The best that can happen to an egg

Tonka bean custard

I've been always fascinated by the eggs. Just love the smooth, even surface, their shape and color. It can come in several color range from the white, to green to spotted brown, and in several sizes, ranging from very tiny to a small hands size, but I like all of them.

Lately, I'm also having the crazy idea to make my own tiny chicken farm in the backyard. Nothing too big though, just a few chickens running around.  I've seen so many times those great looking greenish or duck eggs, but I've never been so lucky to actually have one. You can imagine my excitement when few weeks ago at my favorite shopping place I accidentally ran into the green and the duck eggs at the same time. I already had overspent that day -buying props can be heavy on the wallet that's for sure- but I had to grab a couple of dozens of those eggs. I was a child yet again in the candy store.

Frangelico custard with amaretti

They were just as beautiful as I imagined. I could have looked at them for days. I've been making plans what to cook with them. After all, they are nothing like regular eggs, they are something extraordinary and precious to me. What should it be, I argued with myself. Should it be omelette with truffles maybe. Or smoked duck eggs, or something more exotic. But after careful consideration, I've cast my vote on custard. Nothing would suit the eggs more than the creamy, sweet and sexy custard. And so it happened. I prepared custard from all of the eggs. One day it was flavored with a splash of Italian nut liquor. Hmmmmmm, it was just was heavenly.  The other day, I added a bit of decadence to the classic custard. Tonka beans add some incomparable twist to the sweet. And finally, I prepared something more childish but just as tasty. Rice custard. The soft creamy rice was a nice surprise in the sweet cream. I enjoyed every bits of it and I still cannot have enough. I'm craving for more.

This post you can also read on Sonia's blog, the Oggi pane e salame, domani..., check out her gorgeous site. 

Rice custard

Basic custard (Creme brulee)

Ingredients (for basic custard)

5 egg yolks

500ml heavy cream

5-6 tablespoons sugar 

Add the flavor to your liking, like:

vanilla beans

tonka bean

lemon zest

nut liquor

Preheat the oven to 170C (fan forced).

For custard, combine warm heavy cream and sugar. Stir mixture until sugar dissolve. Add egg yolks and stir with an electric mixer until fully incorporated. Add flavoring, and spoon the cream into the ramekins. Place the ramekins into a large roasting tray and pour in enough hot water to come halfway up their outsides. Place the tray onto the center shelf of the oven and bake for 45 minutes, until just set. Remove the ramekins from the water and let it cool to room temperature. 

Sprinkle the top of the custard with  sugar  then caramelize with a chefs' blow-torch.

Rice custard

Ingredients

75g risotto rice

400ml milk

450ml heavy cream

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1 vanilla pod

4-5 tablespoon sugar

4 egg yolks

Heat up 400ml milk in  sauce pan and add risotto rice, vanilla seeds and lemon zest. Cover with a lid and on medium high heat cook it until soft. (about 20 minutes) Let it cool to room temperature. Heat up the heavy cream in a sauce pan and add sugar. Stir until sugar dissolves. Until it cools, beat the egg yolks until pale and fluffy then add it to the cooled heavy cream with the milk rice. Spoon the cream into ramekins and cover with foil.Place the ramekins into a large roasting tray and pour in enough hot water to come halfway up their outsides.  Place the tray onto the center shelf of the oven and bake for 45 minutes, until just set. Remove the ramekins from the water and let it cool to room temperature. 

Sprinkle the top of the custard with  sugar  then caramelize with a chefs' blow-torch.