 160*C/325*F/ gas mark 3. Butter 2 small loaf tins, or 1 large loaf tin and line with baking parchment.
Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until pale and creamy. Beat in the eggs and the milk, mixing all together well.
Whisk together the flour, salt, soda and spice. Stir this mixture into the creamed mixture. Stir in the bananas, cranberries and walnuts. Divide the mixture between the two small tins or spread into the large tin. Bake in the middle of the preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes for small loaves, or 1 to 1/1/2 hours for the large tin, until well risen and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tins for 10 minutes, then lift out onto a wire rack to cool completely. This cake will keep for up to 1 week when stored in an airtight tin.
Makes 1 9X5 loaf
A moist banana loaf chock full of sweet cranberries and crunchy walnuts.
4 ounces butter, at room temp (1/2 cup)
175g of caster sugar (3/4 cup)
2 large free range eggs, beaten
1 tsp milk
300g of plain flour (2 1/4 cups)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp mixed spice (see my recipe in the side bar on the right side
of the page)
3 ripe bananas, peeled and mashed
85g dried cranberries (generous 1/2 cup)
60g toasted walnuts, chopped (scant 1/2 cup)
Preheat the oven to 160*C/325*F/ gas mark 3. Butter 2 small loaf tins, or 1 large loaf tin and line with baking parchment.
Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until pale and creamy. Beat in the eggs and the milk, mixing all together well.
Whisk together the flour, salt, soda and spice. Stir this mixture into the creamed mixture. Stir in the bananas, cranberries and walnuts. Divide the mixture between the two small tins or spread into the large tin. Bake in the middle of the preheated oven for 45 to 50 minutes for small loaves, or 1 to 1/1/2 hours for the large tin, until well risen and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tins for 10 minutes, then lift out onto a wire rack to cool completely. This cake will keep for up to 1 week when stored in an airtight tin.
With the advent of summer comes much warmer weather and hotter temperatures. We don't always want to chain ourselves to the stove cooking heavy meals. We desire things which are quicker and easier to make and much lighter to eat.
That is the way it is for me anyways. I don't want to be heating up my kitchen if I can help it and I want to spend more of my time outdoors doing things rather than chaining myself to a hot stove.
This is also the time of year that we begin to be able to enjoy fresh local produce. It is a bit early yet, but in the summer time we want to be taking advantage of all of the fresh local produce that we can.
Lettuce and greens, peas, beans, tomatoes, fruits and berries, corn, beetroot, carrots, etc. I like to enjoy as much of it as I can while it is available locally and in abundance!
I grill a lot in the summer months. I don't have an outdoor grill anymore but I have a very reliable indoor grill. Mine is a Cuisinart Griddler. It is quite ample for my purposes.
I had one of these in the UK that I used all the time. It has flat plates and grill plates and I bought the waffle plates for mine as well. I am prepared for anything and everything! It was one of the things I thought to replace when I went to set up my kitchen here in Canada.
I use the grill plates most of the time. They clean really easily, go in the dishwasher, and the machine itself does a wonderful job of grilling.
One of my favorite salads is the Caesar Salad. It is a popular salad that was invented in Tijuana Mexico in the 1920's by an Italian Chef, Caesar Cardini.
Generally speaking it is composed of fresh green romaine lettuce leaves, and a tangy garlicky dressing made from pounded anchovies, Dijon mustard, garlic, Worcestershire Sauce and Lemon juice. Rich and creamy.
It is most often served topped with crisp garlic croutons, crisp bacon, and shavings of Parmesan cheese.
One of my favorite versions is the Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad, but it is really difficult to find a place that does a really nice one. I don't know why. How hard can it be?
Apparently it must be quite difficult for many places because I have always had a hard time finding on that I really enjoy. The ones I enjoy the most are the ones I make myself.
Anyways, today's recipe is for a delicious hot sandwich based on the idea of a Grilled chicken Caesar Salad, with a toasted artisanal garlic bread base, topped with a Caesar dressing, crisp streaky bacon, grilled Caesar marinated chicken breast cutlets, Caesar dressed sweet romaine lettuce, crisp croutons (optional) and shavings of good Parmesan cheese over top.
A wedge of lemon on the side to drizzle really enhances the tastiness of this fabulous open-faced, fork & knife, sandwich.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE GRILLED CHICKEN CAESAR SANDWICH
Very simple ingredients actually. But you know me. I love simple things best of all! Because everything is so simple you will want to use the best of each ingredient that you can afford.
For the Caesar Chicken and Marinade:
- 1/4 cup your favorite brand of creamy Caesar Salad dressing
- 1 1/2 TBS light olive oil
- 1 1/2 TBS Dijon mustard
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut horizontally into cutlets
For the sandwich:
- 2 (1/2 inch thick) slices of a good artisanal sour dough bread cut on the diagonal
- 4 slices of streaky bacon, cooked until crisp
- softened butter
- 2 cups of chopped romaine lettuce
- 3 TBS your favorite creamy Caesar salad dressing divided
- shaved parmesan cheese
- crisp garlic croutons (optional)
- lemon wedges to serve
There are a multitude of very good quality Caesar salad dressings out there these days. You want a creamy one, not a vinaigrette. Of course you can make your own. You can find a really tasty and reliable recipe on this blog, Once Upon a Chef.
Romaine lettuce is the only lettuce to use for a Caesar. My mother would never eat anything but Iceberg Lettuce. You could not get her to even try anything else. If it wasn't iceberg she wasn't having it! That is the only lettuce we grew up with.
