Here’s a handy little dessert to have up your sleeve. Crème anglaise, or custard to us, can be tricky to master the first time, prone to splitting if you impatiently crank up the heat (which I admit I’ve done). But it closely follows shortcrust pastry as one of the most important recipes in your pudding repertoire. Once mastered, this vanilla custard can become a nifty standby to pimp a simple pudding, like a fruity crumble or these poached pears.
Poached pears with crème anglaise
Serves 2-4
4 firm Conference pears
500ml pear cider
4 sprigs of rosemary
1 cinnamon stick
4 heaped tbsp brown sugar
For the crème anglaise:
4 egg yolks
80g sugar
1 vanilla pod
500ml milk
Peel the pears and place in a small saucepan with the pear cider, sprigs of rosemary, cinnamon stick and the brown sugar. Bring the mixture to a simmer, ensuring the pears are fully submerged, and cook for about 20 minutes, or until they are tender. Set aside while making the crème anglaise.
Mix the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl. Split the vanilla pod in half lengthways and scrape out the grains. Place the pod and grains in a pan with the milk and bring to the boil. Remove the pod, then pour a little of the hot milk on to the egg yolks and sugar, whisking continuously. Gradually whisk in the rest of the milk, then pour the mixture into a clean pan, set over a gentle heat and whisk constantly.
Do not let the custard simmer at any point or it will split. After 5 minutes it will begin to thicken slightly until it gains the consistency of single cream (it will thicken more when it cools down).
You can serve the crème anglaise at room temperature or cold. Pour it straight over the pears, or, to be a little more elegant, trim their bases and stand them up in a bowl, with the custard pooled around them.
