Dished English Custard (for Stewed Fruit)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Shallow 1-quart (1-liter) broiler-safe porcelain gratin dish
• •High-sided roasting pan for the bain-marie
• •Small heavy-bottomed saucepan
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Heavy aluminum foil and tongs for forming the lattice
• •Instant-read thermometer, optional

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the gentle heat

   Heat the oven to 300°F (150°C) and bring a kettle of water nearly to the boil. Set a shallow 1-quart (1-liter) broiler-safe porcelain dish inside a high-sided roasting pan. The shallow dish is not decoration: it lets the custard poach evenly and later carries it straight to the table.

   Use porcelain specifically marked safe for the broiler. Ordinary glass and decorative china may crack beneath fierce direct heat.
2. 2

   Infuse the milk

   Put the milk, vanilla seeds, and scraped pod in a small saucepan. Heat gently until the milk shivers at the edge and smells distinctly of vanilla, but don't let it boil. Cover, remove from the heat, and leave it for 10 minutes, then discard the pod.

3. 3

   Temper the yolks

   Stir the yolks and caster sugar together until smooth and slightly lightened, without beating in a head of foam. Pour in the hot milk a little at a time while stirring constantly. If a few yellow flecks appear because the milk went in too quickly, stop and pass everything at once through a fine sieve. Ça se rattrape. Strain the finished mixture into the porcelain dish and skim away any bubbles, which would otherwise bake into a pocked surface.

4. 4

   Poach in its dish

   Set the roasting pan on the oven rack, then pour the hot water around the porcelain dish until it reaches halfway up the sides. Bake in this bain-marie for 25 to 35 minutes. The outer inch should be set, while the center still quivers as one soft sheet when the pan is nudged; an instant-read thermometer will show about 170 to 175°F (77 to 79°C). If the edges begin to puff, lift the dish from the water immediately. Residual heat will finish the center, while another five minutes would turn the custard grainy.

5. 5

   Cool without condensation

   Lift the porcelain dish carefully from the bain-marie. For a gently warm custard, rest it for 25 minutes. For cold service, cool it for 30 minutes, then refrigerate uncovered until cold, about 2 hours; cover only after it has chilled so condensation doesn't drip onto the surface. Before sugaring, blot away any beads of moisture with the corner of a clean towel.

6. 6

   Brand the lattice

   Heat the broiler to high with a rack about 4 inches (10 cm) below the element. Set the custard dish on a dry sheet pan and sift the icing sugar copiously over the whole surface. Bridge the dish with folded strips of heavy foil about 3/4 inch (2 cm) wide, leaving narrow gaps between them, then broil for 20 to 45 seconds, just until the exposed sugar bubbles and turns amber. Lift off the hot strips with tongs, replace them at right angles, and broil again to complete the lattice. Don't look away. If one patch blackens, remove the dish, let the sugar harden briefly, scrape away only the bitter patch, then re-sugar and color it again. Ça se rattrape.

7. 7

   Serve with fruit

   Let the caramelized lattice set for 2 minutes. Carry the Crème Anglaise en Plat to the table in its porcelain dish and spoon it beside hot or cold stewed fruit, rather than burying the sugar beneath the fruit juices. The custard should slump softly from the serving spoon while the caramel crossings give a faint crisp bite. À table!

Chef Tips

• •A shallow dish matters. In a deep bowl, the outside overcooks before the center sets; an oval gratin dish about 1 1/2 inches (4 cm) deep gives the custard the gentle, even poach the formula expects.
• •The book's proportion is ten yolks to a quart of milk. Five yolks to 2 cups keeps that ratio intact, while the vanilla and sugar follow the classical crème anglaise foundation. The quantity changed because a home table doesn't need brigade portions; the structure did not.
• •Tart stewed fruit is the right companion: plums, apricots, rhubarb, gooseberries, or sour cherries. Good frozen fruit is entirely honorable when the fresh market offers nothing worth cooking.
• •Icing sugar contains fine starch, which helps it sit evenly on the custard, but it also colors quickly. Use a generous sifted layer and keep your eyes on the broiler. The difference between amber and bitter is measured in seconds.
• •If a vanilla bean isn't available, stir 1 teaspoon (5 ml / 5 g) pure vanilla extract into the hot milk after it leaves the heat. The perfume is less rounded, but the custard remains itself.

Advance Preparation

• •The custard can be poached and chilled up to 24 hours ahead. Cover it only after it is completely cold, then blot the surface dry before adding the icing sugar.
• •Brand the sugar shortly before serving. Refrigeration softens the caramel lattice as it draws moisture from the custard.
• •The accompanying stewed fruit can be prepared up to 2 days ahead and served cold, or reheated gently while the lattice is finished.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 175g)