Cooking With Steve And Kim: 5/1/10

Monday, May 3, 2010

Lemon Sponge Pudding

Image by stu_spivack via Flickr

I simply love the zesty taste of lemon when added to anything. And, in that line of thinking, here's a wonderful way to get the lemon-fresh taste without the lemon-like sour face. Lemon Sponge Pudding.

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/4 cups whole milk
3 large eggs, yolks and whites separated
1 tablespoon of grated lemon zest
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons of unsalted butter or margarine, softened
1 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of flour
As a garnish for this dish I would recommend raspberries but it is your choice of course.

PREPARATION:
Heat your oven to 325 degrees. You'll need eight 4-ounce ramekins or custard cups and a roasting pan large enough to hold them.

In a medium saucepan, heat milk just until it is simmering. Remove from heat. In a medium bowl, whisk yolks to blend then gradually whisk in hot milk. Whisk in lemon zest and juice and then add butter until it melts. In a small bowl, whisk sugar and flour until blended. Whisk into lemon mixture just until smooth.

In another medium-sized bowl, beat egg whites with electric mixer until stiff peaks form when the beaters are lifted. Gently whisk half the egg whites into the lemon mixture. Whisk in remaining whites until blended.

Ladle into ramekins. If the mixture in the bowl starts to separate, gently stir, then proceed to ladle mixture into remaining ramekins.

Place the ramekins into your roasting pan. Carefully add very hot tap water to pan to come about halfway up the sides of the ramekins.

Bake for 25 minutes or until puddings are firm to the touch and very light golden brown. Remove from the water and place on a rack to cool. Let them cool about 30 minutes before inverting, or cover cooled ramekins and refrigerate up to 2 days.

To serve your lemon sponge pudding, run a knife along the edges of the ramekins, then invert puddings onto serving plates. Spoon any of the mixture clinging to the ramekins over the top. Garnish with your raspberries.

You're going to love this!
Steve and Kim

Sunday, May 2, 2010

Candied-Almond Chocolate Strawberries

Image by Joits via Flickr

There are times in your life when having a taste of chocolate just isn't an option... You MUST have it. Today could be one of those days so here is a tasty treat that I'm sure you'll enjoy Candied-Almond Chocolate Strawberries.

INGREDIENTS:
60 fresh strawberries (about 2 pounds)
2 cups of honey-roasted almonds
1 package (11-1/2 ounces) of 60% cacao bittersweet chocolate baking chips
1/4 cup of butter, cubed
Dash of cayenne pepper

PREPARATION:
Wash the strawberries well and gently pat with paper towels until completely dry. Place the almonds in a food processor; cover and process to desired fineness. Transfer to a shallow bowl; set aside.
In your microwave, melt chocolate chips and butter. Add cayenne and stir until smooth. Dip the strawberries in the chocolate mixture and allow the excess to drip off. Roll the berries in almonds and then place them on waxed paper. Let them stand until set. And of course you must serve them immediately.

A taste delight in every sweet bite.

Steve and Kim