Julia Child Un Par Un: Charlotte and Custard Desserts!! 🌞

[justaprogressive]

CHARLOTTE CHANTILLY, AUX FRAISES
CHARLOTTE CHANTILLY, AUX FRAMBOISES
[Strawberry or Raspberry Cream—a cold dessert]

Here is another handsome molded dessert; this one is also
relatively quick to execute. But unless the egg yolks are well
thickened, and then chilled before the cream is folded in, the dessert
will collapse rather quickly. If you do not wish to serve it unmolded,
turn the cream into a serving bowl or into dessert cups. You may
use frozen fruit instead of fresh, but be sure the fruit is well thawed
and most thoroughly drained, otherwise the purée will be too liquid.

For 8 to 10 people

A round of waxed paper
A 2-quart cylindrical mold about 4 inches high and 7 inches
in diameter, lined with ladyfingers


Place the round of waxed paper in the bottom of the unbuttered
mold. Then line the sides of the mold (not the bottom) with
upright ladyfingers as described in the directions.

1½ pints fresh strawberries or raspberries

Hull, wash, and drain the berries. Force them through a sieve and
into a bowl. Measure out 1¼ cups of purée. Chill.

A wire whip or electric beater
A 3-quart stainless steel mixing bowl⅔ cup instant sugar (very ɹnely granulated)
8 egg yolks
A pan of not-quite-simmering water
A bowl with a tray of ice cubes and water to cover them

Beat the sugar into the egg yolks and continue beating until
mixture is pale yellow and falls back on itself forming a slowly
dissolving ribbon. Then place the mixing bowl over the not-quite
simmering water and beat until mixture has thickened into a
cream and becomes uncomfortably hot for your ɹnger. Set bowl
in ice water and beat until mixture is cold and falls back upon
itself forming a slowly dissolving ribbon on the surface; fold with
a spatula until chilled.

2½ cups chilled heavy whipping cream
A 4-quart metal bowl
A chilled beater

When the egg yolk mixture has chilled, beat the cream until it has
doubled in volume and forms stiʃ (rather than soft) peaks.

Extra ladyfingers, if needed
A round of waxed paper

Fold the chilled strawberry or raspberry purée into the chilled egg
yolk mixture, then fold in the whipped cream. Turn into the mold.
Place ladyɹngers over the cream to ɹll the mold almost
completely. Trim oʃ any protruding ladyɹngers around the edges
of the mold. Cover with waxed paper and refrigerate for at least 6
hours or overnight.

A chilled serving dish
1 to 3 cups fresh strawberries or raspberries

Just before serving, remove waxed paper, run a knife around the
edge of the mold, and reverse dessert onto a chilled serving dish.

Remove waxed paper. Decorate the top of the dessert with fresh
berries and, if you wish, place more berries around the dessert.


***********


CRÈME RENVERSÉE AU CARAMEL
[Caramel Custard, Unmolded—warm or cold]

French custards are usually unmolded, and therefore call for
more eggs and egg yolks than custards served directly from their
baking dishes.

For a 1-quart mold serving 4 to 6 people

The custard mixture

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
A 1-quart, ɹreproof, cylindrical mold lined with caramel
2½ cups milk
Optional: 1 vanilla bean

Line the mold with caramel as directed. Bring the milk with the
optional vanilla bean to just below the simmer in a saucepan,
cover, and let the bean steep in the milk while you prepare the
rest of the custard ingredients.

½ cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
3 egg yolks
A 3-quart mixing bowl
A wire whip
1 tsp vanilla extract, if you have not used a bean
A fine-meshed sieve

Gradually beat the sugar into the eggs and egg yolks in the bowl
until well mixed, light, and foamy. Continue beating while
pouring on the hot milk in a thin stream of droplets. Stir in vanilla
extract, if you have not used a vanilla bean. Strain the mixture
through a sieve into the caramel-lined mold.

Baking the custard

Set mold in a pan and pour enough boiling water around mold
to come halfway up its sides. Place in bottom third of preheated
oven, close oven door, and wait for temperature to return to 350; in
5 minutes, turn oven down to 325. Water in pan should always be
almost-but-not-quite simmering—too much heat and the custard
will be grainy. Bake for about 40 minutes: a trussing needle or straw
should come out clean when plunged 1 inch from edge of mold, but
center of custard should still tremble slightly—over-long cooking
makes a tough rather than tender custard.

Unmolding and serving

If you wish to serve the custard warm, set mold in a pan of cold
water for about 10 minutes to firm it up; otherwise chill in the
refrigerator. To unmold, run a knife between custard and edge of
mold, place a serving dish upside down over the mold, quickly
reverse the two, and remove the mold from the custard. If you wish,
simmer 2 to 3 tablespoons of water in the mold to dissolve the
remaining caramel; strain around the custard.

VARIATIONS

To serve individual unmolded custards, use the custard mixture
in the preceding master recipe, and mold the custards as follows:


**********


Petits Pots de Crème
[Cup Custards, Unmolded]

1 quart caramel custard mixture, the preceding recipe
8 caramel-lined, ⅔ cup ramekins
A pan to hold the ramekins

Divide the custard mixture among the ramekins and pour boiling
water into the pan to come halfway up; set in lower third level of
a preheated 350-degree oven. In 5 minutes, turn oven down to
325 and bake 20 to 25 minutes longer or until a skewer or straw
comes out clean when plunged one-eighth inch from edge of
molds; centers should still tremble. Remove from oven, remove
molds from water, and let cool. Unmold when ready to serve.


**********


Crème Sainte-Anne au Caramel
[Macaroon Cup Custards, Unmolded]

1 Tb butter
8 caramel-lined ramekins, ⅔-cup capacity
1 cup pulverized macaroons 1 quart caramel custard mixture,

The Master Recipe

Butter the insides of the caramel-lined ramekins and sprinkle 2
tablespoons of pulverized macaroons in each. Fill with the custard
mixture and bake as in the preceding directions for cup custards.
You may wish to garnish them when unmolded with one of the
suggestions at the left.

Optional garnishings

Crème anglaise (custard sauce) OR, strawberry or raspberry sauce
OR, fresh or canned peach halves, coated with caramel syrup.

From "Mastering The Art of French Cooking Vol. 1"
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13014550-mastering-the-art-of-french-cooking-volume-1

Thank you Julia!
MMMmmm Caramel!!

[OldBaldy1701E]

1. Shhh....

Don't say anything, but I just bought my beloved husband a boxed edition of both volumes.

He has wanted them for some time. I found this set at a used bookstore. I cannot wait to see his face.



(I don't think he visits here that much, so I feel okay that he won't find out before Thursday.)

[justaprogressive]

2. LOL I won't tell!