This self-saucing Lemon Sponge Pudding, baked in a bain marie, consists of a lovely lemon sauce topped with a light-as-air sponge cake. How this all transpires is actually quite magical. This is because the pudding mixture (both the sponge cake topping and the lemon sauce) are all mixed together when they go in the baking dish. During baking, the two components, like magic, separate out with a delectable creamy lemon sauce forming on the bottom beneath the light sponge cake. Continue reading Lemon Sponge Pudding Recipe→
No-bake Cherry Cheesecake has long been a favorite dessert at family gatherings, potlucks, and church, office, and community events. It’s very easy to make, does not take a lot of ingredients, and is showy and super tasty. Continue reading No Bake Cherry Cheesecake→
There is much folklore over the origins of Eton Mess, a parfait-like dessert that is named for the prestigious English college in Berkshire, England, across the River Thames from Windsor. Continue reading Strawberry Eton Mess Dessert→
Old-fashioned stewed rhubarb is so simple to make and so tasty. During my growing up years, stewed rhubarb was a staple in the refrigerator during rhubarb season. My mother and grandmother both cooked the rhubarb slowly in a water and sugar mixture in the oven. This helped to retain the shape of the rhubarb and also its lovely rosy color. Cooking it on the stove, or in the oven at a higher temperature, would turn the rhubarb into sauce which is entirely different from this stewed rhubarb recipe.
While neither my mother or grandmother added anything to their stewed rhubarb, I add a small amount of pulp-free orange juice and a sprinkle of nutmeg which I think enhances the syrup in which the rhubarb is stewed and with which it is served.
Stewed Rhubarb
My grandmother would often serve this stewed rhubarb with biscuits made with homemade cream and slathered with homemade butter. She lived on a farm so had fresh cream daily and it was used liberally. (You can find my tea biscuit recipe here.) Stewed rhubarb would often be dessert after supper.
Stewed Rhubarb
I freeze a lot of rhubarb for winter usage and will often have a dish of stewed rhubarb in the fridge any time over the year because it can easily be made with frozen rhubarb.
Stewed Rhubarb
Made with only five basic ingredients, it doesn’t get much simpler (or more tasty) than Old-fashioned Stewed Rhubarb.
[Printable recipe follows at end of post]
Stewed Rhubarb
Ingredients:
1 lb rhubarb, chopped into ¾“ pieces (approximately 3¾ cups chopped) ¾ cup hot water 1 cup + 1 tbsp granulated sugar 1½ tbsp pulp-free orange juice 1/8 tsp nutmeg
Method:
Preheat oven to 235°F oven.
In small saucepan over medium high heat, bring the hot water and sugar to a boil then reduce heat to simmer for 4 minutes.
Place rhubarb in casserole (apx. 2-quart size). Add the orange juice and nutmeg to the hot water and sugar mixture and pour over the rhubarb. Cover and place in oven for approximately 55-65 minutes, or until rhubarb is fork tender. Do not overcook or rhubarb will lose its shape and turn into sauce.
Yield: Apx. 5-6 servings
If you have made this recipe and enjoyed it and/or wish to share it with your friends and family, please do so on social media but be sure to share the direct link to this posting from my website.
Connect with My Island Bistro Kitchen on Social Media
Follow “the Bistro” on Pinterest at https://www.pinterest.ca/peibistro/ and pin the Pinterest-ready photo found at the end of this post to your favorite Pinterest boards.
Ruby red rhubarb stewed slowly in the oven to retain its shape and color makes a wonderful light dessert, especially when served with homemade biscuits. May be made with either fresh or frozen rhubarb.
Course Dessert
Cuisine Canadian
Keyword rhubarb
Servings6
My Island Bistro KitchenMy Island Bistro Kitchen
Ingredients
1lbrhubarb,chopped into ¾“ pieces (approximately 3¾ cups chopped)
¾cuphot water
1cup+ 1 tbsp granulated sugar
1½tbsppulp-free orange juice
1/8tspnutmeg
Instructions
Preheat oven to 235°F oven.
In small saucepan over medium high heat, bring the hot water and sugar to a boil then reduce heat to simmer for 4 minutes.
Place rhubarb in casserole (apx. 2-quart size). Add the orange juice and nutmeg to the hot water and sugar mixture and pour over the rhubarb. Cover and place in oven for approximately 55-65 minutes, or until rhubarb is fork tender. Do not overcook or rhubarb will lose its shape and turn into sauce.
Recipe Notes
Yield: Apx. 5-6 servings
[Copyright My Island Bistro Kitchen]
For other great rhubarb dessert recipes from My Island Bistro Kitchen, click on the links below:
Sticky Date Pudding (aka Sticky Toffee Pudding) has a British origin and is often served as the Christmas pudding. This pudding is basically a dense, but tender, sponge cake made with cooked dates. It’s really nothing more elaborate or complicated than that.
My version of this classic pudding starts with soaking the chopped dates in rum allowing them to absorb the flavour, then slowly simmering the dates in water to soften. The dates, the primary ingredient in the pudding, add sweetness and texture to the pudding without turning it into a heavy pudding. This pudding is subtly spiced with a blend of ginger, cinnamon, and cloves.
Sticky Date Pudding with Toffee Sauce
I like to make this pudding in small one-half cup size ramekins for a couple of reasons. First, I like the look of a small pudding on each plate and, second, this pudding freezes well and the ramekin-sized puddings are perfect for freezing individual servings.
Sticky Date Pudding
Sticky Date Pudding is most commonly served warm with a decadently rich toffee sauce made with butter, dark brown sugar, and whipping cream. I add a dash of rum to the sauce to deepen the flavour. Add a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla or maple ice cream to really dress the pudding to the nines!
Sticky Date Pudding
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
My Island Bistro Kitchen’s Sticky Date Pudding with Toffee Sauce
Ingredients for Pudding:
7 oz (about 1 1/3 cups) pitted dates, coarsely chopped ¼ cup dark rum 1 cup water 1 1/8 tsp baking soda
¼ cup butter, softened at room temperature 1/3 cup granulated sugar 1/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed 2 large eggs, room temperature 1 tsp grated orange rind 1½ tbsp pure maple syrup 1½ tsp vanilla
¾ cup butter (no substitutes) 1 1/3 cups dark brown sugar ¾ cup whipping cream (35% M.F.) 2 tbsp rum 2 tsp vanilla
Method for Pudding:
In saucepan, pour rum over dates. Let stand 20 minutes, stirring a couple of times. Add the cup of water and bring the dates, rum, and water to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to simmer and boil, uncovered, gently for approximately 5 minutes, stirring once or twice. Remove from heat and add the baking soda. Stir well. Let mixture stand, uncovered, for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to loosely break up the dates.
Position oven rack in bottom third of oven and preheat oven to 350°F.
While date mixture is cooling, cream the butter and sugars together in bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the orange rind, maple syrup and vanilla.
Sift the dry ingredients together and incorporate into the creamed mixture just until they are completely blended. Stir in the date mixture.
Grease ten (10) ½-cup ramekins and place on rimmed baking sheet. Distribute the batter evenly between the ramekins, filling each no more than about 2/3 full. Smooth tops with knife. Bake for 25 minutes, or until pudding springs back to a light touch and a cake tester inserted into center of pudding comes out clean. Run tip of pare knife around each pudding to loosen any parts that may have stuck to ramekin. Turn puddings out on to individual serving plates. Serve warm with toffee sauce and, if desired, a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla or maple ice cream.
Method for Toffee Sauce:
Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Add the cream and reduce heat to simmer. Cook slowly, stirring occasionally, until sauce is slightly thick, about 6-8 minutes or so. Remove from heat and stir in the rum and vanilla. Serve warm over sticky date pudding. (Sauce will thicken as it starts to cool slightly).
Yield: 10 servings
NOTE 1: Pudding may also be baked in a greased (or parchment-lined) 9” baking pan for approximately 30-35 minutes or until cake tester inserted into center of pudding comes out clean and pudding springs back to a light touch. Cut into squares and serve warm with the warm toffee sauce.
NOTE 2: This pudding freezes well so can be made ahead of when needed. Simply thaw at room temperature and reheat pudding for a few seconds in microwave.
In saucepan, pour rum over dates. Let stand 20 minutes, stirring a couple of times. Add the cup of water and bring the dates, rum, and water to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to simmer and boil, uncovered, gently for approximately 5 minutes, stirring once or twice. Remove from heat and add the baking soda. Stir well. Let mixture stand, uncovered, for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to loosely break up the dates.
Position oven rack in bottom third of oven and preheat oven to 350°F.
While date mixture is cooling, cream the butter and sugars together in bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the orange rind, maple syrup and vanilla.
Sift the dry ingredients together and incorporate into the creamed mixture just until they are completely blended. Stir in the date mixture.
Grease ten (10) ½-cup ramekins and place on rimmed baking sheet. Distribute the batter evenly between the ramekins, filling each no more than about 2/3 full. Smooth tops with knife. Bake for 25 minutes, or until pudding springs back to a light touch and a cake tester inserted into center of pudding comes out clean. Run tip of pare knife around each pudding to loosen any parts that may have stuck to ramekin. Turn puddings out on to individual serving plates. Serve warm with toffee sauce and, if desired, a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla or maple ice cream.
Method for Toffee Sauce:
Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Add the cream and reduce heat to simmer. Cook slowly, stirring occasionally, until sauce is slightly thick, about 6-8 minutes or so. Remove from heat and stir in the rum and vanilla. Serve warm over sticky date pudding. (Sauce will thicken as it starts to cool slightly).
Recipe Notes
Yield:10 servings NOTE 1: Pudding may also be baked in a greased (or parchment-lined) 9” baking pan for approximately 30-35 minutes or until cake tester inserted into center of pudding comes out clean and pudding springs back to a light touch. Cut into squares and serve warm with the warm toffee sauce. NOTE 2: This pudding freezes well so can be made ahead of when needed. Simply thaw at room temperature and reheat pudding for a few seconds in microwave.
[Copyright My Island Bistro Kitchen]
If you have made this recipe and enjoyed it and/or wish to share it with your friends and family, please do so on social media but be sure to share the direct link to this posting from my website.
Connect with My Island Bistro Kitchen on Social Media
These old-fashioned butter tarts are actually both gluten free and lactose free. If you are not lactose intolerant, simply substitute regular butter and milk in the recipe.
Quite some time ago, I shared my traditional butter tart recipe. However, folks have been inquiring about a gluten-free recipe for the tarts so here it is. I won’t repeat my hints and tips for making butter tarts in this posting because the same ones hold true for the gluten-free version so I am directing readers to my original posting for butter tarts for this information.
Gluten-Free and Lactose-Free Butter Tarts
I don’t like a big glob of thick pastry in my butter tarts. As far as I am concerned, it is the gooey, sweet filling that is the star in these tarts. The pastry is involved just because it is the vessel to hold the filling. So, I use a thin rolled pastry and fit the pastry neatly and tidily into the muffin tin cups.
The pastry, nonetheless, still has to be tender and flaky because it is half the equation in these Canadian culinary delicacies. The gluten-free pastry recipe is the one that I developed and perfected first for my gluten-free apple pie, originally published to my website on January 11, 2018. It is now my go-to pastry recipe since it is perfectly tender and flaky and works well with sweet and savory pies as well as tarts.
As with my traditional butter tarts, you will find that the filling is slightly gooey but not too runny. I don’t care for tarts that, as soon as you bite into them, the filling pours out. The reason why I like a semi-solid filling is that I believe butter tarts should be able to be picked up off a plate and eaten by hand with no need for a plate and fork to catch a runny filling. This, of course, is purely a personal preference.
Gluten-Free and Lactose-Free Butter Tarts
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Gluten-Free Lactose-Free Butter Tarts
Ingredients:
For Pastry:
2 cups (276g) gluten-free 1-to-1 flour ½ tsp salt 1½ tsp sugar
¼ cup cold lactose-free butter (76g) ¼ cup cold lard (76g)
1 large egg 1 tsp white vinegar Enough water to make 2/3 cup liquid
For Filling: ½ cup light brown sugar, firmly packed ¼ cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed 2 extra-large eggs, light beaten 3 tbsp pure maple syrup ¼ cup melted lactose-free butter (no substitutes) 2 tbsp lactose-free milk (2%MF or 3%MF) 1½ tsp pure vanilla 1 tsp white vinegar Dash salt
Method:
For Pastry: Lightly grease 12 muffin cups. In medium-sized bowl, whisk the flour, salt, and sugar together. Cut the butter and lard into chunks and add to the flour. With a pastry cutter, cut the butter and lard into the flour until the fats resemble the size of large peas.
