The Ultimate Rice Cooker (75 page)
CYCLE: Regular
YIELD: Serves 8 to 10
½ cup hot water
½ cup light molasses
2 teaspoons baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1½ cups all-purpose flour (Beth uses White Lily bleached all-purpose flour, a southern favorite, unsifted right out of the bag)
2 cups fresh or frozen (and thawed) cranberries
½ cup chopped walnuts
English Custard Sauce (page
optional
)
1. Set up the rice cooker for steaming by placing a small trivet or wire cooling rack in the bottom of the rice bowl. Fill the bowl one-quarter to one-third full of hot water, close the cover, and set for the regular cycle. If the water boils before you are ready to steam the pudding, flip the switch to the Keep Warm position (switch back for cooking). Generously grease or coat the inside of a 1½-quart (6-cup) round melon-shaped tin pudding mold with a clip-on lid with butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients in the order given with a large rubber spatula. Stir well with a folding motion until evenly moistened.
3. Scrape the batter into the prepared mold, filling it two-thirds full; snap on the lid. Set the mold on the trivet or wire rack in the bottom of the cooker, making sure it is centered and not tipped. Close the cover and reset the cooker for the regular cycle to bring back to a rolling boil, if necessary. Set a timer and steam for 1 hour, checking a few times to be sure the water doesn’t boil off. Check the pudding for doneness; it should feel slightly firm to the touch, yet slightly moist. It should be puffed, rising to fill the mold, and a cake tester inserted in the center should come out clean. Unplug the machine to turn it off.
4. Using oven mitts, carefully transfer the mold from the steamer to a wire rack and remove the lid. Let stand for a few minutes, then turn upside down to unmold the pudding onto the rack or a serving plate.
5. Serve still warm, cut into wedges, or at room temperature, with custard sauce, if you like.
english custard sauce
YIELD: 2 cups
2 cups whole milk
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon cornstarch
5 large egg yolks
1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract or 1½ tablespoons Amaretto
1. In a medium-size saucepan over medium heat, scald the milk. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl or food processor, combine the sugar and cornstarch. Whisk in the egg yolks and vanilla. Beat hard with a whisk or process briefly until light colored and foamy. Whisking constantly, or with the food processor running, add the hot milk gradually to the egg mixture. Pour the custard back into the saucepan.
3. Cook the sauce gently over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a whisk, until just slightly thickened and smooth, and the sauce coats a spoon, about 5 minutes; do not boil. Pour the sauce into a storage bowl and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate, covered, until serving time. Serve cold, pouring a little vanilla extract or Amaretto around each wedge of pudding.
persimmon pudding with brandy sauce
The apple of the Orient is our orange globe of fall called the persimmon, a sign that the holidays are here in California. The neighborhoods are dotted with trees outfitted with the fetching pointed ovals. It’s easy to beg a few because most trees are so abundant and it is a much misunderstood old-fashioned fruit. You want the goopy Hachiya persimmon, which is pointed at the base, not the crisp, flatter Fuyu, which is good in salads. You can freeze the ripe fruit whole or store the pulp in plastic storage containers, so you can have persimmon pudding, bread, or cookies in the summer. If someone says they don’t like persimmons, just serve them a slice of this spicy-sweet pud; they will love it.
MACHINE: Large (10-cup) rice cooker ;
on/off only
CYCLE: Regular
YIELD: Serves 8 to 10
3 to 4 very ripe Hachiya persimmons (jelly-like)
1¼ cups sugar
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons Cognac
2 large eggs
1¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cups chopped pecans
¾ cup dark raisins or dried cherries
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons hot water
2 teaspoons baking soda
Brandy Sauce
1. Set up the rice cooker for steaming by placing a small trivet or wire cooling rack in the bottom of the rice bowl. Fill the bowl one-quarter to one-third full of hot water, close the cover, and set for the regular cycle. If the water boils before you are ready to steam the pudding, flip the switch to the Keep Warm position (switch back for cooking). Generously grease or coat the inside of a 1½-quart (6-cup) round melon-shaped tin pudding mold with a clip-on lid with a butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray.
2. Remove the stems and skins from the persimmons (we slit them open and squeeze out the gooey pulp). Mash the pulp to make 1 to 1¼ cups. In a large bowl, whisk together the pulp, sugar, butter, Cognac, and eggs; beat until smooth. Switching to a large rubber spatula, stir in the flour, cinnamon, salt, pecans, raisins, and lemon juice; beat until combined. In a small bowl, stir together the hot water and baking soda. Pour into the batter and stir until well mixed.