Imagine my joy at growing up and discovering the wealth of lettuce options that are available out there. One thing I really miss here in Canada is Baby Gem lettuces. It might be available in larger urban centers, but it is just not available here where I live. It makes a great substitute for Romaine or Cos lettuce.
This is the bread that I used for the base of my sandwiches. I cut it into 1/2 inch thick slices on the diagonal. It toasts really well and has a lovely flavor and a sturdy enough crumb to stand up to this sandwich!
I used PC Free From chicken breasts, that have not been fed antibiotics and also PC Free From streaky smoked bacon. In the UK I would use dry cured streaky smoked bacon. (Something else that I miss from the UK! It is bound to happen!)
Croutons are not really necessary due to the bread base, but I recognize that some people just like to have crispy croutons on top of their salad! If that is you, I say go for it!!
HOW TO MAKE A GRILLED CHICKEN CAESAR SANDWICH (FOR TWO)
This is really simple and other than the marinating time for the chicken goes together very quickly. Especially if you have all of the elements assembled and ready to go!
In a container large enough to hold the chicken, whisk together the Caesar salad dressing, olive oil, Dijon mustard and minced garlic for the chicken marinade. Add the chicken breast cutlets, turning to coat them completely in the marinade. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 6 to 8 hours, or overnight.
When you are ready to cook the sandwiches, slice your bread diagonally into 2 1/2 inch thick slabs. Put your lettuce into a bowl. Cook your bacon and keep warm.
Remove your chicken from the marinade, discarding any marinade left in the dish. Cook your chicken cutlets on a hot grill for about two minutes per side, until golden and cooked through. Keep warm.
Toast your bread slices, lightly buttering them if desired. (I used a garlic loaf. Alternately you can rub the toasted sides with a clove of garlic to infuse flavor.) Place on two serving plates. Divide 1 TBS of the Caesar salad dressing between the two slices and spread it over top of the bread.
Top each slice of bread with two slices of crisp bacon. Place two chicken cutlets on top of the bacon on each sandwich.
Toss your lettuce with the remaining salad dressing and pile lightly on top of the chicken cutlets. Shave some Parmesan over top and serve immediately with lemon wedges for squeezing.
This was a beautiful combination of savory, tangy, salty, crispy, garlicky, deliciousness. I found it to be very filling. The toasted bread did absorb some of the juices from the bacon and the grilled chicken but not overly so. When eaten soon after assembling, it was still quite crisp.
The chicken was moist and tender and had beautiful flavor and well, bacon . . . who doesn't like bacon! The dressed lettuce worked beautifully on top! Don't forget the Parmesan shavings and the lemon for squeezing!
I really quite enjoyed this! It made the perfect light supper!
Some other knife and fork sandwiches in The English Kitchen that you might enjoy are:
SOUTHWESTERN CHICKEN MELT - Chunky cooked chicken mixed with some mayo, taco seasoning, lime juice, green tabasco, plenty of jack cheese and spring onions. Piled onto some toasted bread and grilled until everything melts into hot and spicy melty deliciousness!
HOT YORKSHIRE PUDDING SANDWICHES - Hot roast beef sandwiched together between two crispy Yorkshire puddings, with gravy ladled inside and over top. Served with chips and veg, this is a delicious dinner that everyone will love, Love, LOVE!
Grilled Chicken Caesar Sandwich
Yield: 2
Prep time: 6 HourCook time: 20 MinTotal time: 6 H & 20 M
All the best things you like about a Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad in the shape of a delicious open face sandwich! You will need to marinate the chicken for several hours prior to cooking so bear that in mind when planning!
Ingredients
For the Caesar Chicken and Marinade:
- 1/4 cup your favorite brand of creamy Caesar Salad dressing
- 1 1/2 TBS light olive oil
- 1 1/2 TBS Dijon mustard
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut horizontally into cutlets
For the sandwich:
- 2 (1/2 inch thick) slices of a good artisanal sour dough bread cut on the diagonal
- 4 slices of streaky bacon, cooked until crisp
- softened butter
- 2 cups of chopped romaine lettuce
- 3 TBS your favorite creamy Caesar salad dressing divided
- shaved parmesan cheese
- crisp garlic croutons (optional)
- lemon wedges to serve
Instructions
- In a container large enough to hold the chicken, whisk together the Caesar salad dressing, olive oil, Dijon mustard and minced garlic for the chicken marinade. Add the chicken breast cutlets, turning to coat them completely in the marinade. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 6 to 8 hours, or overnight.
- When you are ready to cook the sandwiches, slice your bread diagonally into 2 1/2 inch thick slabs. Put your lettuce into a bowl. Cook your bacon and keep warm.
- Remove your chicken from the marinade, discarding any marinade left in the dish. Cook your chicken cutlets on a hot grill for about two minutes per side, until golden and cooked through. Keep warm.
- Toast your bread slices, lightly buttering them if desired. (I used a garlic loaf. Alternately you can rub the toasted sides with a clove of garlic to infuse flavor.) Place on two serving plates. Divide 1 TBS of the Caesar salad dressing between the two slices and spread it over top of the bread.
- Top each slice of bread with two slices of crisp bacon. Place two chicken cutlets on top of the bacon on each sandwich.
- Toss your lettuce with the remaining salad dressing and pile lightly on top of the chicken cutlets. Shave some Parmesan over top and serve immediately with lemon wedges for squeezing.
All rights reserved The English Kitchen
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Social Icons