In a measuring cup, whisk the egg and vinegar together. Add enough cold water to measure 2/3 cup. Add the egg-vinegar-water mixture to the flour, small amounts at a time, and mix with a fork or hands. Add only enough water that the dough clings together and can be gathered into a ball (it may not take all the liquid).
Divide the dough in four pieces. Form disk shapes with each piece. Place disks in the refrigerator for about 10-15 minutes to chill. Remove one disk at a time from the refrigerator and break off chunks, about 2 oz in size, which should give ample for 4” circles to be cut for each tart. Place dough between two sheets of parchment paper (or wax paper) lightly dusted with flour. Roll pastry to desired thickness, generally between 1/16”and 1/8” thickness. Peel the top piece of parchment from the rolled out pastry. Cut out pastry circles with a floured 4” round cookie cutter.
Carefully transfer each cut out pastry circle to muffin tin cup. Fit the pastry into the cup, ensuring there are no air pockets between the pastry and the muffin cups. Repeat with chilled dough to make enough pastry circles for 12 tart shells, gathering up and re-rolling pastry scraps as necessary. Place pan of tart shells in freezer for about 12-15 minutes to chill to prevent shrinkage of pastry during baking.
For Filling: Preheat oven to 400°F. Add all ingredients, in order given, into a 4-cup measuring cup. Whisk or stir until ingredients are well blended. Remove the muffin cups from the freezer and pour filling equally into the 12 muffin cups. Bake at 400°F for 5 minutes then reduce temperature to 375°F and bake tarts for 17-19 minutes or until filling domes and appears set. Let tarts cool at least 30 minutes in muffin tins on cooling rack. Using the tip of a sharp knife, gently lift the tarts from the muffin cups.
These gluten-free (and lactose-free) melt-in-your-mouth pastries are filled with a delectable, slightly gooey, but not too runny, buttery rich caramel-like filling. A classic Canadian culinary delicacy.
Course Dessert
Keyword butter tarts
Servings11
My Island Bistro KitchenMy Island Bistro Kitchen
Ingredients
For Pastry:
2cupsgluten-free 1-to-1 flour(276g)
½tspsalt
1½tspsugar
¼cupcold lactose-free butter(76g)
¼cupcold lard(76g)
1large egg
1tspwhite vinegar
Enough water to make 2/3 cup liquid
For Filling:
½cuplight brown sugar,firmly packed
¼cupdark brown sugar,firmly packed
2extra-large eggs,light beaten
3tbsppure maple syrup
¼cupmelted lactose-free butter(no substitutes)
2tbsplactose-free milk(2%MF or 3%MF)
1½tsppure vanilla
1tspwhite vinegar
Dash salt
Instructions
For Pastry:
Lightly grease 12 muffin cups. In medium-sized bowl, whisk the flour, salt, and sugar together. Cut the butter and lard into chunks and add to the flour. With a pastry cutter, cut the butter and lard into the flour until the fats resemble the size of large peas.
In a measuring cup, whisk the egg and vinegar together. Add enough cold water to measure 2/3 cup. Add the egg-vinegar-water mixture to the flour, small amounts at a time, and mix with a fork or hands. Add only enough water that the dough clings together and can be gathered into a ball (it may not take all the liquid).
Divide the dough in four pieces. Form disk shapes with each piece. Place disks in the refrigerator for about 10-15 minutes to chill. Remove one disk at a time from the refrigerator and break off chunks, about 2 oz in size, which should give ample for 4” circles to be cut for each tart. Place dough between two sheets of parchment paper (or wax paper) lightly dusted with flour. Roll pastry to desired thickness, generally between 1/16”and 1/8” thickness. Peel the top piece of parchment from the rolled out pastry. Cut out pastry circles with a floured 4” round cookie cutter.
Carefully transfer each cut out pastry circle to muffin tin cup. Fit the pastry into the cup, ensuring there are no air pockets between the pastry and the muffin cups. Repeat with chilled dough to make enough pastry circles for 12 tart shells, gathering up and re-rolling pastry scraps as necessary. Place pan of tart shells in freezer for about 12-15 minutes to chill to prevent shrinkage of pastry during baking.
For Filling:
Preheat oven to 400°F. Add all ingredients, in order given, into a 4-cup measuring cup. Whisk or stir until ingredients are well blended. Remove the muffin cups from the freezer and pour filling equally into the 12 muffin cups. Bake at 400°F for 5 minutes then reduce temperature to 375°F and bake tarts for 17-19 minutes or until filling domes and appears set. Let tarts cool at least 30 minutes in muffin tins on cooling rack. Using the tip of a sharp knife, gently lift the tarts from the muffin cups.
Recipe Notes
Copyright My Island Bistro Kitchen
If you have made this recipe and enjoyed it and/or wish to share it with your friends and family, please do so on social media but be sure to share the direct link to this posting from my website.
Connect with My Island Bistro Kitchen on Social Media
There are so many options for summertime desserts. I try to use fresh fruits in desserts throughout the summer season and often look for combinations that will work well together. Some fruits just naturally complement each other, like blueberries and peaches, for example. Together, they make a fabulous Peach Blueberry Crisp!
PEI Blueberries
We eagerly await the arrival of the peaches from the Niagara region as this is not a fruit commonly grown on PEI (though I know of one farmer who has been testing them with our growing season and did have some crop in 2017).
Peaches
I live not far from a high bush blueberry u-pick and, in August, we have a steady diet of these lovely berries.
High Bush Blueberries
After I have had lots of the peaches and berries on their own, I tend to start looking for other ways in which to use them.
Perfect Peach and Blueberry Crisp
For this dessert, I have combined the blueberries with the peaches to create this lovely summer crisp dessert. Much as I love the traditional apple crisp (click here for my recipe), I have to say that I think this one might just edge out the apple crisp for my favorite. The peach and blueberry flavours work very well together. In order to keep the color of the filling from being too dark, I use peaches as the predominant fruit and a much lesser amount of the blueberries as the secondary fruit to tease the tastebuds.
Use peaches that are fully ripe. They will be easier to peel and slice if they are dipped into hot water then immediately into ice cold water. Slice the peaches into wedges about ½” – ¾” thick. You want to see lovely identifiable slices of peaches in the filling for presentation.
High Bush Blueberries
I like the use of the high bush blueberries in this dessert because they are large enough that they give a real flavour burst when they meet the palate.
I use cornstarch for the filling thickener instead of flour. I find, especially for light-colored fruits, the cornstarch will allow for a more clear/transparent filling than will flour which will sometimes create a more murky or cloudy filling. In my view, the cornstarch renders a more silky textured filling. The addition of some cinnamon and nutmeg makes this a very aromatic dessert. It smells simply divine when it is baking!
Peach Blueberry Crisp
The streusel topping is easy to make and just takes standard pantry ingredients. Chopped pecans can be added to the topping but they are optional.
This dessert can be made in either a baking pan or a casserole that has an 8-cup capacity as this will allow the crisp to cook evenly and, hopefully, not bubble out during baking. I do, however, place a foil-lined baking sheet either directly under the baking pan(s) or on the rack below to catch any drips that may occur during baking.
Peach Blueberry Crisp
This dessert can be made in individual oven-safe baking dishes as well.
Peach Blueberry Crisp
I often serve this dessert plain but it can be dressed up with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Peach Blueberry Crisp
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Peach and Blueberry Crisp
Ingredients:
Streusel Topping: ¾ cup all-purpose flour (to make it gluten-free, use an equal amount of gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour) ¾ cup light brown sugar ¾ cup quick rolled oats (to make it gluten-free, use the small-flake gluten-free rolled oats) ½ tsp baking soda ½ tsp salt ¼ tsp cinnamon ½ cup cold butter (no substitutes) 1/3 cup chopped pecans (optional)
Filling: 2 lbs fresh peaches 1 cup high bush blueberries 1½ tbsp lemon juice ½ tsp vanilla 2 tbsp light brown sugar 2 tbsp granulated sugar 3 tbsp cornstarch ¾ tsp cinnamon Pinch nutmeg Pinch salt
Method:
Streusal Topping: In medium-sized bowl, combine, the flour, brown sugar, rolled oats, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Mix well. Cut in the cold butter with a pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Add the chopped pecans if using. Cover and refrigerate until peach and blueberry filling is prepared.
Filling: Place oven rack in center of oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
Score an “X” about an inch long into the bottom of each peach. Dip peaches in hot water for apx. 1 – 1½ minutes then immediately dip them into a bowl of ice water for 20-30 seconds to shock them and stop them from cooking. Peel peaches and slice each peach into wedges ½” – ¾ thick”. This should equal approximately 5 cups cut peaches. Sprinkle peaches with lemon juice and toss gently to coat the peaches. Sprinkle with vanilla. Add the blueberries. Stir gently.
In small bowl, mix the brown and white sugars with the cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt. Mix into the peaches and blueberries, being careful not to break down the peach wedges.
Grease 8-cup capacity casserole dish or baking pan (or 6 – 8 small individual oven-safe serving-sized baking dishes). Transfer filling to baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with the streusel topping.
Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until topping is browned and juices from filling are bubbling. Remove from oven and let crisp stand for 30-35 minutes before serving. Add a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream, if desired.
This summer crisp features plump blueberries and sweet peaches covered with a delicious buttery streusel topping. Serve plain or with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword Blueberry and Peach Crisp, Peach Blueberry Crisp, Summer Dessert
Servings8
My Island Bistro KitchenMy Island Bistro Kitchen
Ingredients
Streusel Topping:
¾cupall-purpose flourto make it gluten-free, use an equal amount of gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour
¾cuplight brown sugar
¾cupquick rolled oatsto make it gluten-free, use the small-flake gluten-free rolled oats
½tspbaking soda
½tspsalt
¼tspcinnamon
½cupcold butterno substitutes
1/3cupchopped pecansoptional
Filling:
2lbsfresh peaches
1cuphigh bush blueberries
1½tbsplemon juice
½tspvanilla
2tbsplight brown sugar
2tbspgranulated sugar
3tbspcornstarch
¾tspcinnamon
Pinchnutmeg
Pinchsalt
Instructions
Streusal Topping:
In medium-sized bowl, combine, the flour, brown sugar, rolled oats, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Mix well. Cut in the cold butter with a pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Add the chopped pecans if using. Cover and refrigerate until peach and blueberry filling is prepared.
Filling:
Place oven rack in center of oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
Score an “X” about an inch long into the bottom of each peach. Dip peaches in hot water for apx. 1 - 1½ minutes then immediately dip them into a bowl of ice water for 20-30 seconds to shock them and stop them from cooking. Peel peaches and slice each peach into wedges ½” - ¾ thick”. This should equal approximately 5 cups cut peaches. Sprinkle peaches with lemon juice and toss gently to coat the peaches. Sprinkle with vanilla. Add the blueberries. Stir gently.
In small bowl, mix the brown and white sugars with the cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt. Mix into the peaches and blueberries, being careful not to break down the peach wedges.
Grease 8-cup capacity casserole dish or baking pan (or 6 - 8 small individual oven-safe serving-sized baking dishes). Transfer filling to baking dish. Sprinkle evenly with the streusel topping.
Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until topping is browned and juices from filling are bubbling. Remove from oven and let crisp stand for 30-35 minutes before serving. Add a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream, if desired.
One of the things I most look forward to in summer is all the fresh produce. I especially love all the seasonal fruits and berries because they make grand pies and pastry making is one of my favorite baking activities. In August, we eagerly await the wonderful peaches that come from the Niagara region – the baskets of large yellow/orange plump, juicy peaches. One of the first things I make with the fresh peaches is a classic peach pie.
