Salted Caramel Pot de Crème

It's amazing sometimes how a few simple ingredients can create something wonderful. If put together in the correct way, a combination of cream, sugar, vanilla, and eggs, plus gentle heat will yield a creamy caramel dessert. 

Rich caramel flavors are so appropriate for the fall. Well, richer things are better in general as the weather becomes cooler, but caramel pairs well with fall fruits such as apples and pears as well as nuts.

However, this is just caramel on it's own.  

Salted Caramel Pot de Crème
serves 5

1 c (240 ml) heavy cream
1 c (240 ml) half and half (light cream)
1/2 vanilla bean (or 2 t vanilla extract)
1/3 c (66 g) plus 2 T sugar (24 g), separated

1 1/2 T (25 ml) water

3 large egg yolks, room temperature
1/4 t (2 g) salt

Heat oven to 300 F/150 C.
Warm the cream and half and half over low heat in a medium saucepan.

Place 1/3 c sugar and the water in a separate medium saucepan and heat over medium. Swirl the pan occasionally to dissolve the sugar and so that the mixture caramelizes evenly. Cook until the sugar syrup is dark amber.

Carefully pour the warm cream into the hot sugar syrup- be careful, as it will boil and steam. Stir the mixture to dissolve the syrup into the cream. Bring the mixture to a boil and set aside to cool 10 minutes.

Whisk the egg yolks in a bowl with the remaining sugar and the salt. Carefully whisk the warm caramel cream into the egg yolks. Strain the mixture into a bowl or large measuring cup. Divide the mixture among 5, 5-oz ramekins and place them in a 9x13 inch or so baking dish with sides.

Pour boiling water into the dish so that it comes about an inch up the sides of the ramekins.
Place the pan in the oven and bake 50-60 minutes, or until the custards are completely set, but slightly jiggly.

Remove the ramekins from the pan and let cool on a rack. Refrigerate several hours until completely cold before serving.

Red Lentil Soup

In cool weather (with and without rain) I crave soup- all kinds of soup.
Over here we tend to eat a lot of soup on Fridays.
Soup makes an easy meal.
As the main, it can be a very casual and warming, light yet filling meal.

Lentil soups are similar to split pea soups, but don't let that deter you if you're not a fan of split peas. This is not the traditional version one might imagine, and I, for one, like this much better.

I'm aware that the finished product does not look particularly red (as the title would suggest). However, I promise it's made with red lentils.
Curiously, red lentils (or masoor dal if you go with the Indian name) are more salmon-colored than red and become a golden color when cooked. Well then, that cheery shade is magnified a bit by the addition of turmeric in this particular soup.

Keep in mind that you are certainly able to adjust seasonings to your taste. If you hate something in particular, maybe tone it down, leave it out or substitute something else. The recipe as written turns out to have a nice curry flavor (and you've just mixed up your own curry without using a pre-made blend, folks). Depending on how spicy you like things, you may want extra cayenne. I originally made it with 1/2 t cayenne, which had some really nice warmth, but thought it might be too much for some people.  If you want the greater intensity, add that 1/2 t cayenne. If you prefer just a hint of heat, maybe use just a pinch instead.

Red Lentil Soup
serves 6 or more

1 large onion, diced
2 T (30 ml) olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, minced
1 T (20 g) fresh ginger, finely grated
1 t (2 g) turmeric
1 t (3 g) cumin
1/2 t (1 g) coriander
1/4 t (1 g) cayenne pepper
1/4 t (1 g) cardamom
1/2 t (2 g) black pepper

6 c (1.4 L) chicken broth, vegetable broth, or water
2 c (396 g) red lentils

1- 1 1/2 t (6-9 g) Kosher or sea salt (depending on the salinity of your broth)

1 can (400 ml) coconut milk

Warm the olive oil over medium heat in a large pot, add the onion and saute several minutes until translucent.
Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric, cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper, cardamom, and black pepper.  Saute the mixture about 30 seconds or so so that the onions are coated in spices and the texture becomes pasty.
Pour in the broth and add the dry lentils. Stir the mixture, scraping the bottom of the pan a bit to release the onion and incorporate all the spices
Bring the soup to a simmer and cook about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally (more so towards the end of the cooking time). The soup will become much thicker as the lentils cook and break down. 
At the end of the cooking time, add the coconut milk and stir though. Remove the pan from the heat
Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth. Alternatively, carefully puree the soup in batches in a standard blender.
Adjust seasonings (salt, pepper, cayenne) to taste.
The soup will thicken slightly to a nice creamy consistency as it sits a bit. 
I don't find it gets too incredibly thick after refrigeration, but thin if desired with a little extra broth or water. 

Fig and Raspberry Jam

Together figs and raspberries create a perfumey concoction bridging two seasons.
A lovely end of summer/beginning of autumn jam to make and put away for when you might need something a little different and special.

(I just love making jam whenever I get the chance.)

Cooking figs always smell like the woods to me- the woods on a crisp autumn day. There's something about the air and the crunchy leaves that have fallen from the trees that smell like figs.
Combine the fig scent with that of ripe and juicy raspberries and you have an interesting fragrance, an earthy sort of sweetness that permeates the house.

Port added near the end of cooking lends a bit of raisiny depth and helps increase the autumn-ness of this jam. It's bright, but cozy.

As I have said before when speaking of confiture, I do not actually can and process jams as they are for my use/friends/family and they go directly into the refrigerator after the jars are cool enough to handle (NOT into the cabinet to sit at room temperature since they have not been processed).

