Summer Berries With Bay Leaf Custard Recipes

Steps:

• Beat together the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer until thick and pale, about 3 minutes.
• Transfer yolk mixture to a 2 to 3 quart heavy saucepan and stir in the milk, cream, and bay leaves. Cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat the back of the spoon and the mixture registers 175 F on an instant read thermometer. Do not let it boil. This should take approximately 8 to 10 minutes.
• Remove mixture from the heat and cool the custard to room temperature in pan, stirring frequently to prevent a skin from forming on the top, about 1 hour.
• Discard bay leaves and serve the custard over the mixed berries.

Steps:

• First, make the custard. Whisk the egg yolks in a bowl until just broken up - they shouldn't be frothy. Pour the milk and sugar into a saucepan and warm over a low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar, until almost boiling. Add the bay leaves, remove from the heat, and leave to infuse for 10 mins. If the milk mixture has cooled after this time, briefly warm it up again until just steaming, then remove from the heat. Discard the bay leaves and pour a little of the mixture into the whisked egg yolks. Whisk in the splash of milk, then pour the yolk mixture into the milk pan, whisking continuously to combine. Cook over a low-medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, and silky smooth. Strain through a sieve and set aside. The custard can be served warm or cold - you can chill it at this stage, or set aside to reheat later.
• For the crumble topping, combine the flour, sugar, oats, pumpkin seeds, almonds, hazelnuts, spices and a pinch of salt in a bowl, then pour over the butter. Mix well. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
• Butter a large ceramic baking dish. Combine the pears, sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon and knob of butter in a medium pan, then set over a low heat. Cook for 4-5 mins, gently stirring, until the pears have released some juice and are slightly softened, but not falling apart. Remove from the heat and tip into the dish along with half the cooking juices released into the pan. Dot the blackberries among the filling.
• Scatter the crumble topping all over the filling, then bake for 25-30 mins until golden, crisp and bubbling at the edges. Leave to stand for 10 mins before serving with the custard, alongside the remaining pan juices.

Steps:

• To make the syrup, dissolve the sugar in a pan with 150ml water over a low heat, and bubble until it reduces by almost half. Put the bay leaves in a bowl (scrunch them in your hands first), then pour in the hot syrup and lime juice, cover and leave in a cool place for at least 4 hrs to infuse (if you have time, do this ahead and leave it for at least two days). Strain into a bottle. Will keep chilled for up to a week. If you want to keep it for longer, then bring the syrup back up to the boil before bottling it.
• Soak the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water and set aside. Put the cream, milk, sugar and bay leaves (again, scrunch them as you add them) in a pan and bring to the boil. Stir to dissolve the sugar, then take off the heat. Gently squeeze the excess water from the gelatine, then stir into the hot cream until completely dissolved. Leave to cool for 10 mins, then fish out the bay leaves. Pour into six to eight decorative glasses and leave to set in the fridge overnight. Pour the syrup over the creams just before serving.