Peaches
Today, my feature recipe is the classic fresh peach pie, simply sublime when served with a scoop of fine vanilla ice cream. This is a perfect end to a lovely summer dinner. It’s like summer sunshine in a pie!
Classic Peach Pie
This recipe calls for about 2 pounds of peaches so, depending on their size, this translates into about 6-7 good-sized peaches. Choose peaches that are ripe, have a slight “give” to them when their flesh is gently pressed, and are free from blemishes, cuts, and bruises. The peaches will be easier to peel if they are placed in hot water for about a minute then immediately dipped into ice cold water to stop them from cooking and to cool them enough to handle as they are peeled.
Peaches
Peaches are very juicy but all that juice can make for a very “soupy” pie. A soupy pie presents problems cutting and plating it. It’s not very appetizing to see a pie that has broken apart and gone “splat” on a plate! But, there is a remedy to prevent the pie becoming too soupy. I recommend draining the cut peaches in a colander for 10-12 minutes. The ones I drained for this pie released 2/3 cup of peach juice, far too much for a slice of pie to stay intact when cut. The peaches will still release more juice as the pie bakes. What I do is reserve 2½ – 3 tablespoons of the peach juice and put it in to the filling to keep the pie from becoming too dense and dry. I find this is just the right amount to give the consistency and texture of pie I am seeking, still lovely and juicy but not too solid.
Classic Peach Pie
The pie is not difficult to make and does not take any uncommon ingredients. I do add a bit of lemon juice (which helps to slow down the peaches from turning brown) and a small amount of almond flavouring along with some cinnamon and nutmeg. The addition of some finely grated orange peel goes well with the peach flavour but does not mask or overtake it – after all, we want the natural peach flavour to be the star in this pie. The peaches are plenty sweet on their own so don’t require much additional sweetener. I do add a small amount of granulated and brown sugar but not a whole lot because the pie would be sickeningly sweet. The addition of a small amount of brown sugar lends some richness to the filling. I do not use all brown sugar in this recipe because it will result in the lovely peach color being diminished. Hence, the reason why I use a combination of both white and brown sugars.
Classic Peach Pie
I use cornstarch as the thickener in this pie as I find it results in a more translucent filling than does flour which can become pasty and cause certain pie fillings (especially light-colored ones like peach pie) to have a cloudy appearance. The drained peaches are mixed with the dry ingredients and the reserved peach juice. I recommend letting the mixed filling sit for about 5 minutes to give the sugars time to break down and blend well into the filling. After the filling has set for 5 minutes, gently stir it being careful not to break apart the peach wedges. This will ensure the dry ingredients are well blended and distributed throughout the filling.
For my pastry recipe along with hints and tips on making pie pastry, click here. This pie lends itself well to either a full top crust or a lattice top, whichever you prefer. To make this pie gluten-free, click here for my gluten-free pastry recipe. The photos of the pie in this posting are made with this tender, flaky, and flavorful gluten-free crust.
Classic Peach Pie
Make sure the oven rack is placed in the lower third of the oven. This helps the bottom crust to bake better and prevents the top crust from browning too quickly. If, however, the crust starts to brown too fast, simply loosely tent the tin foil over the pie as it continues to bake.
Classic Peach Pie
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Peach Pie
Ingredients:
Pastry for a two-crust pie to fit 9” pie plate
Approximately 2 pounds fresh peaches (about 6 – 7 large peaches), peeled and sliced into wedges about ½” to ¾” thick [This should equal 4½ – 5 cups sliced ripe peaches] 1½ tbsp lemon juice
1/3 cup + 1 tbsp granulated sugar ¼ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed ¼ cup cornstarch ½ tsp cinnamon ¼ tsp nutmeg 1/8 tsp salt ¾ tsp finely grated orange peel 1/8 tsp almond flavouring 1 large egg, lightly beaten 2 tbsp butter
1½ – 2 tsp cane sugar (optional for decoration)
Method:
Score an “X” about an inch long into the bottom of each peach. Dip peaches in hot water for 1 minute then immediately dip them into a bowl of ice water for 20-30 seconds to shock them and stop them from cooking. Peel peaches.
Place colander over deep bowl. Cut the peaches into halves or quarters. Gently pull the sections apart and remove and discard the stones. Cut the peaches into wedges, lengthwise, between ½” and ¾“ thick and place in colander. Sprinkle peaches with lemon juice and toss very gently to coat with the juice to prevent the peaches from rapidly browning. Let the peaches drip for about 10-12 minutes to remove excess juice that would make the pie “soupy”. Reserve 2½ – 3 tbsp of the peach juice and discard any remaining juice. Transfer the peaches to a large bowl.
In separate bowl, combine the sugars, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and grated orange rind. Mix well. Add the dry ingredients to the peaches and toss very gently to coat the peaches. Add the almond flavoring to the 2½ – 3 tablespoons of reserved peach juice and sprinkle over the peaches. Stir gently to mix ingredients. Let stand for 5 minutes then stir carefully again to ensure all ingredients are incorporated and equally distributed. Be careful not to break apart the peach wedges.
Roll out pastry into a circle approximately 12” – 13” round and about 1/8“ thick. Transfer pastry to a lightly greased 9” pie plate, fitting the dough over the bottom and sides of the plate, ensuring there are no air pockets. Trim pastry flush with edge of pie plate. Roll out top crust to same thickness.
Brush the bottom crust in the pie plate with a light coating of the beaten egg to keep the crust from getting soggy. Reserve the remainder of the egg.
Transfer the peach filling to the prepared pie plate fitted with the pastry dough. Cut the butter into chunks and distribute on top of the filling.
Add ¾ tsp water to remaining beaten egg. Brush the bottom crust edge all around the pie plate lightly with the egg-water mixture. Place top pie crust over peach filling. Trim excess pastry from the pie plate around the pie plate edge. Press the edge of the pastry all around the pie plate rim with tines of a fork to adhere the top crust to bottom crust. Cut a “X” (or 2-3 slits) about 2” long in center of top crust to allow steam to escape as the pie bakes. For additional venting, prick the pie in several places with the tines of the fork. Lightly brush egg wash over top crust of pie. If desired, sprinkle with 1½ – 2 tsp cane sugar.
Place pie in refrigerator for 30 minutes to allow filling to settle and to chill pastry to reduce shrinkage while it bakes.
Place oven rack in bottom third of oven. Preheat oven to 425°F. Place chilled pie on tinfoil-lined baking sheet to catch any drips should filling bubble out as pie bakes. Transfer chilled pie to oven. Bake for 15 minutes then reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Bake for about 45 minutes or until crust is baked and golden brown and pie shows signs that filling is bubbling. Check pie after it has been in the oven for about 30-35 minutes – if top crust is browning too quickly, loosely tent pie with tin foil.
Remove pie from the oven and transfer to wire rack to cool completely (minimum of 4 hours for the filling to set) before cutting and serving with a scoop of fine vanilla ice cream.
This classic homemade peach pie is like summer in a pie with its fresh ripe peaches encased in tender flaky pastry. Serve the pie with your favorite vanilla ice cream.
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings8
My Island Bistro KitchenMy Island Bistro Kitchen
Ingredients
Pastry for a two-crust pie to fit 9” pie plate
Approximately 2 pounds fresh peachesabout 6 - 7 large peaches, peeled and sliced into wedges about ½” to ¾” thick [This should equal 4½ - 5 cups sliced ripe peaches]
1½tbsplemon juice
1/3cup+ 1 tbsp granulated sugar
¼cuplight brown sugar,lightly packed
¼cupcornstarch
½tspcinnamon
¼tspnutmeg
1/8tspsalt
¾tspfinely grated orange peel
1/8tspalmond flavouring
1large egg,lightly beaten
2tbspbutter
1½ - 2tspcane sugaroptional for decoration
Instructions
Score an “X” about an inch long into the bottom of each peach. Dip peaches in hot water for 1 minute then immediately dip them into a bowl of ice water for 20-30 seconds to shock them and stop them from cooking. Peel peaches.
Place colander over deep bowl. Cut the peaches into halves or quarters. Gently pull the sections apart and remove and discard the stones. Cut the peaches into wedges, lengthwise, between ½” and ¾“ thick and place in colander. Sprinkle peaches with lemon juice and toss very gently to coat with the juice to prevent the peaches from rapidly browning. Let the peaches drip for about 10-12 minutes to remove excess juice that would make the pie “soupy”. Reserve 2½ - 3 tbsp of the peach juice and discard any remaining juice. Transfer the peaches to a large bowl.
In separate bowl, combine the sugars, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and grated orange rind. Mix well. Add the dry ingredients to the peaches and toss very gently to coat the peaches. Add the almond flavoring to the 2½ - 3 tablespoons of reserved peach juice and sprinkle over the peaches. Stir gently to mix ingredients. Let stand for 5 minutes then stir carefully again to ensure all ingredients are incorporated and equally distributed. Be careful not to break apart the peach wedges.
Roll out pastry into a circle approximately 12” - 13” round and about 1/8“ thick. Transfer pastry to a lightly greased 9” pie plate, fitting the dough over the bottom and sides of the plate, ensuring there are no air pockets. Trim pastry flush with edge of pie plate. Roll out top crust to same thickness.
Brush the bottom crust in the pie plate with a light coating of the beaten egg to keep the crust from getting soggy. Reserve the remainder of the egg.
Transfer the peach filling to the prepared pie plate fitted with the pastry dough. Cut the butter into chunks and distribute on top of the filling.
Add ¾ tsp water to remaining beaten egg. Brush the bottom crust edge all around the pie plate lightly with the egg-water mixture. Place top pie crust over peach filling. Trim excess pastry from the pie plate around the pie plate edge. Press the edge of the pastry all around the pie plate rim with tines of a fork to adhere the top crust to bottom crust. Cut a “X” (or 2-3 slits) about 2” long in center of top crust to allow steam to escape as the pie bakes. For additional venting, prick the pie in several places with the tines of the fork. Lightly brush egg wash over top crust of pie. If desired, sprinkle with 1½ - 2 tsp cane sugar.
Place pie in refrigerator for 30 minutes to allow filling to settle and to chill pastry to reduce shrinkage while it bakes.
Place oven rack in bottom third of oven. Preheat oven to 425°F. Place chilled pie on tinfoil-lined baking sheet to catch any drips should filling bubble out as pie bakes. Transfer chilled pie to oven. Bake for 15 minutes then reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Bake for about 45 minutes or until crust is baked and golden brown and pie shows signs that filling is bubbling. Check pie after it has been in the oven for about 30-35 minutes - if top crust is browning too quickly, loosely tent pie with tin foil.
Remove pie from the oven and transfer to wire rack to cool completely (minimum of 4 hours for the filling to set) before cutting and serving with a scoop of fine vanilla ice cream.
Recipe Notes
Yield: 1 - 9” double-crusted pie
For other great pie recipes from My Island Bistro Kitchen, click on the links below:
Today, I am sharing my recipe for a real old-fashioned type of dessert – Rhubarb Pudding Cake. The cake is “self-saucing” which means that the delectable sauce forms underneath the simple cake batter as the cake bakes. It’s an “all-in-one” pudding and cake! It may not be the most extravagant looking dessert but it sure is mighty tasty! If you are a rhubarb lover, you will love this dessert. Continue reading Old-fashioned Rhubarb Pudding Cake→
Summer just would not be summer without ice cream and what better way to enjoy it than to combine two of the season’s best flavors – strawberry and rhubarb – into homemade Strawberry Rhubarb Ripple Ice Cream!
I have been making ice cream for a long time. I have an electric churn that has been in the family for probably close to 50 years. I keep thinking that, one of these days, I will have the custard made and the motor will give out on the churn. But, amazingly, it always works! It’s not fancy but it does the job. There are various types and styles of ice cream makers on the market today but I like my old faithful electric churn. It may look rusty on the outside from all the contact it has had over many years with rock salt that sloshes around with ice in the bucket but the canister is in perfect condition and the churn still makes great smooth ice cream!
Electric Ice Cream Maker
It usually takes about 20-25 minutes for the ice cream to churn. The ice cream will come out of the canister quite soft textured but placing it in the deep freeze for about 3 hours will result in it firming up very well.
