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10/24/2019 12:01 AMLast week I needed to get rid of some of my eggs and was also in the mood for something sweet.
Rather than open the enormous bag of candy that is sitting on the table in the hallway waiting for Halloween children, I made my Emergency Chocolate Cakes.
My plan was to eat one slice and give the rest to friends and neighbors.
When the cake came out of the oven, it looked odd. It didn’t rise.
Was the oven not working? I calibrate it at least once a year, but maybe it had been a while.
Ever the optimist, I cut a slice, and tried it.
It could have been used it as a mooring for a sailboat.
This is a recipe I’ve made a zillion times, and I can practically do it in my sleep. But, just to be sure, I re-read the recipe and looked at the ingredients.
Ah, I used baking powder instead of baking soda. I thought of tossing the cake to the birds, but I wasn’t sure if chocolate is good for birds. So I dumped it.
The next day I made Grape Nut pudding and butterscotch pudding. Both were sweet and delightful, and neither call for leavening!
Lee White of Old Lyme has been a food editor and restaurant reviewer for more than 25 years. You can email her at leeawhite@aol.com.
Butterscotch Pudding
From Richard Sax, Classic Home Desserts (Chapters, Shelburne, VT, 1994)
Yield: serves 4
3 cups milk, divided
4 large egg yolks
¾ cup dark brown sugar
¼ cup cornstarch, spooned lightly into a measuring cup
(do not pack tightly)
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
whipped cream flavored with pure vanilla extract for serving
(optional)
Rinse a heavy, nonreactive saucepan with cold water and shake out excess water (this helps milk from scorching). Bring 2 ½ cups of the milk almost to a boil.
Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, whisk together remaining half cup milk, egg yolks, brown sugar, and cornstarch until smooth.
Pour about half of the hot milk into the egg yolk mixture and whisk vigorously. Repeat process two more times. Pour warmed yolk mixture into the pan of hot milk and bring to a boil, whisking over medium heat. Boil, whisking almost constantly (be sure to stir at the edges of the pan), for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla.
Strain pudding through a fine sieve into a clean bowl. Transfer pudding to 4 individual serving dishes, like custard cups. If you want to prevent the pudding skin from forming, lay a sheet of wax paper or plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding. Chill for 2 to 3 hours. Serve with whipped cream, if you like.
Grape Nuts Custard
2 eggs
⅛ teaspoon salt
⅓ cup sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla
2 cups light cream (you can use heavy cream)
2 tablespoons butter
¼ cup Grape Nuts cereal
Butter an 8-inch square pan and put aside. (You can double the recipe and butter a 9-inch by 13-inch pan.)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Whisk eggs, salt, sugar, and vanilla, and set aside.
Scald cream with butter.
Add about ¼ cup of scalded milk to egg mixture, whisking quickly. Add another quarter cup of cream, again whisking. (This tempers the eggs so they don’t become scrambled eggs.) Add the rest of the cream, whisking.
Pour entire mixture into buttered pan. Sprinkle Grape Nuts evenly on top. Do not mix in.
Place the pan into a larger pan to which you have poured warm water half way up the smaller pan (this larger pan with water is called a “bain marie,” or water bath). Place the bain marie in oven until custard is set in the middle, about 25 to 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and bring to room temperature; cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, or overnight.