Fresh Berry Crème Anglaise

Before I get into the details of this delightful dessert I want to remind everyone to start voting for your next Food Blog Star on Foodbuzz?s Project Food Blog. The voting started at 9:00 am EDT today and continues through Thursday, September 23, 2010, and the winners are announced on Friday, September 24, 2010.  Of the original 1,890 contestants participating in round one which is known as ?Ready, Set, Blog!?, only 400 get to advance to the next round of the competition.

You can vote by clicking the link to Challenge #1: Ready, Set, Blog!

On to the recipe…

Fresh berries are one of the finest dessert ingredients you can find, and when lightly coated then gently tossed with a rum infusion and a bit of sugar, the fresh berries come alive and meld well with a classic Crème Anglaise dessert sauce.

The Crème Anglaise is a classic French dessert sauce preparation, and if you learn only one dessert sauce you should perfect this one. It is a true masterpiece, and when executed perfectly makes any dessert even better. In its pure simplicity and with just five ingredients, this dessert sauce is to die for!

For the Crème Anglaise

The ingredients


½
Cup
Sugar, granulated


4
Large
Egg yolks


1
Tsp
Cornstarch


1 ¾
Cups
Milk, scalded


1
Tbsp
Vanilla






The procedures


1.
In a small stainless steel mixing bowl, gradually beat the sugar into the egg yolks and continue beating for 2 to 3 minutes until the mixture is pale yellow and forms a ribbon.


2.
Beat in the starch into the yolk sugar mixture until dissolved.


3.
While beating the yolk mixture, very gradually pour in the scalded milk in a thin steady stream, being sure that the yolks are not cooked or start to congeal.


4.
Put the bowl over a double boiler or sauce pan containing a warm bath of simmering water. Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon stir continuously reaching all over the bottom and sides of the bowl, until the sauce thickens just enough to coat the back of a spoon with a light, creamy sauce-like layer. Do not let the custard-like sauce come to simmer, it should never get over 170° F.


5.
When the sauce is thickened to the proper consistency, remove from the heat and using a wire whisk beat the sauce for a minute or two to cool it. Strain it through a fine sieve into another bowl, and beat in the vanilla.


6.
Set the bowl of sauce into a larger bowl of cold water, and stir frequently until cool. Then cover and chill.

 

For the Berries

The ingredients


½
Cup
Strawberries


½
Cup
Blueberries


½
Cup
Raspberries


2
Tbsp
Sugar, granulated


1
Tbsp
Zaya Rum






The procedures


1.
In a small bowl combine the sugar and rum, stir well until sugar is dissolved.


2.
Toss the berries in with the bowl of sweetened rum to coat well.


3.
Arrange the berries on two serving dishes and then lightly drizzle them with the Crème Anglaise sauce, garnish with fresh mint leaves and serve immediately.

A big thank you goes out to Lyz Nardo at the Baddish Group for sending me a sampling of Zaya Rum along with some coupons for Driscoll’s fresh berries. The rum is a delightful selection of rums sourced and blended in Trinidad and Tobago in the Southern Caribbean. The rums in question have been aged a minimum of 12 years in used bourbon barrels before being blended together by the Master Blender. Once the blend is complete, the rum is bottled at 80 proof (40% abv) and shipped

Another view…

Bon appetite!

CCR

=:~)

©2010 CCR