Homemade Churned Ice Cream
I use the traditional custard method for making ice cream. It’s amazing how such basic, simple ingredients can turn out such a delectable treat. Milk/cream, sugar, egg yolks, and vanilla form the standard base for the custard and then other flavorings may be added.
Strawberry Rhubarb Ripple Ice Cream
The trick to making homemade ice cream is to use the good stuff! Yes, the real cream, whipping cream, and whole milk. This will give the custard the rich base and the ice cream its smooth texture. While granulated sugar can be used, my preference is to use the super-fine caster sugar as there is no grit at all to it. I always make my custard the night before I churn the ice cream and place it in the refrigerator overnight as it gives the flavors time to develop as they “mix and mingle” and the custard needs to be very cold to start the churning. In fact, I put the churn canister and beaters in the freezer for an hour or so before churning so they are cold as well.
Strawberry Rhubarb Ripple Ice Cream
One ingredient I add to this particular ice cream recipe is strawberry balsamic vinegar – yes, vinegar goes in this recipe but not just any vinegar and not a lot of it. One tablespoon of high quality strawberry balsamic will deepen and enhance the strawberry flavor and, no, it will not leave a lingering vinegar taste in the ice cream. If you have rose water, the addition of just 1 1/2 teaspoons will give a hint of floral flavor. Don’t over-do the rose water or it will start to taste like perfume. All this small addition is doing is adding a subtle layer of flavoring.
Use the freshest ingredients you can – i.e., make this ice cream when the local rhubarb and strawberries are available as they have the best flavor.
Fresh From the Field PEI Strawberries
Choose the reddest stalks of rhubarb you can find. This recipe does not call for any artificial food coloring (and I don’t use any) so the pink color comes naturally from the red rhubarb and strawberries. Each batch I make has a slightly different tint of pink to it depending on the quality of the strawberries and rhubarb.
Rhubarb
I recommend reading through the recipe a couple of times before starting to make the ice cream to organize the prep work and to be sure you have all the required ingredients and understand the method and the sequence for preparing the ingredients.
I have made this Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream both rippled (shown in the photo at the beginning of this posting) using some of the strawberry-rhubarb purée to weave through the ice cream and plain (shown in the ice cream cones in the photo below) where I incorporate all of the purée into the custard. The ice cream is good either way. This homemade ice cream freezes rock solid hard so I recommend removing it from the freezer 7-10 minutes before using as, otherwise, it will be difficult to scoop.
Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream Plain (no rippling/marbling)
Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream makes a great sundae, especially if you drizzle it with crushed strawberries or strawberry-rhubarb sauce.
Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream Sundae
And, it makes dandy milkshakes. Simply combine 3 scoops of the strawberry rhubarb ice cream in a blender with 1/4 cup milk per serving. Blend until smooth and serve in fancy tall glasses with colorful straws and a strawberry garnish.
Strawberry Rhubarb Milkshake
Oh, this is a special treat on a hot summer day!
Strawberry Rhubarb Milkshake
Homemade ice cream sandwiches are also a wonderful summer treat. I use my gluten-free snickerdoodle cookies for these sandwiches because they are a lovely soft-textured cookie.
Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream Sandwiches
For these sandwiches, freeze the ice cream in a 9×13 baking pan lined with tin foil. Fill the pan with the ice cream to a depth of 3/4″ to 1″ thick. Place in freezer for a couple of hours then remove the ice cream from the pan and cut round circles of the ice cream with a cookie cutter that is slightly smaller than the cookie size.
Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream Sandwiches
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Strawberry Rhubarb Ripple Ice Cream
Ingredients:
10 oz strawberries, chopped 1 tbsp strawberry balsamic vinegar (optional but recommended) 3 tbsp caster sugar 1½ tsp rose water (optional)
1 lb rhubarb, chopped 2 tbsp orange juice 2 tbsp water 3 tbsp caster sugar
1 cup whipping cream (36%) 1 cup half-and-half or coffee cream (at least 18%) 1 cup whole milk Scant ¾ cup caster sugar 4 extra-large egg yolks 1/8 tsp fine sea salt 2 tsp vanilla
Method:
Place chopped strawberries in small bowl and sprinkle with 3 tbsp caster sugar, balsamic vinegar, and rose water. Set aside.
Place chopped rhubarb in small saucepan and add the 2 tbsp orange juice, 2 tbsp water and 3 tbsp caster sugar. Cover and cook over medium heat for 7-10 minutes, until rhubarb is softened. Remove from heat and strain through medium mesh wire sieve. Reserve the rhubarb pulp and transfer to heat-proof bowl.
Return the strained rhubarb juice to saucepan and cook over medium heat until juice is reduced to about 1/3 cup. Pour the syrup over the reserved rhubarb pulp. Let cool to room temperature.
Transfer the strawberries and cooled rhubarb mixture to a blender and purée until very smooth. Strain mixture through medium mesh sieve, squeezing as much juice as possible out of the rhubarb by gently pressing it down with the back of a spoon. This should yield approximately 2⅔ – 3 cups purée. Discard any remaining pulp. Cool strained mixture in refrigerator.
In heavy bottomed saucepan, over medium-high heat, bring whipping cream, half-and-half, and whole milk to the scalding point (small bubbles should start to appear around the edges of the mixture) – 180°F, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. Do not boil. Transfer mixture to top of double boiler.
In bottom of double boiler, bring about 2” of water to the simmer point (around 200°F). Maintain the water at this simmer point over medium-low heat. Place top of double boiler containing the milk over the simmering water.
In bowl, whisk the egg yolks, sugar and salt together until pale and creamy. Gradually add about ¾ cup of the hot milk mixture to the egg mixture and whisk to blend well. Pour the egg mixture into the remaining hot milk mixture in top of double boiler, whisking continuously. Cook over the simmering water, stirring constantly until the mixture coats the back of a wood spoon or reaches a temperature of 175°F on a candy thermometer. Do not allow mixture to boil.
Set large clean bowl in a sink of cold water filled to about half the depth of the bowl. Pour the custard mixture through a wire sieve into the bowl to remove any bits of egg that may have coagulated. Stir in the vanilla.
Set aside about ½ cup of the puréed strawberry-rhubarb mixture and whisk the remaining puréed fruit mixture into the custard until it is well blended. Chill, covered, in refrigerator for at least 3 hours or more (can be chilled overnight and up to 24 hours).
Churn custard in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions. Transfer about a third of the ice cream to an airtight freezer container. Drizzle half of the reserved purée over the ice cream. Repeat the process with another layer of ice cream and purée and ending with a layer of the ice cream. With the thin blade of a knife, or using a wooden skewer, swirl the purée through the ice cream to incorporate it in a marble effect. Do not overmix or the ripple/marble effect will be lost. Cover container tightly and allow ice cream to freeze for at least 3 hours, or until very firm, before serving.
Yield: Apx. 1 quart
Note 1: This ice cream will freeze rock solid hard. Recommend removing ice cream from freezer 7-10 minutes before serving. Note 2: This ice cream may be made without the rippling effect. Simply incorporate all of the strawberry-rhubarb purée into the custard instead of reserving ½ cup for the rippling/marbling.
Delectable old-fashioned homemade ice cream combines two of summer's best flavors - strawberry and rhubarb.
Ingredients
10 oz strawberries, chopped
1 tbsp strawberry balsamic vinegar (optional but recommended)
3 tbsp caster sugar
1½ tsp rose water (optional)
1 lb rhubarb, chopped
2 tbsp orange juice
2 tbsp water
3 tbsp caster sugar
1 cup whipping cream (36%)
1 cup half-and-half or coffee cream (at least 18%)
1 cup whole milk
Scant ¾ cup caster sugar
4 extra-large egg yolks
1/8 tsp fine sea salt
2 tsp vanilla
Instructions
Place chopped strawberries in small bowl and sprinkle with 3 tbsp caster sugar, balsamic vinegar, and rose water. Set aside.
Place chopped rhubarb in small saucepan and add the 2 tbsp orange juice, 2 tbsp water and 3 tbsp caster sugar. Cover and cook over medium heat for 7-10 minutes, until rhubarb is softened. Remove from heat and strain through medium mesh wire sieve. Reserve the rhubarb pulp and transfer to heat-proof bowl.
Return the strained rhubarb juice to saucepan and cook over medium heat until juice is reduced to about 1/3 cup. Pour the syrup over the reserved rhubarb pulp. Let cool to room temperature.
Transfer the strawberries and cooled rhubarb mixture to a blender and purée until very smooth. Strain mixture through medium mesh sieve, squeezing as much juice as possible out of the rhubarb by gently pressing it down with the back of a spoon. This should yield approximately 2 2/3 – 3 cups purée. Discard any remaining pulp. Cool strained mixture in refrigerator.
In heavy bottomed saucepan, over medium-high heat, bring whipping cream, half-and-half, and whole milk to the scalding point (small bubbles should start to appear around the edges of the mixture) - 180°F, stirring constantly to prevent scorching. Do not boil. Transfer mixture to top of double boiler.
In bottom of double boiler, bring about 2” of water to the simmer point (around 200°F). Maintain the water at this simmer point over medium-low heat. Place top of double boiler containing the milk over the simmering water.
In bowl, whisk the egg yolks, sugar and salt together until pale and creamy. Gradually add about ¾ cup of the hot milk mixture to the egg mixture and whisk to blend well. Pour the egg mixture into the remaining hot milk mixture in top of double boiler, whisking continuously. Cook over the simmering water, stirring constantly until the mixture coats the back of a wood spoon or reaches a temperature of 175°F on a candy thermometer. Do not allow mixture to boil.
Set large clean bowl in a sink of cold water filled to about half the depth of the bowl. Pour the custard mixture through a wire sieve into the bowl to remove any bits of egg that may have coagulated. Stir in the vanilla.
Set aside about ½ cup of the puréed strawberry-rhubarb mixture and whisk the remaining puréed fruit mixture into the custard until it is well blended. Chill, covered, in refrigerator for at least 3 hours or more (can be chilled overnight and up to 24 hours).
Churn custard in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions. Transfer about a third of the ice cream to an airtight freezer container. Drizzle half of the reserved purée over the ice cream. Repeat the process with another layer of ice cream and purée and ending with a layer of the ice cream. With the thin blade of a knife, or using a wooden skewer, swirl the purée through the ice cream to incorporate it in a marble effect. Do not overmix or the ripple/marble effect will be lost. Cover container tightly and allow ice cream to freeze for at least 3 hours, or until very firm, before serving.
Notes
Note 1: This ice cream will freeze rock solid hard. Recommend removing ice cream from freezer 7-10 minutes before serving.
Note 2: This ice cream may be made without the rippling effect. Simply incorporate all of the strawberry-rhubarb purée into the custard instead of reserving ½ cup for the rippling/marbling.
This Carrot Pudding is an old-fashioned steamed pudding made with very plain, simple ingredients – it doesn’t get much more plain than grated carrots and shredded potato! Continue reading Steamed Carrot Pudding Recipe→
There are so many ways to make rice pudding. Some use the stove-top method, others (like me) use the oven. Some bake the rice pudding directly in the oven but I prefer the hot water bath method for reasons explained below.
For rice pudding, I prefer a short grain rice such as Arborio which is what I have used in this pudding. Arborio rice (often used in risotto) is named after the Italian town where it is grown. What makes it my preference for rice pudding is that, when cooked, it has lovely round pearl-like grains that hold their shape and don’t turn to “mush”. This rice also has a high starch level and that helps to self-thicken the pudding as it bakes and also contributes to its creamy texture.
Creamy Coconut Rice Pudding
This pudding is true comfort food. The addition of coconut milk gives the pudding a subtle hint of coconut but not so strong that it detracts from the basic flavour we expect to find in an old-fashioned rice pudding. I think the texture of the coconut milk also helps to keep the custard creamy.
I have used a maple syrup that was infused with cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. This does add a bit of discrete flavor to the pudding but, certainly, plain maple syrup would work just fine. I have added a blend of three spices – cardamon, nutmeg, and cinnamon – but again, not in large quantities because I don’t want the pudding to be overly spiced. I just want it to be delicately flavored.
