March 9, 2010

All hail the Queen!

NOTE: Last Saturday I wrote this post then couldn't find the recipe anywhere, how frustrating! Then I posted the post by mistake instead of saving it, then the tricksy recipe turned up. Anyway I'm such a goose, some of you have had a sneak preview of todays post. Get ready to feign excitement...

My youngest sister Daisy works part time at The Alternative Bread Company stall in The English Market in Cork. She's a girl that knows a bloomer from a chleb at 50 paces. She gave me a huge loaf of sour dough recently and it took us a week to get through half of it and I wanted to make something with the rest. So I went recipe hunting!




The first thing that grabs me about a recipe is the picture. Does it make me think 'I need to make this! I need to eat this!'. It usually does. But what about a fusty old book with no photos? Well then I go by the name. This my dears is The Queen of Puddings. Not just The Queens' best friend ever or the first cousin of the Queen. This is The Queen. So I had to make it to see what she looked like.


What a fine thing. Sponge bread stuff, jam and Meringue? Oh you spoil me!

Ingredients
50g butter, softened
125g caster sugar
Zest of 1 lemon
600ml milk
150g breadcrumbs
4 large eggs separated
4 tbsp raspberry jam

Method
  • Preheat the oven to 180. Butter a 1 litre oven proof dish or 4x300ml dishes
  • Bring the butter, 25g of the sugar, the zest and milk to a gentle simmer in a pan
  • Add the breadcrumbs and set aside, stirring often until thickened
  • Stir the egg yolks into the mixture and spoon into the prepared dish.
  • Bake for 15 mins or until just set.
  • Heat the jam in a pan until runny, carefully spread over the top of the pudding
  • Whisk the egg whites and the remaining 100g of sugar until it forms soft peaks.
  • Spoon/pipe over the top of the pudding and bake for 10 mins until lightly browned and crisp.
  • Serve immediately or while warm, although it was nice cold too, with cream.

All in all ten people tasted this when I made it and we all had the same reaction: It's a slow burner. 'I don't know if I love it but I can't stop eating it' type of thing.
I think I do love it though.
Lilly x

3 comments:

  1. This looks really interesting, I might have to give it a go! I don't think I've had meringue since I was a little girl, so it is definitely time.

    ReplyDelete
  2. with this post you are really teasing me. You can call me Elaine alright but only if you follow it with the words
    "would you like your queen of puddings now?"

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yeah I think interesting is the best word for it!
    Jaboopee, Im going to just write Elaine WYLYQOPN? because it's shorter, and catchier.

    ReplyDelete

Let me know what you think!x