Salty Sweets (11 page)

 

MAKES
6
SERVINGS

 

1. Combine the rice, milk, coconut milk, coconut, sugar, and salt in a medium-size saucepan over medium-low heat and stir frequently, until thick, about 35 minutes.
   
2. Stir in the vanilla and simmer for 2 more minutes. Serve warm.
   

This is a British dessert that's called pudding, but it's really a gooey cake. I put it in this chapter out of respect for its title. (That's British of me, right?) It owes its gooeyness to the dates in the cake and to the decidedly gooey toffee sauce poured on top. Just try this dessert, I beg you. The toffee sauce alone is reason enough, and the cake rocks, too. I think dates are one of the most underrated treats out there. They are so good to eat straight as a snack you almost feel naughty (because they're so sticky, sweet, and pleasurable), but dates are actually pretty good for you (they contain fiber, potassium, and folate).

 

MAKES
10
SERVINGS

 

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter an 8 × 12- or 9 × 13-inch baking dish.
   
2. Combine the dates and water in a medium-size saucepan and simmer over low heat, covered, for about 7 minutes, until the dates are soft. Remove the pan from the heat and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes. Drain well.
   
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add the vanilla, and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition.
   
4. In a medium-size bowl, combine the flour with the baking soda and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat on low speed until combined. Fold in the softened dates. Transfer the batter to the prepared baking dish and bake for 45 minutes, until the pudding springs back when you touch it and a cake tester comes out clean.
   
5. While the cake is still very warm, use a fork to poke holes in the top. Pour about 1½ cups of warm toffee sauce over the pudding. Let the pudding cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 to 30 minutes, until most of the sauce is absorbed. Cut into squares and serve from the pan, with the remaining toffee sauce on the side.
   

MAKES ABOUT
2½
CUPS

 

Melt the butter in a medium-size saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir in the brown sugar, water, and salt. Turn the heat up to medium-high and bring to a boil; stir occasionally, cooking until the sauce is thickened slightly and reduced to about 2½ cups. Keep the sauce warm over very low heat until you're ready to use it.

I've never been a big fan of typical French toast—it always seems too sweet and too mushy to me. As desserts go, bread puddings are similar to French toast—they both start with bread that's been soaked in a creamy custard. The result is soft and delicious; I just don't want my bread pudding to be too soft. Made with ciabatta, this bread pudding has the perfect bite. Good-quality Italian or French bread would also work. This pudding is ridiculously good on its own, but it has been known to send people into throes of ecstasy when served with a dollop of Drunken Sauce (
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). This is really easy to make, but for best results, start it a day in advance so the bread has time to absorb the custard.

 

MAKES
8
SERVINGS

 

1. Generously butter a deep 9- or 10-inch round baking dish.
   
2. In a large bowl, toss the bread pieces with 6 tablespoons of the melted butter. Toss with the chocolate chips and place the mixture in the prepared baking dish.
   
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the half-and-half, granulated sugar, ¼ cup of the brown sugar, the eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, and fine sea salt. Pour the egg mixture over the bread, then press the bread down into the liquid so it absorbs more. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or, preferably, overnight.
   
4. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
   
5. Remove the baking dish from the refrigerator and drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter, the remaining 1 tablespoon brown sugar, and 2 pinches of grinder sea salt. Place the baking dish in a larger baking pan, then carefully pour enough water into the larger pan to reach 1 to 2 inches up the side of the dish.
   
6. Bake for about 1 hour, or until the bread pudding has puffed up a bit and is golden brown on top. Serve immediately.
   

It doesn't get much more comforting than this. Featuring mostly milk chocolate (punctuated with a little dark chocolate) and peanut butter, this rich, easy-to-make mousse offers a creamy combination of the sweet-salty flavors everyone loves together—and a little of this goes a long way. Garnish the mousse with a bit of Milk Chocolate-Peanut Butter Crunch for a textural contrast.

 

MAKES
6
SERVINGS

 

1. Combine the peanut butter, milk chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, and salt in a medium-size saucepan over medium-low heat and stir until the peanut butter and chocolate are melted and smooth. Transfer the chocolate-peanut butter mixture to a medium-size mixing bowl.
   
2. Heat the milk to scalding (the point at which small bubbles are forming around the edge of the pan but the milk is not yet boiling) in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk the hot milk into the chocolate-peanut butter mixture. Let cool to room temperature.
   
3. In a medium-size bowl, beat the heavy cream with an electric mixer on high speed until soft peaks form. Fold the whipped cream into the chocolate-peanut butter mixture until thoroughly combined and uniform in color. Refrigerate, covered, for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day. Serve topped with the Milk Chocolate-Peanut Butter Crunch.
   

MAKES ABOUT
2¼
CUPS

 

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
   
2. Combine the peanut butter and chocolate in a small saucepan over medium-low heat and stir until the peanut butter and chocolate are melted and smooth. Stir in the cornflakes.
   
3. Spread the mixture on the baking sheet in a layer about ½ inch thick and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. Break the crunch into bite-size pieces and use it as a garnish for the mousse (or snack on it as is!). The crunch keeps in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
   

Don't be afraid of making crème brûlée. Maybe you're not afraid of it—I used to be, till I tried it and learned that it's not hard at all. You just need to give yourself enough time to let everything cool and set. Start this at least a couple of hours before you want to serve it, then caramelize the top (the fun part, which you can do with a kitchen blowtorch or under the broiler) at the last minute before serving. A dash of sea salt plays beautifully against the sweetness of the maple and the hard sugar crust. Be sure to use real maple syrup, not the imitation stuff.

 

MAKES
6
SERVINGS

 

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
   
2. In a medium-size saucepan, heat the cream and maple syrup over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until steam rises from the surface. Do not let it boil. Remove from the heat.
   
3. In a medium-size bowl, stir the egg yolks and the egg together to blend well. Stir the vanilla into the cream mixture, then slowly pour in the eggs in 3 increments, stirring gently between each increment. Place the saucepan in an ice-water bath for about 10 minutes to cool the custard. Stir gently once or twice to speed the cooling process.
   
4. Divide the custard among six 6-ounce ramekins. Place the ramekins in an oven-proof baking dish and carefully pour enough water into the dish to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until the custard is firm, 45 to 50 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the baking dish and let them cool at room temperature for up to 2 hours. Once they've reached room temperature, you can refrigerate them for up to 8 hours.
   
5. When it's almost time to serve, preheat the broiler. Set the ramekins on a baking sheet and sprinkle each custard with some of the sea salt, then some of the sugar (sugar should be about inch thick on each ramekin, evenly distributed).
   
6. Place the ramekins under the broiler, close to the heat source. Remove from the heat when the tops are golden brown and hardened, 2 to 3 minutes.
   
7. Garnish with berries, if desired, and serve warm, or refrigerate for at least 10 minutes and up to 2 hours, then garnish with berries and serve cold.
   

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Berry Berry Shortcakes

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Cornmeal Peach Crisp

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Brown Sugar Apple Crisp

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Individual Blueberry-Nectarine Crumbles