3. Scrape the batter into the prepared mold, filling it two-thirds full; snap on the lid. Set the mold on the trivet or wire rack in the bottom of the cooker, making sure it is centered and not tipped. Close the cover and reset the cooker for the regular cycle to bring back to a rolling boil, if necessary. Set a timer and steam for 1 hour and 10 minutes, checking a few times to be sure the water doesn’t boil off. Check the pudding for doneness; it should feel slightly firm to the touch, yet slightly moist. It should be puffed, rising to fill the mold, and a cake tester inserted in the center should come out clean. Unplug the machine to turn it off.
4. Using oven mitts, carefully transfer the mold from the steamer to a wire rack and remove the lid. Let stand for a few minutes, then turn upside down to unmold the pudding onto the rack or a serving plate.
5. Serve still warm, cut into wedges, or at room temperature, with spoonfuls of the Brandy Sauce.
brandy sauce
YIELD: 3 cups
1 large egg
⅓ cup unsalted butter, melted and still hot
1 cup sifted confectioners’sugar
Dash of salt
2 teaspoons Cognac
2 teaspoons Amaretto
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup cold heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks
In a medium-size bowl, beat the egg until light colored with an electric mixer. On low speed, drizzle in the butter, which will cook the egg; beat on medium-high speed for 15 seconds to thicken. Beat in the sugar, salt, Cognac, Amaretto, and vanilla, then fold in the whipped cream. Refrigerate in a covered container up to 2 hours before serving. Stir gently with a whisk, if necessary, before serving.
Mohr im Hemd
, or Moor in a shirt, is a Viennese steamed chocolate and ground nut pudding topped with whipped cream to make a pure black-and-white dessert. It emerges as a delicate spongy cake with an almost oozy center, which is exactly the way it should be. Pure elegance. If you use a very bittersweet chocolate like Sharffen Berger, you don’t have to use the two different chocolates, just 5 ounces of the one. This is a recipe Beth got from one of her all-time favorite cooking teachers, baker and pastry artist Diane Dexter.
MACHINE: Large (10-cup) rice cooker ;
on/off only
CYCLE: Regular
YIELD: Serves 8 to 10
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 slices dried-out white bread (sweet French bread or egg bread), crusts removed and pulled into pieces
1 cup (4 ounces) whole almonds
½ cup warm heavy cream
¼ teaspoon pure almond extract
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
⅔ cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
4 large eggs
Pinch of salt
1½ cups cold heavy cream
3 tablespoons sifted confectioners’sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1. Place the chocolates and butter in the top of a double boiler and melt over simmering water.
2. Place the bread in a food processor and grind to coarse crumbs. You will have about 1 cup coarse-ground fresh bread crumbs. Add the almonds and process with the bread crumbs until finely ground. Place the mixture in a medium-size bowl and add the ½ cup warm cream and almond extract. Stir and let stand for 5 minutes.
3. Set up the rice cooker for steaming by placing a small trivet or 5-inch-diameter wire rack in the bottom of the rice bowl. Fill the bowl one-quarter to one-third full of hot water, close the cover, and set for the regular cycle. If the water boils before you are ready to steam the pudding, flip the switch to the Keep Warm position (switch back for cooking). Generously grease or coat the inside of a 1½-quart (6-cup) round melon-shaped tin pudding mold with a clip-on lid with butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray. Combine the flour and 2 table spoons of the granulated sugar and dust the mold.
4. In a medium-size mixing bowl, beat the eggs, the remaining 2.3 cup granulated sugar, and the salt, using an electric mixer on high speed, until thick and light colored, about 3 minutes. Meanwhile, with a large rubber spatula, add the melted chocolate to the soaked crumbs. Fold the egg mixture into the crumb-chocolate mixture.
5. Scrape the batter into the prepared mold, filling it two-thirds full; snap on the lid. Set the mold on the trivet or wire rack in the bottom of the cooker, making sure it is centered and not tipped. Close the cover and reset the cooker for the regular cycle to bring back to a rolling boil, if necessary. Set a timer and steam for 1 hour, checking a few times to be sure the water doesn’t boil off.
6. Meanwhile, whip the 1½ cups cold cream with an electric mixer in a medium-size bowl until just thickened; add the confectioners’sugar and vanilla. Beat until soft peaks form. Refrigerate until serving.
7. Check the pudding for doneness; it should feel slightly firm to the touch, yet slightly moist. It should be puffed, rising to fill the mold, and a cake tester inserted in the center should come out clean. Unplug the machine to turn it off. Using oven mitts, carefully transfer the mold from the steamer to a wire rack and remove the lid. Let stand for a few minutes, then turn upside down to unmold the pudding onto the rack or a serving plate.
8. Serve the pudding still warm, cut into wedges, or at room temperature, with spoonfuls of the whipped cream. Pass the extra whipped cream in a separate bowl.
