It is the custard that makes me swoon– not the heat, not the roasted rhubarb or the carmelized apples or the Saigon cinnamon or, even, the real vanilla bean that was roasted alongside the rhubarb first and then steeped in the milk and cream mixture like a fine tea.
It's the lovely "spread" of the custard that makes me fall in love, again and again, with the bread pudding I've made in honour of and in response to Tuesdays with Dorie.
If you don't know of Dorie and her amazing cookbooks, I'll give you the top three reasons I love her: 1. She's worked with amazing cooks like Pierre Herme and Julia Child 2. She lives in Paris, France and she hardly ever gloats about this fact. Humility in a baker is important in my mind and 3. Her cookbook really is amazing. I've yet to make a recipe that failed miserably. (any failures have been in my penchant to switch things up slightly.)
If I didn't already have a huge cooking-crush on Nigella Lawson, I would have one on Dorie Greenspan. And my crushes do not come easily. Part respect, part cool vibe and whole lot of inuition factor into my crush decisions.
The first crush I remember in high school was over a boy named Brad. He was nice to everyone it seemed, even me, though I was in a grade younger. He also sang and danced in the same group I was in, but he didn't look like a dork when he was doing it and he didn't seem embarassed either. One time he told the girl that he was paired up to dance with that she had such soft hands. I slathered my hands in lotion for weeks, but they remained sort of clammy and my dance partner never seemed to notice. I maybe said four complete sentences to Brad that whole year before he graduated, but I still wonder if he went on to marry someone nice with soft hands and live happily ever after. I hope so. If I knew him today, I'd take a pan of this lovely bread pudding over to his family. They're probably as nice as he is!
The people I crush on are genuine and they have a passion that cannot be surpressed. They stay focused despite the distractions of so many things.
Who do you crush on and why?
What would you bake them if you could?
It's the lovely "spread" of the custard that makes me fall in love, again and again, with the bread pudding I've made in honour of and in response to Tuesdays with Dorie.
If you don't know of Dorie and her amazing cookbooks, I'll give you the top three reasons I love her: 1. She's worked with amazing cooks like Pierre Herme and Julia Child 2. She lives in Paris, France and she hardly ever gloats about this fact. Humility in a baker is important in my mind and 3. Her cookbook really is amazing. I've yet to make a recipe that failed miserably. (any failures have been in my penchant to switch things up slightly.)
If I didn't already have a huge cooking-crush on Nigella Lawson, I would have one on Dorie Greenspan. And my crushes do not come easily. Part respect, part cool vibe and whole lot of inuition factor into my crush decisions.
The first crush I remember in high school was over a boy named Brad. He was nice to everyone it seemed, even me, though I was in a grade younger. He also sang and danced in the same group I was in, but he didn't look like a dork when he was doing it and he didn't seem embarassed either. One time he told the girl that he was paired up to dance with that she had such soft hands. I slathered my hands in lotion for weeks, but they remained sort of clammy and my dance partner never seemed to notice. I maybe said four complete sentences to Brad that whole year before he graduated, but I still wonder if he went on to marry someone nice with soft hands and live happily ever after. I hope so. If I knew him today, I'd take a pan of this lovely bread pudding over to his family. They're probably as nice as he is!
The people I crush on are genuine and they have a passion that cannot be surpressed. They stay focused despite the distractions of so many things.
Who do you crush on and why?
What would you bake them if you could?
Right now I think I have a crush on rhubarb, because I've been thinking about it, baking with it and eating it nonstop for weeks! Your pudding looks lovely, and so is your story.
ReplyDelete:)
Mary!
ReplyDeleteI was on your blog yesterday and that's where I was reminded of roasting the rhubarb. I added the vanilla bean at your suggestion. I'll be watching what you create with your rhubarb. Thanks for the comment.
wow... great descriptions!
ReplyDeleteCrushes? I have never forgotten the early and first ones. Oh, my!
ReplyDeleteAnd this recipe looks really homey and gooey and good. I am not going to check out Mary's site. :)
Valerie