The Ultimate Rice Cooker (74 page)
5. Remove each custard from the rice cooker with metal tongs. Remove the foil covers. Let cool, then serve at room temperature or refrigerate until ready to serve.
This is a lowfat version of a French custard. The prunes are a traditional addition to country desserts and a favorite with many diners. Be sure to get the moist-pack prunes; otherwise, soak regular prunes for a few hours in hot water or hot water with some Cognac or brandy added. Drain before placing them in the ramekins.
MACHINE: Large (10-cup) rice cooker ;
on/off only
CYCLE: Regular
YIELD: Serves 6
8 ounces (1 cup) pitted moist-pack prunes
One 12-ounce can evaporated skim milk
3 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1. Coat the inside of 6 custard cups or ramekins with butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray. Line each cup with the prunes, dividing them equally among the cups.
2. In a small, deep bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and beat with a whisk or handheld immersion blender until well blended. Pour 1.3 cup of the custard into each custard cup over the prunes. Cover each cup with a small square of aluminum foil and crimp the edges to seal airtight.
3. Add 4 cups hot water to the rice cooker bowl, close the cover, and set for the regular cycle. When the water comes to a boil, arrange the cups in the tray or baskets (this works best steaming a double rack of custards at one time). Place the tray or baskets in the cooker and close the cover. Steam until the custards are just set and slightly wobbly in the center, 22 to 25 minutes. Unplug the machine to turn it off.
4. Remove each custard from the rice cooker with metal tongs. Remove the foil covers. Let cool, then serve at room temperature or refrigerate until ready to serve.
The bits of candied ginger, known as
gingembre
in France, melt into little pools throughout the custard.
MACHINE: Large (10-cup) rice cooker ;
on/off only
CYCLE: Regular
YIELD: Serves 6
2 cups half-and-half
1 teaspoon ground ginger
2 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
⅓ cup sugar
1 tablespoon crushed candied ginger
1. Coat the inside of 6 custard cups or ramekins with butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a small saucepan with a whisk, beat together the half-and-half and ground ginger until smooth. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat.
3. In a medium-size bowl, gently whisk the whole eggs, egg yolks, and sugar together just until blended. Whisk the warm half-and- half into the mixture, beating with the whisk constantly. Stir in the candied ginger. Pour the custard into the prepared custard cups. Cover each cup with a small square of aluminum foil and crimp the edges to seal airtight.
4. Add 4 cups hot water to the rice cooker bowl, close the cover, and set for the regular cycle. When the water comes to a boil, arrange the cups in the tray or baskets (this works best steaming a double rack of custards at one time). Place the tray or baskets in the cooker and close the cover. Steam until the custards are just set and slightly wobbly in the center, 22 to 25 minutes. Unplug the machine to turn it off.
5. Remove each custard from the rice cooker with metal tongs. Remove the foil covers. Let cool, then serve at room temperature or refrigerate until ready to serve.
The classic French dessert is steamed in the rice cooker steamer basket rather than being baked in the oven. This is rich, rich, rich. Make it in the morning and serve, gently chilled, that night, for the best texture. If you like your chocolate with the flavor of orange, add ½ teaspoon Boyajian orange oil (or more to taste) in place of the vanilla.
MACHINE: Large (10-cup) rice cooker ;
on/off only
CYCLE: Regular
YIELD: Serves 6
2 cups half-and-half
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, cut into chunks
1 large egg
4 large egg yolks
2½ tablespoons sugar
Pinch of salt
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1. Coat the inside of 6 custard cups or ramekins with butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a small saucepan over low heat, combine ½ cup of the half-and-half and the chocolate, whisking occasionally until smooth. Warm the remaining 1½ cups half-and- half in the microwave or in a small saucepan on the stove.
3. In a medium-size bowl, gently whisk the whole egg and egg yolks together just until blended.
4. Whisk the warm half-and-half into the hot chocolate mixture, beating constantly. Whisk in the sugar and salt. Slowly pour the chocolate mixture in a steady stream into the eggs, whisking constantly to avoid curdling. Whisk in the vanilla. Pour the custard into the prepared custard cups. Cover each cup with a small square of aluminum foil and crimp the edges to seal airtight.
5. Add 4 cups hot water to the rice cooker bowl, close the cover, and set for the regular cycle. When the water comes to a boil, arrange the cups in the tray or baskets (this works best steaming a double rack of custards at one time). Place the tray or baskets in the cooker and close the cover. Steam until the custards are just set and slightly wobbly in the center, 22 to 25 minutes. Unplug the machine to turn it off.
6. Remove each custard from the rice cooker with metal tongs. Remove the foil covers. Let cool, then serve at room temperature or refrigerate until ready to serve.
The unique, complex flavor of coffee is a natural infused into a cream mixture for this custard. This is a favorite!
