Lime Curd - Easy Peasy Lime...wait

What do you do when you're mom's co-worker gives you a bag of limes? You cannot make the proverbial lemonade, but you can make this delicious chow-fection! Perfect for filling pies, or even breakfast with toast, this lime curd sure does it all. Did I mention it was easy too. You don't need any fancy equipment, nor do you need to be a very good chef either. If you can follow directions you can make this crud...I mean curd. You don't know how many times I'm going to make that mistake in this blog. This curd has a pudding-like consistency with a light lime flavor. Absolutely deliciouso. So scroll on down so we can get started!

To begin I'm going to separate two yolks and two eggs into a small bowl. Please do not throw those whites away. Every time you waste your whites a whale from Wisconsin wallows. I'm not sure if that made much sense but the alliteration was very satisfying. The point is you can use those whites for macarons, or even a breakfast omelet. 

Just for your information these are limes, despite their very lemony persona. Not every citrus can have it's own proverb. Juice a couple of limes until you have about 1/2 cup of liquid. Don't even think about using the stuff from the plastic lime in the back of your fridge. That stuff is unnatural and should be burned. Add an equal amount of sugar, or more, depending on the tartness of your limes. My limes were pretty tart, so I ended up using about 3/4 cup of sugar but you can find all that out in the recipe below. Cut up some butter, and add a pinch of salt. 

Yes those are chunks of butter, and not tofu. On a double broiler, which is just a heat-proof bowl over a pan of simmering water, whisk all the ingredients constantly until the butter has melted and the mixture begins to thicken up. In the beginning it's going to feel like you're wasting your time. You will be tempted to walk away, DO NOT! 

Stay there and keep whisking. You'll look like an idiot, but you'll be a smart one and those are the only types of idiots that are acceptable. After the butter has melted it should only be a couple more minutes until its done. Almost magically it will suddenly firm up, and you will be looking at one of the most beautiful curds in the country.

 Take the custard off the heat and taste for flavor. If it's too sweet add some lime zest or juice. If it's too sour add some sugar or butter. Once you are completely satisfied with the taste and texture of your curd, immediately pass it through a metal sieve too ensure you have a smooth, chunkless custard. Odds are there will be some pieces of egg that have scrambled and we don't want that in our final product. But once you do that, you're done! Well almost. 

Using proper plastic wrap wrapping technique, which is pressing the plastic to the custard so it does not form a skin, refrigerate the mixture for at least an hour so the flavors meld and it cools off.  And addition to the flavor being intensified the curd will thicken up and you'll have one of the most delicious citrus desserts on this side of the desert. You can use this for pies, layering cakes, heck, if no one's watching take a shower in it. I don't judge. But seriously I hope you give this a try. Stay tuned for next week when I show you what I did with this lime curd. Hint: something that rhymes with Trawberry Fime Boatmeal Tares, so stick around for that one. And as always, 

Chow!

Recipe

Makes 1 cup of Lime Curd

1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 cup sugar (or 3/4 cup, if using really tart limes)
2 large egg yolks
2 large eggs
pinch of salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed

You Might Like:

Strawberry Lime Oatmeal Squares
Mini Blueberry Tarts
Chewy Coconut Bars

Lemon Chess Pie - Checkmate!

Don't be discouraged, you don't need to be a grandmaster to make this pie. Oh, look at how the sun glistens on that custard...sorry i got a little distracted.

Chess pie is a classic Southern dessert, basically a custard in a pie crust. The origin of the name is not clear, but some people think it's because of an old custom of calling custard "cheese". Imagine a southern grandma saying cheese really fast blindfolded, it'll sound close enough. Anyways it's not about the name it's about the taste. But before i go along with the baking a hats off to Angie Mosier whose recipe I adapted this from.

For the crust:

1 1/3 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, in cubes
1/4 cup plus 1/2 a tablespoon of chilled vegetable shortening
3 tablespoons ice water


Custard:

4 eggs
1 1/2 cup of sugar
1 tablespoon white cornmeal ( it's just for binding and some extra flavor, substitute with 1 tablespoon of flour)
1 tablespoon of all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
5 tablespoons of butter, melted
1/2 cup of buttermilk
1/3 fresh lemon juice
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

One kitchen tool that I use the least often is the food processor. I feel it has it's place in a kitchen, but for me it seems more practical to do things the old-fashioned way, plus it's just a hassle to wash. So instead of pulsing this in a food processor, I'm going to use a pastry blender. For those of you that aren't familiar with this kitchen tool this is what it looks like. And I took the power and energy to scour the internet to find you the best deal on one so there'll be a link at the bottom of the post. 

