KISSABEL® Queen of Puddings

• Servings

  Makes 6-8 (depending on the size of your serving bowls)

INGREDIENTS

• Nutmeg custard
• 2 cups Milk
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract or Paste
• 4 Egg Yolks
• 3 tablespoons cornflour
• 2 good scrapes Nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons Caster Sugar Super Fine
• Meringue
• 4 Egg whites
• 200 grams Caster Sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

METHOD

• Place the KISSABEL® apple chunks in a saucepan with the lemon juice, then gently cook over medium heat with the lid on for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure the apples don’t stick.
• Separate the eggs and place the whites into a scrupulously clean mixer bowl (stand mixer or hand mixer welcome here).
• Beat the whites until they become fluffy, then add the sugar, one tablespoon at a time until you reach stiff, glossy peaks, which should take about 5 minutes (pinch the mix between your thumb and index fingers, checking to make sure that the sugar has dissolved, which you can tell by the lack of graininess).
• Pour the hot milk mixture over the eggs and whisk together until incorporated, then pour the whole lot back into the saucepan and place back over low heat. Stir continuously with a wooden spoon or flexible spatula for 7–10 minutes; the key here is to get the mixture hot, but not to let it boil, or the eggs will curdle. To check that the custard is ready, run your finger through it on the back of your stirring utensil — if the line you’ve drawn in the custard stays straight, and the custard doesn’t immediately drip back into the pan, it’s ready to go. The custard should be the consistency of glue, and will thicken up more as it cools. Place some baking paper over the top of the custard to keep it from forming a skin.
• Once the apples are soft, leave them to cool for 5 minutes, then blend to a fine purée.
• Layer custard on the bottom, apples on top of the custard, and finish with blobs of meringue. Use a torch to burnish the meringue for effect.