Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Lemon Cup Custard (TWD)


This week's Tuesdays with Dorie (TWD) recipe was chosen by Bridget of The Way the Cookie Crumbles: Lemon Cup Custard. It consists of some very basic ingredients: milk, eggs, sugar, and some lemon zest.


There was a lot of chatter about this week's recipe. Apparently, many complained that it tasted too "eggy," or that it didn't have a strong enough lemon flavor. According to Dorie herself, "Eggy is really what this custard is about. It’s meant to be jiggly, not Jello-y and it is, as some of you said, like flan."


I wanted to make sure that you could really taste the lemon in this custard so I changed two things with this recipe. First, I let the lemon zest steep in the hot milk for a full hour (twice as long). Second, I rubbed some lemon zest with the sugar until it was moist and aromatic. This seemed to do the trick because the custard had a very nice lemon flavor in it. Not overwhelmingly lemon, but enough to notice the flavor.


This is a very simple dessert, that reminds me a bit of creme brulee, but is much more similar to flan. I halved the recipe and was able to get one tea cup full of custard, and the rest fit in a creme brulee dish. While I had the custard in the tea cup by itself, I decided to go ahead and torch the other one. It was already in a creme brulee dish anyway! :) I have to say that there is just something about that crunchy, caramelized sugar layer that I just love.


Thanks Bridget, for choosing this recipe. I really like flan and I love creme brulee, but I'm still on the fence about this in between texture. I may or may not be making it again, but I am glad I tried something new. If you would like the recipe, you can find it here. Make sure you visit the TWD Blog Roll to see what everyone else thought about this lemony, custard treat.

* Recipes notes:
- For extra lemon flavor, steep the milk and the zest of one lemon for 1 full hour instead of 30 minutes. Then take the zest of another lemon and rub it into the sugar until it is moist and aromatic.
- A lot of people said their custard set before the recommended time - mine took exactly 40 minutes, as directed.

- For more tips, click here.

33 comments:

  1. It looks great both way, but the one you torched looks really tempting! Nice job!

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  2. I love the idea of making it into a brulee, it looks so pretty and who doesn't love caramelized sugar? :)

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  3. Torching it was a great idea - it really needed that crunch!

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  4. Rubbing the sugar and lemon together...brilliant!

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  5. I've been thinking about making this. It looks lovely! :-)

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  6. You're not alone about being on the fence about it. I didn't mind it, but then again I used vanilla soy milk which may have affected both the taste and texture. Your pics look fabulous both in a cup and bruleed!

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  7. I love the cup, such a pretty dessert!

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  8. Great attitude! I love that you bruleed the top. I think that must have added great texture and cut down on some of the "jiggliness". The pictures look great!

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  9. I bet those small changes added a lot to the overall lemon flavor...yours looks really good! I wasn't a big fan, but I'm still really glad I made it!

    -Amy
    www.singforyoursupperblog.com

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  10. Love the cute tea cup, and of corse the custard as well. Look so creamy and delicious.
    Cheers,
    elra

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  11. Looks good. Great idea making lemon sugar.

    I'm with you on cracking into a creme brulee.
    ~ingrid

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  12. What fabulous cups! I really didn't enjoy this recipe, but there's always next week I guess. I'm with you though - I'm glad I tried it.

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  13. The cup is fabulous, the colors are amazingly vibrant and the custard pretty darn nice looking!

    What else could one ask!? ...I ask you, Jaime!!! LOL LOL LOL

    P.s.: I'd love to know if you pronounce your name "Jay-mee" or "Hi-may"???

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  14. The blues in the cup and your background color look so beautiful with the yellow color of the custard! Gorgeous photos!

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  15. I love the cup in the first picture. The blue and yellow of the custard go well together. Also, the brulee top is cool.

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  16. Oh, those look so yummy!! Love the cup.

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  17. Great job! Your custard looks tasty!

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  18. It looks so good with the sugar on top, nice addition Jaime!

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  19. I saw this on another blog as well...and even if it didn't win anyone over, both of your pics are great!

    NAOmni

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  20. I really like your teacup. =) Nice job on the custard.

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  21. I like your darling cup, but I like that blue and yellow pairing. he he
    Glad you jumped in and made the Lemon Cup Custard. I thought it was a delightful, smooth and light treat. Not too sweet. I did the sugar rub as well. At least there was some protein in this one right?
    AmyRuth

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  22. Your teacup is really pretty! I wasn't a huge fan of this one. I wish I'd done a crunchy sugar topping as I think that texture would have made it a lot better for me.

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  23. Good idea to let the lemon steep longer and to rub it in the sugar.

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  24. congratulations--you've managed to make a gelatinous blob of yellowness look attractive and appetizing. :)

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  25. I love the way you torched it! It looks great!

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  26. Your teacup is perfect! I love the torched top - that adds a lot of yummy texture. Great job!

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  27. I love your pictures. They are so beautiful!

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  28. Oh- I love custard- that looks so good! I'll have to give it a shot. I like the cup idea!

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  29. Your so smart to get the lemon flavor to come out those ways! Very nicely done!

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  30. I like your cup, too! Your pictures really capture the nice texture of this dessert...I was too busy eating mine to stop and take another shot. :)

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  31. Beautiful! Love how you can see how creamy this custard was. I steeped 2x as long too, and it made the difference - much more assertive, but not overwhelming. I love that teacup too - too cute!

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  32. This dessert looks gorgeous! I have a Meyer lemon tree and have been a busy little bee making stuff with my Meyer lemons this year (my favorite so far: lemon curd). I'm printing this out to add to my "to try" pile. Thank you!!

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