Raisins, a traditional addition to rice puddings, do need to be “plumped” before adding them to the pudding as, otherwise, they don’t become very soft in the custard. It’s not very pleasing to the palette to bite into hard, dry raisins amidst a soft creamy custard. For this recipe, I have soaked the 1/3 cup of raisins in about 1 tablespoon of Amaretto by placing these two ingredients in a small covered dish for at least 45 minutes. Shaking the dish periodically helps to ensure that all raisins are coated with the liqueur. In fact, you could leave them soaking for a couple of hours (the raisins will just be extra happy if you do so!).
Rice pudding custard is actually quite delicate and, for greatest success, it is best if the egg proteins are protected from direct hot heat and from fast baking. Because the pudding is made with an egg-milk custard, it is therefore, in my opinion, best if it is baked slowly in a hot water bath. This is simply a method of baking whereby the pudding dish(es) are placed inside a larger pan into which hot water is poured up to about half way on the pudding dishes or even up to the level of the custard in the ramekins. However, the water should not be so deep that the pudding dishes start to float. They need to sit stable in the water as the pudding bakes.
The benefits of baking this pudding in a hot water bath are several. First, the hot water adds steam and moisture to the oven which will prevent the puddings from drying out and cracking on the top as they bake. Second, any custard mixture of milk and eggs has the potential to curdle – that’s when the milk-egg mixture separates from the solids (in this case, the rice and raisins). Because it is a slower method of baking and the hot water provides an even heat source, the hot water bath method helps to prevent the risk of curdled custard. The hot water also helps the custard to bake evenly, both its outside edges as well as its center. Without the hot water baking method, the custard could bake quicker on the outside edges of the pudding than in the center and part of the pudding would be dried out. Lastly, the slow baking combined with an oven of moist heat will help to keep the pudding creamy in texture as opposed to “rubbery”.
I place the 9″x13″x2″ pan with the ramekins in it on the oven shelf and just ever-so-slightly pull the shelf out, just enough that I can safely pour the hot water into the larger baking pan without getting a burn. I find this is a safer method than filling the pan with the hot water and transporting it to the oven. The water needs to be kept at the same level during the baking process so, since it naturally evaporates, you may need to add more hot water as the pudding bakes.
Bake the puddings for approximately 1 hour or until pudding top edges are set, centers are still a little “jiggly”, and the puddings are golden-colored. A knife inserted in or near the centre of the pudding should come out clean if the pudding is done. Don’t overbake the pudding as it will dry out and be less creamy. Remove ramekins from water bath and let them stand on a wire rack to set for approximately 10 minutes before serving.
Adding toasted coconut to the top of this pudding is optional but the crunchiness and flavour are an added touch. Toasting coconut is simple. The coconut gets spread thinly on a baking sheet and baked in a 350° F oven for about 8-9 minutes. It is important to watch that the coconut does not burn and it should be turned once or twice during the toasting process to ensure even color.
Creamy Coconut Rice Pudding
Creamy Coconut Rice Pudding
Ingredients:
1¼ cups cooked Arborio rice 1/3 cup raisins, soaked in 1 tbsp Amaretto ½ cup coconut milk ¾ cup whole milk 1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten 2 tbsp granulated sugar 2 tbsp maple syrup ¼ tsp salt ½ tsp vanilla 1/8 tsp cardamom 1/8 tsp nutmeg ¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ cup shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened), toasted (optional)
Method:
In small covered dish, soak raisins in Amaretto for at least 45 minutes to plump them, shaking or stirring occasionally to ensure all raisins are coated with the liqueur.
In large bowl, whisk together the coconut and whole milk, egg, sugar, maple syrup, salt, vanilla, and spices. Add rice and raisins and stir gently. Divide mixture between 6 prepared ramekins and place in 9”x13”x2” pan. Pour hot water into pan up to half-way on the sides of the ramekins or even up to about the level of the custard in the dishes. However, make sure the ramekins are not floating in the water.
Bake for approximately 1 hour or until pudding top edges are set, centers are still a little “jiggly” and puddings are golden-colored. A knife inserted in or near the centre of the pudding should come out clean if the pudding is done. Remove ramekins from water bath and let stand on wire rack to set for approximately 10 minutes before serving. To serve, top each with toasted coconut, if desired.
[To toast coconut: Spread coconut on baking sheet and bake in 350° F oven for 8-9 minutes, stirring once or twice, until coconut is lightly tanned in color.]
Yield: 6 servings.
—————————————————————————-
Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today. If you enjoyed this posting and recipe, please share it on your social media websites.
Connect with “the Bistro” through the following social media:
A delicate coconut-flavored creamy baked rice pudding with subtle spice flavoring
Ingredients
1¼ cups cooked Arborio rice
1/3 cup raisins, soaked in 1 tbsp Amaretto
½ cup coconut milk
¾ cup whole milk
1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten
2 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp maple syrup
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp cardamom
1/8 tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ cup shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened), toasted (optional)
Instructions
In small covered dish, soak raisins in Amaretto for at least 45 minutes to plump them, shaking or stirring occasionally to ensure all raisins are coated with the liqueur.
In large bowl, whisk together the coconut and whole milk, egg, sugar, maple syrup, salt, vanilla, and spices. Add rice and raisins and stir gently. Divide mixture between 6 prepared ramekins and place in 9”x13”x2” pan. Pour hot water into pan up to half-way on the sides of the ramekins or even up to about the level of the custard in the dishes. However, make sure the ramekins are not floating in the water.
Bake for approximately 1 hour or until pudding top edges are set, centers are still a little “jiggly” and puddings are golden-colored. A knife inserted in or near the centre of the pudding should come out clean if the pudding is done. Remove ramekins from water bath and let stand on wire rack to set for approximately 10 minutes before serving. To serve, top each with toasted coconut, if desired.
[To toast coconut: Spread coconut on baking sheet and bake in 350°F oven for 8-9 minutes, stirring once or twice, until coconut is lightly tanned in color.]
As Christmas approaches and temperatures dip (at least for those of us who live in colder climates), my thoughts tend to turn to substantial “comfort” foods — visions of roast turkey, stuffing and gravy, cranberry sauce, fluffy mashed potatoes, and lots of root vegetables (such as carrots and turnip) enter my head. And then, of course, there are the dessert options. Traditionally, in my family, the main Christmas meal of roast turkey is followed by a rich steamed plum pudding served with a brown sugar sauce. You can get my recipe for plum pudding here.
However, there are other options for steamed pudding, particularly for those who prefer something a little lighter than the rich plum pudding. So, I am sharing my recipe for steamed cranberry pudding which is divine when served with a decadent eggnog sauce (recipe follows).
Steamed Cranberry Pudding with Eggnog Sauce
This cranberry pudding is super easy to make and, when paired with a smooth and silky eggnog sauce….well….you might want to have a second pudding on hand for those who have room for seconds!
This pudding is not highly spiced. It has just enough cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves to give it subtle flavour. Either fresh or frozen cranberries may be used. In order to release their flavour, the cranberries should be coarsely chopped into about 2-3 pieces each for this pudding. Tossing the cut berries in some sugar while the batter is being prepared further draws out their flavour.
If you don’t have a steamed pudding mould like the one in the photo below, you can use clean tin cans or even a metal bowl. Simply spoon the batter into the cans or bowl, cover with a double thickness of heavy-duty tin foil, and secure it with string. The important thing is that, whatever vessel is used, it has a tight cover for the steaming process since the steam is what cooks the pudding and maintains the moisture without leaving the pudding wet and soggy. I used a standard 8-cup mould but I believe a 6-cup mould would suffice for this pudding.
Steamed Pudding Mould
The advantages of using a pudding mould specially designed for steaming puddings is that it comes with its own cover and it also has a funnel in the center which helps the pudding to cook evenly and without falling. This, of course, is in addition to the attractive shape of the pudding when it is unmoulded and plated.
To steam this pudding, a large stock pot will be needed – one that allows enough room for the pudding mould to sit in the center of the pot and has at least 1 1/2 ” – 2 ” space all around the mould. A small wire rack that fits into the pot will also be required. This is what the mould needs to sit on as the pudding steams.
It’s important that the mould (or bowl or tin cans) not touch the bottom or sides of the pot as the water needs to circulate all around the pot (including underneath the pudding mould) in order for the pudding to cook evenly. Once the pudding mould is set on the wire rack, carefully pour in enough boiling water to come up to about the half-way point on the pudding mould. This is the level of water that must be maintained throughout the entire steaming process so additional boiling water may need to be added as the pudding steams. Once the boiling water has been added to the stock pot, cover the large pot with a lid and bring the water back to a full boil then immediately reduce the heat to a gentle boil.
Generally speaking, you’ll need to allot at least 1 1/2 – 2 hours for the pudding to steam over medium-low heat. This, however, is only an estimate and the true test is when a cake tester inserted into the center of the pudding comes out clean. I recommend removing the lid from the pudding mould and checking the pudding with a cake tester at the 1 1/2-hour point and then, if not cooked, about every 10 minutes after until the tester comes out clean. When the pudding is cooked, remove it from its water bath and place the mould on a wire rack. Let the pudding rest in the mould for about 20 minutes then remove the lid from the mould and transfer the pudding to a serving plate.
Steamed Cranberry Pudding
While this pudding would be well complimented by a traditional brown sugar sauce, it is particularly tasty served with a rich eggnog sauce. For ultimate flavour, the eggnog sauce is best served lukewarm, rather than piping hot, and can actually even be served quite cool. Because of the sauce’s richness, not a lot of the sauce is needed per serving. If you are an eggnog lover, you will love this sauce which would be equally good served over a bread pudding, too.
Steamed Cranberry Pudding
Steamed Cranberry Pudding
Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups coarsely chopped cranberries, fresh or frozen
½ cup butter ¾ cup granulated sugar (reserve ¼ cup for tossing with cranberries) 1 egg 1 tsp vanilla 2 tsp grated orange rind
1½ cups flour 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp soda ¼ tsp salt ½ tsp cinnamon ¼ tsp nutmeg 1/8 tsp cloves
Grease 6- or 8-cup pudding mould or spray with cooking spray.
Toss the coarsely chopped cranberries with ¼ cup of the sugar, ensuring the cut sides of the berries are coated. Set aside.
Cream butter and remaining sugar in large bowl. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add grated orange rind.
In separate bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and spices.
In small bowl, whisk together eggnog, milk, and Cointreau.
Add dry ingredients to the butter-sugar-egg mixture alternately with the wet ingredients, starting and ending with the dry ingredients.
Lastly, fold in the cranberries. Transfer batter to prepared pudding mould. Cover tightly with lid. Place mould on wire rack in large pot and fill pot with boiling water to about half way up the side of the mould. Cover steamer pot with lid and bring the water to a full boil then immediately reduce the heat to a gentle boil. Steam the pudding over medium-low heat for approximately 1½ hours or until cake tester inserted into centre of pudding comes out clean. (NOTE: Add more water to pot as necessary to maintain the water level at about the half-way point on the pudding mould during the entire steaming process.) Remove mould from water bath and place on wire rack and let rest for 20 minutes then turn pudding out onto serving dish and serve warm with Eggnog Sauce (recipe below).
In small bowl, combine the sugar, cornstarch, and nutmeg.
Pour eggnog into large microwaveable-safe bowl. Whisk in dry ingredients until smooth. Cook on HIGH until mixture is thickened to desired consistency, stirring after each 1½ minutes. Remove from microwave and stir in vanilla, Cointreau, and butter. (Note: Sauce will thicken slightly more as it cools.)
Sauce is best served lukewarm, spooned over individual slices of Steamed Cranberry Pudding.
A tasty steamed pudding served with smooth and silky eggnog sauce
Ingredients
For Pudding:
1 1/3 cups coarsely chopped cranberries, fresh or frozen
½ cup butter
¾ cup granulated sugar (reserve ¼ cup for tossing with cranberries)
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 tsp grated orange rind
1½ cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp soda
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cloves
2 tbsp prepared eggnog
2 tbsp milk
1 tbsp Cointreau
Eggnog Sauce Ingredients:
2/3 cup sugar
1½ - 2 tbsp cornstarch
¼ tsp nutmeg
2 cups prepared eggnog
2 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp Cointreau
2 tbsp butter
Instructions
Grease 6- or 8-cup pudding mould or spray with cooking spray.
