The Sugar Mill Caribbean Cookbook (42 page)

In another bowl, beat the egg whites with the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the remaining 1 cup sugar. Continue beating the whites until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the whites into the pecan mixture, in two additions. Divide the batter between the prepared pans, and bake until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, about 35 to 40 minutes.

Let the torte cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then release the pan sides. Remove the bottoms, and let the torte cool completely on racks.

To make the frosting, combine the brown sugar, ½ cup of the cream, the butter, and the salt in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook the mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it comes to a boil. Let it boil for 5 minutes without stirring it. Remove the pan from the heat, and let the mixture cool. Add the confectioners' sugar, and beat until the frosting is perfectly smooth and well blended. If it is too stiff to spread easily, beat in a little more cream.

Fill and frost the torte layers, using a pastry bag to make a decorative border. Garnish with the pecan halves, and serve.

 

Makes 12 servings

Our climate makes it almost impossible to prepare our own puff pastry, so we are grateful for the commercially made product, which allows us to create dishes like this luscious dessert. Look for puff pastry in the frozen-foods section of your market.

 

To make the pastry cream, gradually beat the sugar into the egg yolks.

Continue beating for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is pale yellow and forms a ribbon as it falls from the beater. Beat in the flour. Pour in the milk in a slow stream, beating constantly.

Transfer the mixture to a nonreactive saucepan, and place the pan over high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, while continuing to beat it until it is smooth. Lower the heat, and continue cooking for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat. Beat in the butter and vanilla.

Purée eight of the kiwis in a blender or food processor, and strain out the seeds. Chill the purée.

Fold the whipped cream into the pastry cream. Zest the limes with a zester to make long curls. Peel and section two of the limes. Dice the sections, and squeeze the juice from the third lime. Fold the diced lime and juice into the cream.

To assemble the dessert, pour some of the kiwi sauce onto each dish. Cut the pastry squares in half horizontally, and fill them with the lime-flavored cream. Place them on the beds of sauce. Slice the remaining kiwis, and garnish the plates with the kiwi slices and lime zest.

 

Makes 8 servings

 

For the shortcakes, preheat the oven to 425°. Sift together the cocoa, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the cream, and stir the mixture with a fork until it forms a dough. Divide the dough into eight equal pieces, and form each into a rough 3-inch round. Place the rounds on baking sheets, and bake them for 12 minutes or until a tester inserted in the centers comes out clean. Transfer the shortcakes to a rack, and let them cool.

Put 3 cups mango cubes or strawberries into a bowl. If you are using strawberries, mash them. To either fruit, add ¼ cup sugar and the Curaçao, and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the remaining mango cubes or whole strawberries.

Beat the cream until it holds soft peaks, and then beat in about ¼ cup sugar. Continue beating until the cream holds stiff peaks.

Cut the shortcakes in half horizontally with a serrated knife, and with a metal spatula transfer the bottom halves to dessert plates. (Take care; the shortcakes are delicate and crumble easily.) Top each bottom half with some of the mango or strawberry mixture and some of the cream. Carefully top each serving with a top half of a shortcake, and then the remaining fruit and cream. Sprinkle the shortcakes with confectioners' sugar, and garnish the plates with mint sprigs.

 

Makes 8 servings

This most British of all desserts takes an exotic turn when introduced to the flavors of the islands.

 

To make the sauce, combine the egg yolks, Curaçao, juice, and sugar in a bowl or in the top of a double boiler. Whisk the mixture over hot water until it is thick and pale yellow, about 5 minutes. Put the bowl into a larger bowl of ice water, and whisk until the mixture is cold.

Whip the cream to soft peaks, and fold it thoroughly into the sauce. Refrigerate the filling, closely covered with plastic -wrap, until you are ready to use it.

Coat the bottoms of 8 to 10 glass goblets or wine glasses with some of the strawberry purée. Place some of the cake pieces in the bottoms of the glasses, using scraps to fill in at the edges.

Mix together the rum, pineapple juice, and coconut cream. Trickle one-quarter of this mixture into the glasses. Add a quarter of the cubed fruit. Spread some of the guava jelly and puréed strawberries onto the remaining cake, and add a layer to each glass. Top with ½ cup of the sauce. Repeat the layering, beginning with the cake and ending with the sauce, until the glasses are full. Cover the glasses, and refrigerate them for several hours or overnight.

Just before serving, garnish the glasses with toasted coconut and kiwi slices, orange twists, or strawberries.

 

Makes 8 to 10 servings

Rum and chocolate have a special affinity, which is clearly evident in this devilishly delicious dessert. You can make the pudding and sauce ahead and reheat them, although the pudding will sink a bit.

 

Preheat the oven to 350°. Add 3 tablespoons water to the chocolate, and melt the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave oven. Let the chocolate cool to room temperature.

Coarsely chop the pecan pieces in a food processor. Remove ½ cup chopped pecans. Add 1 tablespoon of the sugar to the remaining nuts, and grind them to a fine powder. Combine the ground pecans, bread crumbs, and cinnamon in a bowl. Mix them well, and set the bowl aside.

In a large bowl, beat the butter with half the remaining sugar until the mixture is soft and light. Beat in the cooled chocolate, and then the rum. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating until the mixture is smooth. Stir in the ground pecan mixture.

In another bowl, beat the egg whites with the salt until the whites form soft peaks. Beat in the remaining sugar in a slow stream, and continue beating until the egg whites hold firm peaks. Stir one-quarter of the beaten egg whites into the chocolate batter, then gently fold in the remaining egg whites.

Pour the batter into a buttered 1½-quart baking dish. Smooth the top. Scatter the reserved chopped pecans evenly over the surface of the batter. Place the baking dish in a larger pan filled with hot water. Bake the pudding in the middle of the oven for 30 to 35 minutes, just until the pudding puffs and feels slightly firm when pressed with the palm of the hand.

Make the rum sauce while the pudding bakes. Combine the milk and sugar in a pan, and bring the mixture to a boil. Beat the egg yolks in a small bowl. When the milk boils, gradually whisk one-third of it into the yolks. Pour the remaining milk into a bowl set over a pan of simmering water, and whisk in the yolk mixture. Cook the sauce, whisking it constantly, until it thickens, 1 to 1½ minutes. Do not let it boil. Immediately remove it from the heat.

Whisk the sauce for 1 minute as it cools. Strain it through a fine sieve into a bowl, and whisk it for 30 seconds more. Stir in the rum and vanilla.

To serve the pudding, spoon it onto dessert plates. Ladle some of the warm rum sauce over and around the pudding.

 

Makes 6 to 8 servings

Although pears don't grow in our garden, they are good travelers and arrive on our shores little the worse for wear. Anjou, bosc, and winter nelis pears all hold together well when cooked. We poach them with typical island spices like ginger and cinnamon, but we also like to introduce a note of intrigue with that glamorous stranger, star anise.

 

Combine the first six ingredients in a large, heavy pot. Bring them to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer the contents 5 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat.

Cut a thin slice from the bottom of each pear. Core the pear from the bottom, using a vegetable parer. Peel the pears, leaving the stems intact. Rub the exposed flesh with the lemon halves. Add the lemon shells to the pot. Place the pears upright in the pot. Cover the pot, and cook the pears until they are just tender, about 18 minutes.

Discard the lemon shells. Transfer the pears to a bowl, using a slotted spoon. Pour the poaching liquid over them. Cover the pears, and refrigerate them until they are cold, or overnight.

Stand the chilled pears upright on plates. Pour the poaching liquid into a saucepan, and boil it until it is syrupy, about 5 minutes. Strain the syrup into a bowl, and chill it.