Christmas Blend Crème Brule

Few things go together as good as Coffee and Desert. Working for Starbucks I have developed a passion for high quality coffee and not the grocery store bought 5 pounds cans of junk. Christmas Blend from Starbucks is particularly good during the winter months. When it is not available I would use Espresso Blend.

Ingredients

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
• 2 tablespoons medium grind Christmas blend
• 6 egg yolks
• Chocolate covered espresso beans, for garnish

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Bring 2 to 3 quarts of water to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Place 4 (6-ounce) ramekins into a large, 2 1/2 to 3-inch deep baking pan.

Combine the cream, 1/2 cup of the sugar and the vanilla bean in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Just before the cream begins to boil, remove the saucepan from the heat. Whisk in the coffee, cover the saucepan, and allow the mixture steep for 10 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a clean bowl.

Place the egg yolks in a medium bowl. Whisk a small amount of the hot cream into the eggs a little at a time to temper, until all is incorporated. Strain the mixture again through fine mesh strainer.

Ladle the warm liquid into the ramekins. Transfer the pan to the oven and carefully pour enough of the simmering water into the baking pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until the custard is just set, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven and cool slightly, then carefully remove the ramekins from the hot water.

Chill for at least 4 hours.

To serve, sprinkle about 3 tablespoons of sugar on top of the chilled custard. Use a Culinary Torch to caramelize the sugar.

As an alternative to using the Culinary Torch, heat the broiler. Evenly sprinkle about 3 tablespoons of sugar on top of the chilled custard. Place the ramekins on the level surface of the broiler pan and broil for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes to caramelize the sugar; be careful, as this can go very bad quickly depending on your broiler. Carefully remove from the broiler and allow custards to stand for 3 to 4 minutes until the caramelized sugar hardens and cools.

Garnish with chocolate covered espresso beans and serve immediately.

Tuscan Pork Chops and Lime Pepper Asparagus

I have never met a recipe that I did not think could be improved or put my own stamp on it. My sister is pretty much the same way.

Last night I decided we would  go to Italy. Tonight I prepared a twist on the familiar Tuscan Chicken. This is a very easy to prepare and there are no exotic or difficult to find ingredients.

I learned to prepare Tuscan Chicken while in High School at Rossetti’s Restaurant. The owner was a tough and load Italian named Geno Rossetti. He did a lot of yelling, but you knew how to do it right when he finished and darn sure would not repeat the mistake.

Ingredients

1/4  cup  all-purpose flour

1  teaspoon  salt

3/4  teaspoon  seasoned pepper

2  (1-inch-thick) boneless pork chops

1  tablespoon  olive oil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup chicken broth

2 large roma tomatoes

1 tablespoon capers

 

Mix Flour, Salt and Pepper in a shallow dish and dredge the pork chops to coat evenly, yet lightly.

Heat olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat and pan fry for 1-2 minutes on each side until golden brown. Remove the pork chops from the skillet.

Add the garlic to the skillet and sauté for about 1 minute. Add the balsamic vinegar and broth, stirring to deglaze the pan. Stir in tomatoes and capers.

Return the pork chops to the skillet and bring the sauce to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer for 4-5 minutes to reduce the sauce and cook pork chops through.

Serve the pork chops with the sauce poured over them.

To complement the pork chops I prepared Lime Pepper Asparagus.

The problem most people have with asparagus is that the majority of recipes out there direct you to ruin all taste and nutritional value by boiling it for like 5 to 10 minutes (Yuk!). Don’t, just don’t boil this lovely vegetable. You can stir fry it in many different ways, steam it, roast it or even grill it (which is one of my favorite). Once you eat asparagus properly prepared you are likely to never go back and find yourself staking out the produce section of the market for fresh deliveries.

Ingredients

• 1 pound of fresh asparagus
• 1-1/2 tablespoons of butter
• Lime Pepper Seasoning to taste*

snap or cut the ends of the asparagus, discarding the woody ends and keeping the tender tops.

Heat a skillet over medium heat and melt the butter. Place the asparagus tops into the butter and sprinkle with the lime pepper seasoning. Stir occasionally as you heat the asparagus through for 3-4 minutes. It should be warm and crisp.

Serve immediately

.* I prefer Tone’s Brand Lime Pepper seasoning, it is one of the few spices I will buy in large containers since I use it so often it does not have a chance to age. As an alternative you can add a little fresh lime juice and ground pepper.