MACHINE: Large (10-cup) rice cooker ;
on/off only
CYCLE: Regular
YIELD: Serves 6
2 cups half-and-half
1½ tablespoons instant espresso powder, such as Medaglia D’oro
6 large egg yolks
½ cup sugar
Pinch of salt
1. Coat the inside of 6 custard cups or ramekins with butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a small saucepan, whisk together the half-and-half and espresso until smooth. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat.
3. In a medium-size bowl, gently whisk the egg yolks, sugar, and salt just until blended. Whisk the warm half-and-half into the mixture, beating with the whisk constantly to keep it from curdling. Pour the custard into the prepared custard cups. Cover each cup with a small square of aluminum foil and crimp the edges to seal airtight.
4. Add 4 cups hot water to the rice cooker bowl, close the cover, and set for the regular cycle. When the water comes to a boil, arrange the cups in the tray or baskets (this works best steaming a double rack of custards at one time). Place the tray or baskets in the cooker and close the cover. Steam until the custards are just set and slightly wobbly in the center, 22 to 25 minutes. Unplug the machine to turn it off.
5. Remove each custard from the rice cooker with metal tongs. Remove the foil covers. Let cool, then serve at room temperature or refrigerate until ready to serve.
STEAMED PUDDINGS
Popular since medieval times in Britain and later in the New England colonies, a “pud” is a must for ending winter holiday meals. Once heavy with suet, today’s steamed puddings are more like a steamed sponge or sweet quick bread, light and flavorful from fall fruits such as pumpkin and persimmon. They can be steamed in the medium or large on/off rice cookers with amazing efficiency and ease. We consider the large rice cooker the appliance of choice when steaming puddings.
The mold is of paramount importance here. We use beautiful covered fluted metal pudding molds, readily available from Williams-Sonoma, La Cuisine, or Sur La Table in three- and six-cup capacities. While traditional recipes can call for a fluted tube pan or one-pound coffee can, these are not suitable for steaming in the rice cooker because they are too tall. For the best fit, we recommend the 1½-quart (6-cup) round melon shape, Corinthian column, or a 6½inch metal kugelhopf mold (you will need to cover this with aluminum foil and secure it with a rubber band in lieu of the lid) for the large (10-cup) rice cooker and the 3-cup fluted with wreath top and center tube for the medium (6-cup) rice cooker.
There are some smaller 2-cup molds (the Corinthian column is adorable) or English china pudding basins that will fit in the small or medium rice cooker, but the following recipes are designed for a 1½ quart (6-cup) mold. If you use a 3-cup mold, just cut the recipe in half. While so many other of the metal molds are beautiful, they may be too tall for the rice cooker cover to sit properly and enclose the steam.
The technique for steaming is simple. The mold is buttered and never filled past two-thirds to allow for expansion. Snap on the lid or cover. It is set on a rack or trivet in rapidly simmering water that should come halfway up the sides of the mold. In the large rice cooker, that is at the 5-cup line on the side of the bowl. It is important to check periodically in case the water has boiled off and needs to be replenished, but we found the rice cooker to be very efficient here; about 1½ inches of water boiled off every 25 to 30 minutes.
Warm steamed puddings should have a complementary sauce, ice cream, or liqueur-flavored whipped cream to proclaim them ready to eat.
How to Make Individual Steamed Puddings
Spoon the batter into well-buttered ceramic ramekins, china pudding basins, Pyrex custard cups, or even ovenproof coffee cups, filling them two-thirds full. Securely cover each with a piece of buttered aluminum foil and crimp the edges to seal. Set the steaming rack in place in the bottom of the cooker or place a wire rack in the bottom of the cooker and arrange the molds on the rack (they can be touching); you will probably have to steam in two batches. Pour in 1 to 2 inches of hot water, reaching only halfway up the molds. Turn on the cooker and bring the water to a boil. Steam until set, 25 to 35 minutes, depending on the size of the cups. Remove from the cooker with metal tongs and place on a wire rack. Remove the foil cover, run a knife around the sides to release the pudding, and turn out onto the rack. Serve warm or at room temperature with a sauce of choice. The small puddings are great to douse in a teaspoon of brandy and ignite (carefully) at serving time.
english pudding with cranberries and walnuts
This is an Americanized version of the very traditional, very beloved English pudding called spotted dick, which originally called for shredded suet and raisins. We discovered this recipe while researching recipes to run with a newspaper story on the food eaten by Harry Potter and his cohorts. This pudding is unusual because there are no eggs or butter in the ingredients and it still makes a luscious, nicely textured pudding. It takes literally minutes to combine. Serve with a package of Bird’s custard sauce made according to the package instructions, if you want to be very English, or else use the following recipe for old-fashioned boiled custard.
MACHINE: Large (10-cup) rice cooker ;
on/off only