Toss the coarsely chopped cranberries with ¼ cup of the sugar, ensuring the cut sides of the berries are coated. Set aside.
Cream butter and remaining sugar in large bowl. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add grated orange rind.
In separate bowl, sift flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and spices.
In small bowl, whisk together eggnog, milk, and Cointreau.
Add dry ingredients to the butter-sugar-egg mixture alternately with the wet ingredients, starting and ending with the dry ingredients.
Lastly, fold in the cranberries. Transfer batter to prepared pudding mould. Cover tightly with lid. Place mould on wire rack in large pot and fill pot with boiling water to about half way up the side of the mould. Cover steamer pot with lid and bring the water to a full boil then immediately reduce the heat to a gentle boil. Steam the pudding over medium-low heat for approximately 1½ hours or until cake tester inserted into centre of pudding comes out clean. (NOTE: Add more water to pot as necessary to maintain the water level at about the half-way point on the pudding mould during the entire steaming process.) Remove mould from water bath and place on wire rack and let rest for 20 minutes then turn pudding out onto serving dish and serve warm with Eggnog Sauce (recipe below).
Eggnog Sauce:
In small bowl, combine the sugar, cornstarch, and nutmeg.
Pour eggnog into large microwaveable-safe bowl. Whisk in dry ingredients until smooth. Cook on HIGH until mixture is thickened to desired consistency, stirring after each 1½ minutes. Remove from microwave and stir in vanilla, Cointreau, and butter. (Note: Sauce will thicken slightly more as it cools.)
Sauce is best served lukewarm, spooned over individual slices of Steamed Cranberry Pudding.
If you have made this recipe and enjoyed it and/or wish to share it with your friends and family, please do so on social media but be sure to share the direct link to this posting from my website.
Connect with My Island Bistro Kitchen on Social Media
I’m not sure of the origins of Mock Cherry Pie but my grandmother made a version of this delight when I was a small child. Sometimes called cranberry pie, it’s not an altogether common pie (at least in my circles) these days but it is very tasty and colorful with its deep ruby red color. It lends itself well to a lattice top crust but is often made with a standard full top crust.
Mock Cherry Pie
Either fresh or frozen cranberries can be used for this filling. I like to coarsely chop up most of the cranberries for the filling but leave some whole to give texture to the filling. The idea behind chopping the cranberries in half is that it quickly releases the juice from the berries in the cooking process. But, don’t get crazy and chop them too finely as the pie won’t have texture if the berries are ground up too fine. Adding the raisins to the filling enhances flavour complexity and also makes the filling more substantial. The sweetness of the raisins counters the tartness of the cranberries.
The cranberries I am using in this filling came from Mikita Farms in Farmington, near Souris in the eastern part of Prince Edward Island. To my knowledge, this is the only cranberry producer that wet harvests the berries on the Island. To see photos I took in 2014 of the wet harvesting of cranberries, click here.
Corralling the Cranberries
Cranberries freeze really well so I keep a large bag of cranberries in my freezer for use year-round. This time of the year, many farm markets will have bags of these tasty berries available so don’t hesitate to pick up a bag and store them in the freezer for later use.
Fresh PEI Cranberries
The key to making the filling for this pie is to get it thickened so that it does not run when the pie is cut. It takes a little patience but is worth the effort. It’s important to cool down the filling before putting it in the unbaked pie shell as, otherwise, it will break down the fat in the pastry causing it to be a soggy crust. About 30-40 minutes of cooling time will be just right. Remember to stir the filling as it cools as this will help it to cool faster and also aid in its thickening.
Mock Cherry Pie
This is a lovely rich dessert, perfect for Thanksgiving or Christmas. A scoop of high quality vanilla ice cream goes particularly well with Mock Cherry Pie. The wine I have selected to pair with this dessert for my Thanksgiving dinner this year comes from Benjamin Bridge Vineyards in Gaspereau Valley, Nova Scotia. I discovered this wine through the 2015 PEI Fall Flavours Culinary Festival for which Benjamin Bridge was this year’s wine sponsor. Benjamin Bridge wines were served at the signature culinary events during the month-long festival in September. My wine selection is Nova 7. This is the perfect wine to pair with this dessert because it has a hint of sweetness to compliment the tartness of cranberries and a beautiful pale blush color. I think I will seriously have to go on a field trip and pay this winery a visit!
Mock Cherry Pie Paired with Benjamin Bridge’s Nova 7 Wine
For my pastry recipe, tips, and hints on making pie pastry, clickhere.
Mock Cherry Pie
Ingredients:
Pastry for 9” double pie crust
2 cups cranberries, fresh or frozen 1 cup sultana raisins ½ cup boiling water
1 cup sugar 3 tbsp cornstarch Pinch salt 1/3 cup cold water
Chop 1 1/3 cups cranberries in half. Leave remaining 2/3 cup whole.
In medium-sized saucepan, combine the cranberries, raisins, and boiling water. Cook over high heat to the boiling point. Reduce heat to medium and cook 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
In small bowl, combine the sugar and cornstarch with 1/3 cup cold water. Whisk until smooth. Add 1-2 tbsp of the hot mixture to temper the sugar-cornstarch mixture (don’t worry if a few cranberries get scooped up, too) and pour it into the hot cranberry-raisin mixture. Stir well.
Cook over medium heat, stirring often to prevent scorching, until thickened – about 11-13 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, almond flavouring, Cointreau, grated orange rind, and butter. Stir well. Let cool for 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Preheat oven to 400°. Prepare pastry for bottom crust and roll to desired thickness. Transfer pastry to a greased 9” pie plate. Trim pastry.
Pour cooled filling into crust.
Roll out pastry for top crust. If desired, cut into strips for lattice top.
Dampen edges of bottom pie crust.
Place top crust (or, alternatively, lattice strips) over filling, gently pressing the outside edges to seal to bottom crust.
Using kitchen shears, trim excess pastry.
Crimp pastry edges or press together with the tines of a fork. If using complete top crust, cut vents in pastry to allow steam to escape as the pie cooks (omit this step if using a lattice top since there are obviously already lots of spaces for the steam to escape).
Place pie plate on a rimmed baking sheet and bake in the lower third of the oven for 10 minutes at 400° then reduce heat to 375° and bake for 45-50 minutes longer or until the crust is lightly browned and juices start to bubble from the filling.
Transfer pie to a wire rack and let cool completely before cutting and serving.
A rich and flavourful pie that combines cranberries and raisins with a hint of orange flavour.
Ingredients
Pastry for 9” double pie crust
2 cups cranberries, fresh or frozen
1 cup sultana raisins
½ cup boiling water
1 cup sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
Pinch salt
1/3 cup cold water
1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp almond flavouring
1 tbsp Cointreau
1 tsp finely grated orange rind
1 tbsp butter
Instructions
Chop 1 1/3 cups cranberries in half. Leave remaining 2/3 cup whole.
In medium-sized saucepan, combine the cranberries, raisins, and boiling water. Cook over high heat to the boiling point. Reduce heat to medium and cook 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
In small bowl, combine the sugar and cornstarch with 1/3 cup cold water. Whisk until smooth. Add 1-2 tbsp of the hot mixture to temper the sugar-cornstarch mixture and pour it into the hot cranberry-raisin mixture. Stir well. Cook over medium heat, stirring often to prevent scorching, until thickened – about 11-13 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, almond flavouring, Cointreau, grated orange rind, and butter. Stir well. Let cool for 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Preheat oven to 400°. Prepare pastry for bottom crust and roll to desired thickness. Transfer pastry to a greased 9” pie plate. Trim pastry. Pour cooled filling into crust.
Roll out pastry for top crust. If desired, cut into strips for lattice top. Dampen edges of bottom pie crust and place top crust (or, alternatively, lattice strips) over filling, gently pressing the outside edges to seal to bottom crust. Trim excess pastry. Crimp pastry edges or press together with the tines of a fork. If using complete top crust, cut vents in pastry to allow steam to escape as the pie cooks (omit this step if using a lattice top since there are obviously already lots of spaces for the steam to escape).
Place pie plate on a rimmed baking sheet and bake in the lower third of the oven for 10 minutes at 400° then reduce heat to 375° and bake for 45-50 minutes longer or until the crust is lightly browned and juices start to bubble from the filling.
Transfer pie to a wire rack and let cool completely before cutting and serving.
If you have made this recipe and enjoyed it and/or wish to share it with your friends and family, please do so on social media but be sure to share the direct link to this posting from my website.
Connect with My Island Bistro Kitchen on Social Media
Follow “the Bistro” on Pinterest at https://www.pinterest.ca/peibistro/ and pin the Pinterest-ready photo found at the end of this post to your favorite Pinterest boards.
Today, I’m taking you on a tour with me to Beamish Organic Apple Orchard and Deep Roots Distillery in Warren Grove, PEI. Owner, Mike Beamish, has been growing apples since 1990 when he started with 200 trees on his hobby farm near Charlottetown.
Mike Beamish Checking on his Apple Crop
Mike’s goal was always to grow apples organically although he did initially grow them using conventional methods in the early years because it was difficult to find non-chemical controls for some pests. Once more research was done and non-chemical controls were available to growers, Beamish transitioned his orchard to be organic in 2003 following the standard three-year period to be certified organic. During the three-year period, no chemical applications can be used. Beamish is certified under Atlantic Certified Organics (ACO), a certification body which is accredited with the Canadian federal government. This body enforces the national organic standards such as buffer zone requirements from surrounding farms using conventional farming methods and it provides a list of approved substances that can be used in organic farming. The orchard is subject to annual audits by the ACO to ensure only approved substances and organic farming practices are used. Certified organic farmers are required to keep records of any products or substances used and the farmers must be re-certified each year.
Beamish Organic Apple Orchard, Warren Grove, PEI
Growing apples organically does come with its challenges since farmers don’t have access to the traditional chemical treatments non-organic apple growers can use. Beamish says the biggest challenges are dealing with pests such as bugs and rodents, disease in the trees and apples, and ensuring soil nutrition. Any products applied to the ground or trees must be certified organic products only. He counters these challenges by buying and applying organic compost around the trees, installing little ground fences around each tree to deter rodents, and hanging certified organic products in the trees to fend off pests such as moths, apple fruit flies, and railroad worms.
At one point, the Beamish Orchard had 800 apple trees; however, Island winters can be harsh and, in 1999, the orchard cut back to 500 trees in its U-pick orchard. The orchard currently has about 300 apple-producing trees. Beamish grows four varieties of apples – Red Free, Novamac, Liberty, and Freedom. The biggest seller are the Red Free, an early variety ready in mid-September.
The Red Free variety is particularly good for cooking as these apples keep their shape and, because they are non-acidic, there is no need for a lot of sugar.
Red Free Apples
This year (2015) will mark the first year that the Beamish Orchard will not operate as a U-pick. They will still have apples for sale at the farm but, because they have reduced the number of trees in the orchard, there will not be enough apples to operate a U-pick. In addition, Beamish has also created another usage of his apple crop as he has started a distillery.
Deep Roots Distillery, Warren Grove, PEI
When Beamish retired three years ago from Holland College, he was looking for a retirement activity. Since he already had a ready supply of apples, he began making sweet apple cider and selling it at the Farmers Market in Charlottetown. His interest in distilling grew so he pursued a course hosted by the Bio-Food-Tech Centre in Charlottetown that focused on the science of distilling. In addition, he received some technical assistance from the New Brunswick Community College in Grand Falls. In June, 2014, Beamish obtained his license to distill and it wasn’t long before he began producing liquor, using local raw products whenever possible.
Mike Beamish at his Warren Grove, PEI, Distillery – “Deep Roots”
Today, Beamish has four products on the market: Island Tide (a cane-sugar spirit), Blueberry Eau de Vie, Maple Liqueur, and his newest, Camerise Haskap Liqueur.
Deeproots Distillery Products
Beamish says the Island Tide liquor moonshine, with an alcohol content of 45%, is a cross between rum and vodka and would be best suited for martinis and mojitas. Historically, much of the moonshine made in PEI was made from cane-sugar. However, with more modern distilling techniques, it is somewhat smoother than what some folks may remember!