With both figs and raspberries, and being unstrained, this certainly turns out to be a seeded jam. I don't mind that though, it's real. It is what it is.

Fresh jams are always great on a piece of hearty grainy toast, a crumpet, or a warm scone.
I think this version would be especially nice with cooked with pork or served with turkey- or as part of a cheese board (perhaps along with some chevre, brie, or triple-crème?).
Stir it into yogurt.
Use it as the filling for a crostata...

Some of the technique is taken from the Blue Chair Jam Cookbook.


Fig and Raspberry Jam
makes about 10 pints

2 lb (about 910 g) fresh figs
water
2 1/2 lb (1 kg plus 130 g) raspberries
5 c (1 kg plus about 110 g) sugar 
1/4 c (60 ml) fresh lemon juice
1/2 c (120 ml) Port

Place a small plate and 4-5 spoons in the freezer to later check the jam consistency.

Remove the stems and cut the figs into eights (or into 12 pieces if larger), place in a large saucepan and cover with about 1/4 inch of water. Cover the pan with a lid and heat the figs over medium high heat until the mixture comes to a boil. 

Meanwhile, place the raspberries and sugar in a large bowl to macerate and set aside.

Once the fig mixture boils, stir and reduce the heat to low. Re-cover and let simmer 5 minutes, then mash the figs with a potato masher to reduce everything to a juicy pulp. Cover again and let the mixture cook 20-30 minutes, until the figs develop a soft and mushy consistency and the mixture is relatively uniform (mashing and stirring every 5 minutes or so).

Pour the raspberry and sugar mixture into the pan of fig puree and stir to combine. Add the lemon juice. 

Pour the fruit and sugar mixture into a preserving pan or wide, nonreactive pan.  Bring to a boil over high heat and then reduce the heat to a simmer, stirring every now and then to keep the jam for scorching on the bottom of the pan. After about 10 minutes of simmering, add the Port and stir though. Continue simmering and stirring 15 minutes more, then check the consistency of the jam by taking a spoonful in one of the frozen spoons. Place the spoon and plate back in the freezer about 3 minutes to re-chill, while continuing to cook the jam on the stove. 

Remove the spoon and plate from the freezer and tip the jam from the spoon. If it falls thickly and slowly from the spoon, it's a good jam consistency. If it's still quite liquid, cook longer and check in the same manner every 5 minutes or so. 

When the jam has reached the desired consistency, remove the pan from the heat, fill sterilized jars with hot jam, and screw (or clamp) the lids on. 
*At this point process as desired if you would like you jam to be shelf stable.
  

Let the jars sit at room temperature until you're able to handle them easily then place the jars in the refrigerator.

Jam should last at least a month and up to several if kept refrigerated. 

Pantry Cookies

Edison had the lightbulb, Tesla the alternating current.
Today, as far as societal contributions go, I have cookies.
No, it's not necessarily in the same realm as the other two- I can freely admit it.
Then again, those two things are dangerously inedible.

But as far as inventions go, this is one I've been working on and tweaking. The thing about wanting to get it right is that sometimes you have to try and try again. With cookies, it's both a good and a bad thing (though bad is relative and the degree is debatable...).

It's definitely good to be able to share something like this when you're making multiple batches. That way, you can get input from multiple people while sharing the wealth, so to say.
And, of course, there IS a point when you just can't deal with more cookies.

I figured these are things generally found in an American pantry (thus the name).
Well, they're found in MY pantry, and I'm betting 9 times out of 10 I could make them without having to make a grocery run.

I've been using natural peanut butter as of late- just ground peanuts and nothing else. Not completely creamy, but not totally crunchy either, it's somewhere in the middle. I don't know how the recipe would behave with another type of peanut butter- namely the more commercial creamy peanut butters one might normally choose for cookies.

The cookie dough is slightly crumbly, but malleable. As such, they should be rolled into balls, or packed tightly before baking. They may take a tad more work when portioning them out, but the good news is that the resulting texture is crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside.

There is potential for multiple adaptations. Add some nuts, try dried cranberries, take out the raisins, add a little more chocolate.

Pantry Cookies
Makes about 40, generous tablespoon-sized cookies

1 1/2 c (375 g) natural peanut (... sunflower or almond) butter
3/4 c (160 g) packed brown sugar

1/2 c (120 g) granulated sugar

1 t (5 g) salt

1 1/2 t (7 ml) vanilla extract

1/2 t (4 g) baking soda

2 large eggs

3/4 c (90 g) rolled oats (GF if that's what you're looking for)

1/2 c (45 g) shredded coconut
2/3 c (100 g) chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate)
2/3 c (80 g) raisins

Preheat the oven to 350 F/ 175 C.

In stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the peanut butter, sugars, salt, vanilla and baking soda until well combined. 
Add the eggs one at a time and mix well between additions then scrape down the sides of the bowl. 
Add the oats and coconut and mix well.
Pour in the chocolate chips and raisins, and mix just until evenly dispersed. 

Using a small cookie/ice cream scoop or a spoon, scoop generous tablespoon-sized (walnut) portions of cookie dough onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Make sure the cookie dough is well-packed to insure that the cookies stay in one piece. Alternatively, roll walnut-sized balls of dough and place on the cookie sheet. Flatten the mounds of dough slightly with your fingers. 

Bake the cookies 10-12 minutes (they will continue to cook and set as they cool).
Let the cookies cool on the pan about 10 minutes before removing to a rack to cool completely.
Store in an airtight container.