Caramel Pumpkin Pots De Creme

July is turning out to be such a crazy month. Many things happening at the same time. The boys had winter holidays and that meant that I kept work to a minimum. But when do things go to plan? Do they work for you? I always tell myself that it’s me…I have to be more in control. And I set deadlines. I stick to them to the best of my ability. But from somewhere, something else will pop up. The irony is that, the ‘something else-s’ are things I love to do. So there’s so choice really. Being a Mum is so great, being able to do what I love is equally great! But there is no balance. I want to be perfect in both my roles but that is close to impossible in my situation. So it’s a struggle but there is some satisfaction and joy at the end of the day. At least, the fact that I am able to work from my own home is comforting. I am there for my children on most afternoons and I am able to help them with homework is great. They are fortunate to be taking lunch from home. So yes, I think I am still luckier than many others. Anyway, don’t bother with my ranting. I think documenting it here is making me feel less overwhelmed.

So we are halfway into winter! Our winters are different from the rest of the world. It’s sunny on some days, rainy on others. There are trees with no leaves, trees with red, yellow leaves and there are trees which are bright green. We have a bit of everything. Pumpkin is my latest favourite thing to add to desserts and after I ate this, I felt that even non-pumpkin lovers would find it delicious. Brown sugar is a magical ingredient. Even though it is regarded as ‘sugar’, it actually is a lovely flavouring agent. It lends a butterscotch or caramel sort of taste to baked goods. Once again I added the chocolate coated honeycomb to the pumpkin pots. If you remember it was on my cake in the last post. It is such a wonderful addition to spiced up desserts. Be prepared to see it often in my upcoming posts:-)

To those of you who follow this blog, I mentioned to you about some good news in a past post. Well, news doubled up and now I have more news. Let’s start with my work last year for Spoonful Mag. I created a bunch of recipes for them alongside a gathering that was about a girlfriends lunch get-together. I chose that theme because you know I love pretty food. I had all the opportunity to style them with vibrant colours, flowers and very girl-y flavours. I loved working with them as they were extremely passionate like me. In this big, wide world, isn’t it amazing that you run into people who you click with instantly? I am very excited to be working on their forthcoming issues as well. The Summer issue is out now!  The other news is that I was invited to design apparel for a gorgeous brand using my own art, that is desserts. How crazy does that sound? I found it weird in the beginning, but I assure you it is coming together well. Can’t wait to share my online shop with you! 2 days ago something incredible happened as well. I got to meet one of my food heroes at an event hosted by Bulla Family Dairy, a major dairy company in Australia. Imagine my shock when I realized my seat was next to Kirsten Tibballs, one of the best pastry chefs in the world. Oh my God! She had created an exceptionally beautiful and delicious dessert for the occasion (I shared it on Instagram). I have to admit I was a bit star struck at the start and didn’t know what to say to her but she was such a sweet woman.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. I love that Spring is not far away in Australia.

 

Caramel Pumpkin Pots De Creme
Serves 5-6

1/2 cup milk
11/2 cup heavy/thickened cream
4 egg yolks
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup home made (or store bought) pumpkin puree
1/4 tsp powdered cinnamon
1/4 tsp powdered ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
Crushed honeycomb, to serve

Preheat oven to 160 degrees C ( 140 degrees for fan-forced ovens) .Combine cream and milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes or until hot (do not allow to boil). Remove saucepan from heat.

Whisk egg yolks and sugar in a heatproof bowl until well combined. Add the pumpkin puree and spices and mix till blended. Pour the warm cream mixture over the egg yolk mixture, little at a time whisking constantly until smooth. Take care not to add the entire cream to the eggs together as it can overcook the eggs resulting in scrambled eggs.

Divide the custard into five or 6 lightly-greased, ramekins or ovenproof cups. Place in a deep baking tray. Pour boiling water into baking tray until halfway up sides of ramekins.

Bake custards, uncovered, for 45 minutes or until just set (while the centers are slightly jiggly when shaken). Remove from the oven and take the ramekins out of the water bath. Leave to cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Serve with crushed honeycomb.