Mike Beamish says the Blueberry Eau de Vie does not have a strong blueberry taste but rather has the essence of blueberry. It has 45% alcohol content and is best served as an after dinner beverage over ice or in a fruit-based cocktail.
The Maple Liqueur is made from New Brunswick maple syrup and, with 25% alcohol, is stronger than most liqueurs. It is also suitable as an after dinner drink or served over vanilla ice cream or in baking.
The Camerise Haskap Liqueur is a new product from the distillery and has just been released this summer.
This liqueur, with 26.5% alcohol, is made with haskap berries which come from Phyto Cultures Inc. in nearby Clyde River. This liqueur is developed using a method by which the alcohol is infused with the whole haskap berries which sit in the alcohol for four months before being crushed. The Camerise Haskap Liqueur also is an after dinner drink and is meant to be served straight over ice.
Producing liquor is government-regulated and the products have to be analyzed by a certified lab in the same way as any big brand liquors.
Boxes of product ready for shipping
The products are labelled under the Deep Roots Distillery label and can be purchased at the Charlottetown Farmers Market and at the Distillery located at 2100 North York River Road, Route 248, in Warren Grove just outside Charlottetown. You can also find them on the shelves of many local liquor stores on the Island.
Sales Outlet at Deep Roots Distillery, Warren Grove, PEI
Tours of the apple orchards and the distillery are available for a nominal fee and Mike welcomes visitors to learn more about his organic apple orchard and new distillery. For more information, and hours of operation, visit the websites for Beamish Organic Apple Orchard and Deep Root Distillery.
Apple-Maple Bread Pudding
As is my standard practice when I visit a local food producer, I develop a recipe using the producer’s product(s). In my Apple-Maple Bread Pudding with Maple Sauce, I have used the Red Free apples from the Beamish Orchard along with the Deep Roots Distillery Maple Liqueur.
Red Free Apples
The Red Free apples are great in this recipe because they keep their shape and don’t go to “mush” or a sauce-like consistency in the pudding which would make it too soggy. The key is to sauté the apples enough that they are softened before adding them to the pudding batter. Adding some maple liqueur as the apples sauté provides additional flavour.
It’s a matter of opinion as to whether a bread pudding should be baked in a hot water bath or not. I have made bread puddings both in a water bath and without and, to be frank, don’t see any appreciable difference in quality of the baked pudding. So, for this recipe, I did not use the hot water bath baking method and the pudding was lovely and moist.
Apple-Maple Bread Pudding
Apple-Maple Bread Pudding
Ingredients:
1 – 1 lb loaf French bread 3 cups whole milk 1 cup less 1½ tbsp Blend/cream (10%)
2½ cups thinly sliced baking apples (about 3 medium-sized apples) ½ tbsp butter 1 tbsp brown sugar 1 tbsp maple liqueur
3 extra-large eggs 1 cup white sugar 1/3 cup maple syrup 3 tbsp melted butter 2 tsp vanilla 3/4 tsp cinnamon 1/8 tsp nutmeg 1/8 tsp allspice Pinch cardamom ¾ cup raisins soaked in 1½ tbsp maple liqueur
Method:
Assemble ingredients.
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Grease or line 9”x13” pan with greased tin foil.
In large bowl, break the French bread into small pieces, crusts and all.
Pour the milk and blend (cream) over the bread.
Cover and let sit for 30 minutes then handcrush mixture until well blended.
Meanwhile, peel, core, and thinly slice the apples.
Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add the apples and sauté for about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with brown sugar and sauté apples for another minute. Remove pan from heat and add liqueur. Return to heat and sauté the apples for 5-7 minutes, or until they are softened and a golden color.
In medium-sized bowl, beat the eggs well. Add the sugar and beat again. Beat in the maple syrup, melted butter, and vanilla. Add the spices and stir well. Pour over bread-milk mixture in large bowl and mix well.
Lastly, gently fold in the sautéd apples along with the raisins.
Pour mixture into prepared pan. Smooth batter evenly in pan.
Bake for about 50-60 minutes or until it springs back to a light touch and/or a cake tester (or knife) inserted into 2-3 places in the pudding comes out clean.
Remove pudding from oven and transfer pudding pan to a cooling rack to rest for 20 minutes. Slice into 12 pieces and serve warm with maple sauce (recipe below), crème anglaise, or ice cream.
Yield:12 servings
Maple Sauce
Ingredients:
1 cup brown sugar 3 tbsp cornstarch dash of salt 2 cups boiling water 2 tbsp maple syrup 2 tbsp maple liqueur 2 tsp vanilla ¼ cup butter
Method:
In saucepan, mix the brown sugar, cornstarch, and salt together well. Add the boiling water, maple syrup, maple liqueur, and vanilla together. Mix well. Add butter. Cook until sauce boils and reaches desired consistency. Serve hot over Apple-Maple Bread Pudding.
Yield:Apx. 2½ cups
Maple Sauce on Apple-Maple Bread Pudding
—————————————————————————-
Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today. If you enjoyed this posting and recipe, please share it on your social media websites.
Connect with “the Bistro” through the following social media:
Join My Island Bistro Kitchen on Facebook Follow “the Bistro’s” tweets on Twitter Follow “the Bistro” on Pinterest Follow “the Bistro” on Instagram
Apple and maple flavours combine to make a delectable bread pudding
Ingredients
Pudding:
1 – 1 lb loaf French bread
3 cups whole milk
1 cup less 1½ tbsp Blend/cream (10%)
2½ cups thinly sliced baking apples (about 3 medium-sized apples)
½ tbsp butter
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp maple liqueur
3 extra large eggs
1 cup white sugar
1/3 cup maple syrup
3 tbsp melted butter
2 tsp vanilla
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp allspice
Pinch cardamom
¾ cup raisins soaked in 1½ tbsp maple liqueur
Sauce:
1 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
dash of salt
2 cups boiling water
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp maple liqueur
2 tsp vanilla
¼ cup butter
Instructions
Assemble ingredients.
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Grease or line 9”x13” pan with greased tin foil.
In large bowl, break the French bread into small pieces, crusts and all. Pour the milk and blend (cream) over the bread. Cover and let sit for 30 minutes then handcrush mixture until well blended.
Meanwhile, peel, core, and thinly slice the apples. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add the apples and sauté for about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with brown sugar and sauté apples for another minute. Remove pan from heat and add liqueur. Return to heat and sauté the apples for 5-7 minutes, or until they are softened and a golden color.
In medium-sized bowl, beat the eggs well. Add the sugar and beat again. Beat in the maple syrup, melted butter, and vanilla. Add the spices and stir well. Pour over bread-milk mixture in the large bowl and mix well.
Lastly, gently fold in the sautéed apples along with the raisins. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Smooth batter evenly in pan.
Bake for about 50-60 minutes or until it springs back to a light touch and/or a cake tester (or knife) inserted into 2-3 places in the pudding comes out clean.
Remove pudding from oven and transfer pudding pan to a cooling rack to rest for 20 minutes. Slice into 12 pieces and serve warm with maple sauce, crème anglaise, or ice cream.
To make the maple sauce, combine the brown sugar, cornstarch, and salt together in saucepan. Add the boiling water, maple syrup, maple liqueur, and vanilla together. Mix well. Add butter. Cook until sauce boils and reaches desired consistency. Serve hot over Apple-Maple Bread Pudding.
There are so many ways to use blueberries, including an endless stream of desserts.
Blueberry Buckle
Today, I am featuring Blueberry Buckle using high bush blueberries that I picked at the Tryon Blueberries U-Pick in North Tryon, PEI.
Blueberry Buckle consists of three parts: A cake base, a sprinkle of fruit, and a streusel topping. The origin of the name “Blueberry Buckle” is not definitively known. However, it seems it may have something to do with the cake base rising up around the blueberries and meeting with the streusel ingredients that, together, form a crumpled or buckled looking appearance on the dessert top. Whether that’s truth or fiction, this is a tasty dessert!
A Blueberry Buckle is very similar to a coffeecake. It is a dense cake with a moist crumb that can be served either warm or cool (i.e., at room temperature). It can also be served plain, just as it is, with its streusel topping or, alternatively, dressed up with ice cream, whipped cream, and/or drizzled with a sauce. I often serve it with brown sugar sauce or sometimes with vanilla ice cream and drizzled with blueberry sauce, as I have today. I call this blueberry overload! I maximize the use of fresh local blueberries when they are available.
Blueberry Buckle with Vanilla Ice Cream Drizzled with Blueberry Sauce
While Buckles can be made with other fruits, the most common one is made with blueberries. This dessert also freezes well so it’s a handy one to have on hand in the freezer. When I am using it from its frozen state, I take the buckle out of the freezer and allow it to thaw at room temperature, then heat it for just a few seconds in the microwave. Tastes like it is fresh from the oven!
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Blueberry Buckle
Streusel Topping:
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed ¼ cup flour ½ tsp cinnamon 3 tbsp butter
Cake Batter:
½ cup butter, softened ½ cup granulated sugar 1 extra-large egg 2 tbsp orange juice ¾ tsp vanilla 1½ cup all-purpose flour 2¼ tsp baking powder ¼ tsp salt ¼ tsp cloves ½ tsp nutmeg 1½ tsp grated orange rind ½ cup milk
2 cups high-bush blueberries
Method:
Grease or line an 8” square pan with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350°F.
Prepare the streusel topping by mixing the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon together. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until mixture resembles coarse oatmeal. Set aside.
In large bowl, cream the butter and add the sugar. Beat until mixture is smooth.
Add the egg, orange juice, and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
In separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cloves, nutmeg, and grated orange rind. Add the dry ingredients to the liquid mixture along with the milk in three parts, starting and ending with the dry ingredients (i.e., three additions of the dry ingredients alternated with two additions of milk).
Spread batter in prepared pan.
Sprinkle mixture evening with the blueberries.
Sprinkle the streusel topping over entire mixture.
Bake for 40-45 minutes or until cake tester inserted into center of cake comes out clean. Do not overbake as cake will become dry.
Serve plain or add a dollop of ice cream and, if desired, drizzle with blueberry sauce.
Blueberry Sauce
Yield: 9 servings
Here is my recipe for the blueberry sauce I used over this Blueberry Buckle.
Blueberry Sauce
Blueberry Sauce
Ingredients:
¾ cup granulated sugar 1 tbsp cornstarch Pinch salt 1/8 tsp nutmeg 1/8 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp grated orange rind 2 tbsp orange juice 1/3 cup water 2 cups high bush blueberries
1½ tbsp butter ¼ tsp vanilla
Method:
Combine sugar, cornstarch, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, orange rind, orange juice, and water in medium-sized saucepan. Heat to boiling point then add blueberries and reduce heat to medium low. Cook mixture, stirring regularly, until thickened to desired consistency. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Serve warm over ice cream or pudding. Refrigerate unused sauce.
Yield: Apx. 1¾ cups
If you have made this recipe and enjoyed it and/or wish to share it with your friends and family, please do so on social media but be sure to share the direct link to this posting from my website.
Connect with My Island Bistro Kitchen on Social Media
Follow “the Bistro” on Pinterest at https://www.pinterest.ca/peibistro/ and pin the Pinterest-ready photo found at the end of this post to your favorite Pinterest boards.
PIN ME TO PINTEREST!
For other great blueberry desserts from My Island Bistro Kitchen, click on the links below.
An old-fashioned coffeecake-like dessert studded with blueberries and covered with a streusel topping. Best served with vanilla ice cream drizzled with blueberry sauce.
Grease or line an 8” square pan with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350°F.
Streusel Topping:
Prepare the streusel topping by mixing the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon together. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until mixture resembles coarse oatmeal. Set aside.
Cake Batter:
In large bowl, cream the butter and add the sugar. Beat until mixture is smooth.
Add the egg, orange juice, and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
In separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cloves, nutmeg, and grated orange rind. Add the dry ingredients to the liquid mixture along with the milk in three parts, starting and ending with the dry ingredients (i.e., three additions of the dry ingredients alternated with two additions of milk).
Spread batter in prepared pan.
