Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Snow Ice Cream

Ingredients
  • 3 cups loose clean snow
  • 2 tbsp. milk
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Instructions
  1. Mix all the ingredients, sample the result, and add more sugar and vanilla extract to taste. Eat immediately. Makes 4 servings.

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Creme Brulee


From Cooking with Mickey
Chef Erich Herbitschek
Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa Bakery

2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup extra fine CANE sugar (for sprinkling & caramelization)
2 vanilla beans, cut in half lengthwise and seeds scraped with the tip of a sharp knife
6 large egg yolks

  1. Preheat oven to 250
  2. In a 2 quart saucepan, bring the heavy cream, milk, sugar and vanilla beans, and the seeds from the vanilla beans just to a boil over medium heat. Discard the vanilla beans or reserve them for another use. (TIP--add them to a ziplock baggy of white sugar, seal and store in the cupboard for a week--voila! Vanilla sugar!)
  3. In a bowl, whisk 1/2 cup of the heated cream mixture into the egg yolks, then gradually add and whisk in the remainder of the heated cream mixture. (If you add the hot liquid to the eggs too quickly you'll cook the eggs--try to avoid that)
  4. Pour the mixture into ramekins (makes 6 servings).
  5. Place the ramekins in a water bath (heated baking dish with 1/2 to 1 inch hot water)
  6. Place the roasting pan in the oven and bake for 45-55 minutes or until set. (Set= when you jiggle the dishes and the liquid does shake like a bowlful of jelly. Narrow/tall ramekins take longer to cook than flat wide ones.)
  7. Cool to room temperature and refrigerate 3 hours or over night until very cold.
  8. When ready to serve, sprinkle the top of the custard with the remaining 1/4 cup of granulated sugar (Cane sugar works best). Carmelize the sugar with a kitchen blowtorch. Let cool briefly, then crack the sugar with a spoon and enjoy.
  9. Creme brulee custards will keep several days in the refrigerator. (Don't do the sugar carmelization until you're ready to eat.