As therapeutic as cutting butter into flour is, it also makes for b-e-a-u-tiful crust, like me on Google+ if you know which movie that's from. So to do this we are just going to combine the flour, sugar, and salt together in a large bowl. And you're going to hear me say this a million times over, but your butter has to be cold. I'm not sure the scientific reason as to why, but all I know is that if your butter melts, the dough will be one single unit, which means no layers. If your butter is cold it can't melt into the flour creating a flakier, crispier crust.Take your cold butter, and cold shortening out of the freezer and start cutting it up with that pastry blender. Once your butter and flour mixture resembles small peas, or coarse sand, drizzle in your water and mix with your hands. You're hands were going to get dirty anyways so stop complaining. And if you were thinking to yourself about skipping the water because you thought a couple tablespoons wouldn't change a thing I think it's time we part our separate ways. You will see once you add that ice water, again it has to be cold, your dough will start coming together. And right now is as a good as any time, (well not anytime 'cause we're trying to work quickly), to pat this into a disk and wrap it in plastic to chill. 

Read a book, watch your DVR list, do those chores that you promised to do a week ago, because it's just a waiting game now. If you couldn't think of anything to do because you forgot to have a life, clean out your oven, you know the thing you store all your brand-new baking equipment in, and preheat it to 350. I'm not judging I'm simply stating to facts.

So by now your dough should be sufficiently chilled so on a floured work surface carefully roll out the pastry to a 14 inch round. Ever so gently transfer it to a 9 inch pie or tart tin, and decoratively crimp the edges to your liking. No one likes a perfectionist in the kitchen so what ever crimp style you concoct just stand behind. And just by the way I said "No one likes a perfectionist in the kitchen", and I emphasize that because without perfectionists the environmentalists would be mad about all the rocket shrapnel in the ocean. But back to the cooking, the last step before the baking is to freeze the pie shell for about 5 minutes, or until it is just chilled. 

Line the pastry with parchment paper and pie weights and bake for 20 minutes, until nearly set. Some tips on this step would be to remember to completely cover the dough. We don't want to see much color because later we are going to be baking it again. Also instead of going at and spending money on pie weights, just fill the pie tin with baking beans and reuse. Once you finished the first baking, pour out the beans uncover the parchment and bake again for five minutes. It should have any color but now it should be set. 

Now if you were smart, while your pie was baking you made your filling, and it's just as easy mixing. First whisk together the eggs and the sugar. Then add all of the ingredients together and in one fell swoop whisk until smooth. 

Pour the filling into the warm pie shell. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the custard is golden brown, and nearly set but still quite jiggly. Don't worry it'll harden up in the oven. Oh and a reminder, half-way through cover the edges of the pie crust with tin foil so they don't get to dark.

This pie should be eaten cold, your patience will be rewarded. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream and a smile. 

To buy a Pastry Blender click the link below
http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/stainless-steel-pastry-blender/

Welcome to Chow-fectionary Creations

Hello Foodies, or Non-Foodies around the world (I don't judge). Welcome to Chow-fectionary Creations! As egotistical as it seems, it's because my last name is Chow, I thought it was pretty ingenious. At this blogpost I'll share with you my favorite desserts, tips, and tricks that are sure to impress your friends, family, and yourself. But let's dispense with the formalities and get on with cooking!

Because we're heading into the fuzzy slippers and pajamas season, I thought I would use that as an excuse to make one of my all time favorite desserts. Chocolate Creme Brulee! That's right and if you don't know what a creme brulee is then you have no life. I'm just joking...but seriously. Creme Brulee is a decadent custard topped with that crackly sugar, just to die for. And you know adding chocolate to it is just gonna make you die twice. I adapted this recipe from my Julia Child's Recipe Book that my grandfather gave to me and this dish is kind of like my homage to him, love you Aagong. Of course this dish did not have any chocolate in Julia's version, but we had to up the ante on 101. And I have to say it was delicious.

Here are the ingredients to get you started.
4 egg yolks
5 tablespoons white sugar
1 teaspoon Cornstarch
1/4 cup of Unsweetened Cacao Powder (I use Rockwell)
1 3/4 cups Heavy Whipping Cream
1 Vanilla Bean
Brown or White Sugar for topping

So to start beat the egg yolks with the 5 tablespoons of sugar for about 3 minutes, until ribbon form. Then beat in the cornstarch for another minute.

In medium saucepan over medium-low heat, and bring the heavy cream and scraped vanilla bean (you can even throw the whole pod in there as well) to a boil.

Take a ladle of cream and pour it into the eggs whisking all the while to temper the eggs. This means to slowly bring the eggs up to temperature so they don't curdle. One you have incorporated half of the cream through this process you can go ahead and pour all of the eggs into the saucepan.

Over moderate heat, watching very closely, and never allow it to simmer. Stir constantly. The sauce will thicken as it cooks – but do not let it unattended because it will burn. At this poit you can go ahead and add the chocolate. We do this step last so the chocolate doesn't get a chance to burn. And no one likes burnt chocolate. NOBODY!!! A trick you know it's done is that it should be thick enough to coat the back of your spoon.

Pour your creme into ramekins of your preference and refrigerate for several hours or overnight. Sprinkle with sugar and use your torch to crystallize it, or, alternatively, place in a preheated broiler for about 5 minutes. The second one is safer. Top with fresh fruit and whipped cream or if you like dust with powdered sugar and cocoa. As you know coffee is a naturally flavor enhancer of chocolate so I suggest you pair this chow-fection with a nice coffee. 

And as always, 

Chow!