Seasonal fare with Italian flair
I also tested the recipe using oat milk with agreeable results. If using dairy-free milk, be careful not to boil the custard or it may split.
Preparation time: 10 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes Serves 6
■ 500ml milk
■ 4 strips of orange zest
■ 1 cinnamon stick
■ 2 eggs
■ 2 egg yolks
■ 1⁄4 cup sugar or 3 tablespoons mild flavoured honey
■ 2 tablespoons cornflour or tapioca starch
■ About 6 teaspoons brown sugar
Place 6 x 1⁄2-cup capacity ramekins or small cups on a tray.
In a saucepan, heat the milk with the orange zest and cinnamon until steaming. Remove from the heat. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, sugar, and flour/starch until creamy.
Scoop out the zest and cinnamon from the hot milk and pour over the egg mixture while whisking constantly.
Pour the custard back into the pan and heat gently while whisking for 5-6 minutes until the custard thickens enough to coat the sides of the pan.
Immediately pour into the ramekins, cool, then chill in the fridge for 2-3 hours to set into a soft custard. Heat the oven grill to high.
Sprinkle each custard with one teaspoon of brown sugar and place under the hot grill for 4-5 minutes until the sugar is caramelised and bubbling. Serve warm or make ahead of time and chill until ready to serve.
The paradox of this soup is that it doesn’t contain cream. Instead, the creaminess comes from a simple veloute – a bechamel-style sauce using stock, such as chicken or vegetable, rather than milk.
This base soup can be used to make all manner of flavours such as asparagus, cauliflower or mushroom.
Preparation time: 10 minutes Cooking time: 20 minutes Serves 4
■ 50g butter
■ 50g flour (for gluten-free use white rice flour)
■ 750ml good quality chicken or vegetable stock
■ About 600g celery stalks, roughly chopped
■ Salt and pepper
Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the flour and stir into a paste (roux) for one minute.
Slowly add one cup of stock, stirring to prevent lumps, then add the remaining stock.
Bring to a boil and add the celery and a generous pinch of salt. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until the celery is tender. Remove from the heat and puree with a stick blender until smooth. Reheat, season to taste, and serve with bread and butter.