Author: Ashley

Ashley's tiny kitchen is located in Ossining, New York- a short train ride from NYC. Her professional background is in graphic design + fine art, and she brings that aesthetic to her culinary creations.
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The Best Yorkshire Pudding

The Best Yorkshire Pudding
About.com

video http://video.about.com/britishfood/Yorkshire-Puddings.htm

Serves 6

4 large, fresh eggs, measured into a jug
Equal quantity of milk to your measured eggs
Equal quantity of all purpose/plain flour to measured eggs
Pinch of salt
2 tbsp lard, beef dripping or vegetable oil

Heat the oven to the highest temperature possible, however, do not exceed 230°C / 450°F or the fat may burn.

Pour the eggs and milk into a large mixing bowl and add the pinch of salt. Whisk thoroughly with an electric hand beater or hand whisk. Leave to stand for 10 minutes.

Gradually sieve the same volume of flour (as the eggs) into the milk and egg mixture, again using an electric hand beater or hand-whisk to create a lump free batter resembling thick cream, if there are any lumps pass the batter through a fine sieve.

Leave the batter to rest in the kitchen for a minimum of 30 minutes, longer if possible – up to several hours.

Place a pea-sized piece of lard, dripping or ½ tsp vegetable oil into your chosenYorkshire pudding tin, or a 4 x 2″/5cm hole tin or 12-hole muffin tin and heat in the oven until the fat is smoking. Give the batter another good whisk adding 2 tbsps of cold water and fill a third of each section of the tin with batter and return quickly to the oven.

Leave to cook until golden brown approx 20 minutes. Repeat the last step again until all the batter is used up.

Serving Yorkshire Pudding

In Yorkshire serving the pudding is traditionally with gravy as a starter dish followed by the meat and vegetables. More often smaller puddings cooked in muffin tins are served alongside meat and vegetables.

Yorkshire pudding isn’t reserved only for Sunday lunch. A large pudding filled with a meaty stew or chili is a dish in its own right.

Cold left-over Yorkshire Puddings make a lovely snack with a little jam or honey.

Yorkshire Puddings do not reheat well, becoming brittle and dry.

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Coconut Cream Pie

Coconut Cream Pie
Bon Appétit September 2002

Makes 8 servings

Crust:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3 tablespoons chilled solid vegetable shortening, cut into small pieces
4 tablespoons (or more) ice water

Filling:
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk (I used unsweetened coconut milk)
1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon coconut extract

Topping:
2/3 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1 1/4 cups chilled whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon coconut extract

For crust:
Blend flour, sugar, and salt in processor. Add butter and shortening; using on/off turns, cut in until mixture resembles coarse meal. Drizzle 4 tablespoons ice water over mixture. Process just until moist clumps form, adding more ice water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic. Chill 1 hour.

Roll out dough between 2 sheets of plastic wrap to 14-inch round. Transfer dough to 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Fold overhang under. Crimp edges decoratively. Pierce bottom of crust all over with fork. Freeze crust 15 minutes. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep frozen.)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line crust with aluminum foil. Fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake 20 minutes. Remove weights and foil. Bake until golden and set, about 10 minutes. Cool. (Crust can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Let stand at room temperature.)

For filling:
Whisk 1/2 cup sugar, eggs, egg yolk, and flour in medium bowl. Bring milk and coconut to simmer in medium saucepan over medium heat. Gradually add hot milk mixture to egg mixture, whisking constantly. Return to same saucepan; cook until pastry cream thickens and boils, stirring constantly, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Mix in vanilla and coconut extracts. Transfer pastry cream to medium bowl. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface to prevent formation of skin. Chill until cold, at least 2 hours and up to 1 day. Transfer filling to crust. Cover; chill overnight.

For topping:
Toast coconut in heavy small skillet over medium heat until lightly browned, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Cool completely.

Using electric mixer, beat cream, sugar, and coconut extract in medium bowl until peaks form. Spread whipped cream all over top of filling. Sprinkle evenly with toasted coconut. (Can be prepared 4 hours ahead. Cover and refrigerate.) Serve cold.