Sprinkle mixture evening with the blueberries.
Sprinkle the streusel topping over entire mixture.
Bake for 40-45 minutes or until cake tester inserted into center of cake comes out clean. Do not overbake as cake will become dry.
Serve plain or add a dollop of ice cream and, if desired, drizzle with blueberry sauce.
Blueberry Sauce:
Combine sugar, cornstarch, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, orange rind, orange juice, and water in medium-sized saucepan. Heat to boiling point then add blueberries and reduce heat to medium low. Cook mixture, stirring regularly, until thickened to desired consistency. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Serve warm over ice cream or pudding. Refrigerate unused sauce.
Recipe Notes
Yield:9 servings and apx. 1¾ cups blueberry sauce.
[Copyright My Island Bistro Kitchen]
—————————————————————————-
Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today. If you enjoyed this posting and recipe, please share it on your social media websites.
Connect with “the Bistro” through the following social media:
Grease or line an 8” square pan with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350°F.
Prepare the streusel topping by mixing the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon together. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until mixture resembles coarse oatmeal. Set aside.
In large bowl, cream the butter and add the sugar. Beat until mixture is smooth.
Add the egg, orange juice, and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
In separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cloves, nutmeg, and grated orange rind. Add the dry ingredients to the liquid mixture along with the milk in three parts, starting and ending with the dry ingredients (i.e., three additions of the dry ingredients alternated with two additions of milk).
Spread batter in prepared pan.
Sprinkle mixture evening with the blueberries.
Sprinkle the streusel topping over entire mixture.
Bake for 40-45 minutes or until cake tester inserted into center of cake comes out clean. Do not overbake as cake will become dry.
Serve plain or add a dollop of ice cream and, if desired, drizzle with blueberry sauce.
I grew up with jelly rolls being regularly made in my home. They’re a quick dessert, best eaten on the day they are made. This is because a jelly roll is really a sponge-type cake and, when the jam or jelly is spread on it, it tends to seep into the cake and after several hours can become somewhat soggy. Jelly rolls don’t take a lot of ingredients. So long as you have basic baking supplies and some jam or jelly, you can make a jelly roll.
Here are my tips for making jelly rolls:
1. Use cake and pastry flour as it gives a finer texture than all-purpose flour.
2. Don’t let the cake cool for too long before spreading it with jam or jelly as it may crack as you try to roll the jelly roll up. About 15-20 minutes cooling time is about right. If you put the jam or jelly on the cake when it is still too warm, though, it will cause it to seep into the cake too quickly, creating a soggy jelly roll.
3. Use a good quality jam or jelly. If using jam, choose one that does not have big chunks of fruit in it; otherwise, it will make it more difficult to slice and plate presentation will not be optimal. I prefer colorful red jams and ones that are seedless – for example, seedless raspberry jam.
4. The jelly roll may be dusted with either granulated sugar or icing sugar. However, icing sugar stands up better than granulated sugar which tends to dissolve into the cake more quickly.
Jelly Roll
Ingredients:
1 cup + 3 tbsp cake and pastry flour 1¼ tsp baking powder ¼ tsp salt
4 large eggs 1 cup sugar 1 tsp vanilla ¼ tsp almond flavouring 2 tbsp cold water
¾ – 1 cup jam or jelly Icing sugar for dusting
Method:
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Grease, or spray cooking oil on 10”x15” rimmed baking sheet, ensuring sides are well-greased. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper. Lightly spray parchment paper with cooking oil.
Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside.
Beat eggs until frothy.
Slowly and steadily add the sugar and beat until light-colored and slightly thickened.
Beat in vanilla, almond flavouring, and water.
Add the sifted dry ingredients to the egg-sugar mixture. Stir just until incorporated.
Pour batter into prepared pan.
Bake 9-12 minutes or until cake tester inserted into cake comes out clean and cake springs back to a light touch. Do not overbake.
While cake is baking, lay a clean tea towel on counter and generously sprinkle with sifted icing sugar.
Remove cake from oven and run knife around all four edges to loosen cake from pan sides. Invert baked cake on sugar-dusted tea towel.
Peel off parchment paper, being careful not to tear cake.
Trim off outside edges of cake.
Rolling from the narrow end of the cake, roll up cake and tea towel together.
Transfer to wire rack and cool for about 15-20 minutes.
Carefully unroll the cake.
Spread cake with jam or jelly, leaving about ½” on sides of cake free of jam or jelly.
Using the tea towel as a guide, re-roll the filled cake.
Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Dust with icing sugar, cut, and serve.
Yield:Apx. 10-12 servings
If you have made this recipe and enjoyed it and/or wish to share it with your friends and family, please do so on social media but be sure to share the direct link to this posting from my website.
Connect with My Island Bistro Kitchen on Social Media
Follow “the Bistro” on Pinterest at https://www.pinterest.ca/peibistro/ and pin the Pinterest-ready photo found at the end of this post to your favorite Pinterest boards.
A Jelly Roll is an impressive dessert made with a thin sponge cake spread with a favorite jam or jelly and then rolled up, dusted with icing sugar, and sliced.
Course Dessert
Keyword jelly roll
Servings10
My Island Bistro KitchenMy Island Bistro Kitchen
Ingredients
1cup+ 3 tbsp cake flour
1¼tspbaking powder
¼tspsalt
4large eggs
1cupsugar
1tspvanilla
¼tspalmond flavouring
2tbspcold water
¾ - 1cupjam or jelly
Icing sugar for dusting
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Grease, or spray cooking oil on 10”x15” rimmed baking sheet, ensuring sides are well-greased. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper. Lightly spray parchment paper with cooking oil.
Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside.
Beat eggs until frothy. Slowly and steadily add the sugar and beat until light-colored and slightly thickened. Beat in vanilla, almond flavouring, and water.
Add the sifted dry ingredients to the egg-sugar mixture. Stir just until incorporated.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 9-12 minutes or until cake tester inserted into cake comes out clean and cake springs back from a light touch. Do not overbake.
While cake is baking, lay a clean tea towel on counter and generously sprinkle with sifted icing sugar. Remove cake from oven and run knife around all four edges to loosen cake from pan sides. Invert baked cake on sugar-dusted tea towel. Peel off parchment paper being careful not to tear cake.
Trim off outside edges of cake. Rolling from the narrow end of the cake, roll up cake and tea towel together. Transfer to wire rack and cool for about 15 minutes. Carefully unroll the cake and spread with jam or jelly, leaving about ½” on sides of cake free of jam or jelly. Re-roll. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Dust with icing sugar, cut, and serve.
Recipe Notes
Yield: Apx. 10-11 servings
NOTE: Be sure to read the accompanying blog post to this recipe as it contains tips for making the jelly roll successfully as well as step-by-step photos of the method used to make the jelly roll.
[Copyright My Island Bistro Kitchen]
Try one of these Jellies or Fruit Curds in your next Jelly Roll:
One of my all-time favorite desserts is Baked Alaska. I first had Baked Alaska on a cruise many, many years ago and I have loved it ever since. Many people think Baked Alaska is difficult to make but I don’t find it is. It does, however, take a little planning and time since it is prepared in stages. Baked Alaska can be made as a large dessert to serve several or it can be tailored down to serve one or two. My recipe is for two individual servings, perfect for a special intimate dinner such as Valentine’s Day, or anytime as a nice treat.
There are options for the cake base of a Baked Alaska. Brownies or pound cake are my preferences and they can be either bought or homemade. I like brownies because the dark contrast is eye-appealing with a light-colored ice cream. Whatever base is used, it needs to be cut out with a 2” cookie cutter and it should have a depth of about ½” to ¾ “. Now, at first glance, this might appear to be a rather miniscule dessert but, as you’ll soon discover, the meringue adds a lot of volume to the Baked Alaska.
Choice of ice cream is important for the Baked Alaska. Choose a high quality ice cream with a high percentage cream content for this dessert because it will freeze hard. Some of the lower fat or cheaper ice creams tend to be softer and, because this ice cream is going into a 475° oven, it needs to be able to stand up for itself! Any flavour of ice cream of your choosing will work. My favorites are vanilla, coffee, or strawberry. Let the ice cream soften slightly at room temperature for 5-7 minutes before scooping it out. You want to try and get as perfectly a round scoop as you can because this is what will give the Alaska its dome shape.
It’s important that both the cake base and the scoop of ice cream be frozen super hard so plan ahead to have them frozen for at least two hours or longer before serving time. I use a couple of small pieces of wooden boards covered with tin foil on which to bake the Alaskas because the boards don’t heat as fast as a metal cookie sheet would which could cause the Alaskas to start to melt down too quickly in the oven. The idea is to keep the Baked Alaskas as cold as possible. The Alaskas are only put in the oven for 2-3 minutes solely to tan the meringue.
The Raspberry Coulis can be made a day or two ahead and kept refrigerated.
I find I have greater success with whipping egg whites for the meringue when they are at room temperature. Allow the separated egg whites to come to room temperature for about 30-40 minutes before whipping.
It’s super important to completely cover the ice cream and base with the meringue as, otherwise, heat will reach the ice cream which will simply melt and ooze out of the Alaska when placed in the oven. The meringue acts as an insulator of sorts which prevents the ice cream from melting for the 2-3 minutes it is in the oven. I have found that even the smallest gap in the meringue will cause the ice cream to melt in even the short time it is in the oven. Work as quickly as you can to apply the meringue so that the ice cream does not soften and melt.
Individual Baked Alaskas with Raspberry Coulis
Raspberry Coulis:
1¼ cups raspberries, fresh or frozen ⅓ cup sugar ¾ tsp lemon juice 1 tsp water
In medium-sized saucepan, combine all ingredients.
Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until raspberries have broken down and released their juices.
Remove from heat and pour mixture into a fine sieve over a bowl.
Press mixture with the back of a spoon to extract as much juice as possible. Discard raspberry seeds left in the sieve.
Cover coulis tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until well chilled.
Yield: ½ cup
Baked Alaskas:
2 pieces of brownie cut into 2” circles and sliced ½“ – ¾” thick. 2 round scoops of ice cream, your favourite flavour
Meringue:
2 large egg whites, room temperature ⅛ tsp salt ⅛ tsp cream of tartar ¼ cup sugar ½ tsp almond flavouring
Line a small rimmed baking sheet with tin foil. Using the rimmed baked sheet allows for easy transport to and from the freezer and keeps the Alaska bases from accidentally sliding off. Place the brownie circles on the baking sheet and top each with a scoop of ice cream. Place in freezer for at least 2 hours, until very firm.
At the same time, cover two small boards with tin foil and place in freezer.
When ready to prepare the dessert, place oven rack about 8” from broiler and preheat oven to 475°F.
In bowl of stand mixer, beat egg whites just until frothy then add the salt and cream of tartar.
While beating the egg whites, add the sugar slowly, about a teaspoon at a time.
Continue to beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form when wire whisk is lifted from the egg whites.
Add the almond flavoring and beat for 10-15 seconds longer.
Remove brownie and ice cream rounds along with the foil-covered boards from the freezer. Transfer the brownie and ice cream rounds to the foil-covered boards. Quickly cover the ice cream and brownie completely with the meringue.
With the tip of a knife, twirl the meringue into decorate tips.
Place the Alaskas on a rimmed baking sheet for ease of transfer to and from oven. Bake in the pre-heated oven until the meringue browns, about 2-3 minutes.
Remove from oven and plate. Drizzle with Raspberry Coulis and garnish with fresh raspberries. Serve immediately.
Serves: 2
——————
Thank you for visiting “the Bistro” today. There are lots of ways to connect with “the Bistro” through social media:
Today, I’m sharing the recipe for a real old-fashioned vintage dessert. Some of you may remember your mother or grandmother making Raisin Puff (aka Plum Puff) dessert or, perhaps, you have made it yourself. Continue reading Raisin Puff (aka Plum Puff)→
One of my all-time favorites is the traditional old-fashioned Apple Crisp dessert — the sweet apple flavour filling topped with a crisp, crunchy streusel. And, oh, the heavenly scent in the house when the apple crisp is baking! Continue reading Old-fashioned Apple Crisp→
(Mostly) PEI and Maritime Food – Good Food for a Good Life!
