They are beautiful…versatile.. and easily available. They are great for you. And since ancient times they have been associated with romance. But I wonder if they get the love that they deserve. When we picturise a pretty fruity dessert, we think of berries, stone fruits, figs and so on.
Grapes? Not really. To be honest, I never did. So considering that this is the month of love, I thought I’d give them some dessert love.
Crème Anglaise is my favourite dessert sauce in the world. I have tried out hundreds of combinations over the years and I find nothing as fancy carrying a dessert tray with fruits or cake and a little jug of Crème Anglaise on the side to be poured by the person it is being served to. It’s very restaurant-like to put it down in front of your guests. And mind you, I do it in style and enjoy all the curiosity and attention it generates. Go ahead, try it. A word of caution, though. If you are serving it for a crowd, make sure you pour them into individual pots or serving glasses. You don’t want your diners fighting over a jug of crème anglaise. But now since we are talking Valentines’s day, sharing is allowed. In fact, it is encouraged!
I have forever used David Lebovitz’s recipe as the base recipe for Crème Anglaise. Depending on the chosen flavours, I add or take away. He is a genius, isn’t he? His recipes always work for me. For this dessert, I have halved the recipe and that should make a cup of Crème Anglaise. Initially, I wanted to ‘brandy’ the grapes but I had already used Cointreau in the custard. You can leave out the liqueur if you want to. Cointreau or any other orange liqueur contributes a more intense orange flavour to the custard. The custard can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored covered in the refrigerator.
Grapes with Orange Crème Anglaise (Custard) and Hazelnuts
Serves 2
1 cup seedless red grapes
1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts
1 cup Crème Anglaise (recipe below)
Icing sugar to dust.
Divide the grapes and toasted hazelnuts between two serving glasses. Pour over chilled Crème Anglaise. Dust with icing sugar. Serve
Orange Crème Anglaise
1 cups (250 ml) whole milk
4 tbsp. sugar
zest of two medium oranges
3 egg yolks
1 tbsp. Cointreau or any other orange liquor (optional)
Pour the milk into a medium saucepan and add the sugar.
Grate the zest of the oranges directly into the milk. Warm gently, then remove from heat, cover, and let steep for one hour.
When ready to cook the custard, make an ice bath by putting ice cubes and a small amount of cold water into a large bowl and resting a smaller metal or glass bowl in the ice. Set a fine mesh strainer over the top.
Whisk the yolks in a separate small bowl.
Gently rewarm the milk, then slowly pour it into the egg yolks, whisking constantly as you pour. Scrape the mixture back into the saucepan and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, until the custard begins to thicken and coats the spatula.
Immediately strain the custard into the bowl set over ice, pressing the zest in the strainer to extract as much flavor as possible, then discard.
Stir the custard until cool. When the Crème Anglaise is cooling, grate a few swipes of fresh orange zest into the custard, which looks nice and adds a touch more orange flavour. If you’d like, add a spoonful of orange-flavoured liqueur, such as Cointreau or Grand Marnier.
Store in the refrigerator and serve chilled.