Mint Custard Pudding with Brown Nougat

ByFarwin Simaak
Who doesn’t love mint ? I know I do.I still pick the mint flavored gums among-st all the other visually appealing flavors. Now mint, in a custard pudding ? You must have tasted it with the addition of chocolate,the chocolate mint pudding,but no,without any chocolate,just plain ol’ refreshing mint,with the crunchy bite of nuts and sugar called nougat.That’s something new,right.

Not for me.  Here is the story. About 6 years back, just before my wedding,I heard about a cooking class from one of my friends who had attended it.
Well,the cooking instructor(she’s not a chef), Mrs Yvonne, doesn’t advertise and only echelons of posh people knew about her classes. Why? After skimming through my friend’s recipes,I found out the recipes are exotic,the price very expensive. I couldn’t resist in the hope of mesmerizing my soon-to-be hubby and in-laws with my culinary skills, I joined the dessert course.

It was a lot of money at that time,but I’d say it was worth every penny. Otherwise I would not have known “Philadelphia” cream cheese and tasted my first ever cheesecake,not known whipped cream or pavlova,and making of brown nougat. And certainly wouldn’t be famous for my chocolate biscuit pudding. We were told to  strictly safeguard our recipes from prying eyes.
And I did.Taking that book of 12 recipes wherever I went. From my in laws in Srilanka to our own rented flat in Doha. But I was busy with a full time job and then with my twins I forgot all about the precious little book and it ended up with myriad of other books in a box to be carried easily when we move, which was often.
And then came the sudden decision of moving out from Doha for good, for greener pastures, which meant selling or getting rid of the entire household stuff. With all the chaos and kids I forgot to take the book with me to SL. Later when I learned that the house has been cleared and all my stuff I left behind were missing,I was heartbroken. Now the book’s loss was felt more than ever, since I started the blog.But,Thank God,I can still recall some of the recipes which I loved. And this mint pudding is one of those.
Mint extract was used in the original recipe,since I wasn’t able to find it, I steeped mint leaves in milk to get the flavor.It was really worth it. And this dessert is not complete without the brown nougat or praline which adds a layer of crunchy nut and caramel flavor. And the combination is so divine you have to try this out.Please..please..
Ammar is holding a piece of nougat here,and he and his brother absolutely loved it. It’s so easy to make and so versatile.Got unexpected guests over and all you have is a tub of vanilla ice cream for dessert? Just sprinkle some crushed nougat for a gourmet touch. It can be made with any nut of your choice and added to any dessert that needs some crunch and sprucing up.

 

This has an “awesome” standard approved by dear S. And my submission to Monthly Mingle hosted this month by Sally @ MyCustardPie.

 

Mint Custard Pudding with Brown Nougat
Ingredients:
2 cups milk
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves packed(Increase if you want an intense flavor)
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 large egg yolks beaten
1/2 tsp vanilla
250 ml whipping cream
1 tbsp gelatine(2 tbsp water to dissolve the gelatine)
pinch of salt
few drops of green coloring
*For the Nougat
10 cashew nuts(any nuts you like)
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp butter
Method:
For the nougat,melt the butter in a nonstick pan,and add the nuts.Stir the nuts and add the sugar to the pan.Keep stirring till the sugar melts and turns to a golden liquid.Immediately take off from fire and pour it into a sheet of aluminium foil.Once cooled and hardened,place the sheet of nougat in a zip-lock or food storage bag and crush it with a rolling pin.
For the custard,heat the milk till bubbles appear on the side of the pan.Don’t let it boil.Switch off the fire and add the mint leaves and let it steep preferably for about half an hour.
Strain the milk mixture,discard the solids.Add sugar,vanilla,salt,cornstarch to the milk and whisk.Bring back to heat and when it starts to thicken slowly add the beaten eggs to the milk mixture.Continue whisking till the mixture becomes quite thick.Take it off from fire and let it cool.
In a separate cup,dissolve the gelatin with boiling hot water and whisk it into the cooled custard mixture.
Whip the cream till the soft peak stage and fold it into the custard mixture.Add the coloring.
You can add the nougat in two ways.
First,you can stir 3 tbsp of crushed nougat to the custard mixture,spoon the mixture into a single large bowl or individual cups and chill.
Or,you can layer it like what I have done in the pictures.Spoon some custard mixture into cups,then chill for about 10 minutes.Sprinkle some nougat on top and again fill with custard mixture and chill,alternating custard and nougat layers till you fill the cup.
Decorate with some whipped cream and nougat on top.
This is such a delectable dessert you have to try it.I’m sure you’ll enjoy every spoonful of it !

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37 Comments

  2. Mint is my absolute favourite herb and seeing as I am growing so much of it, I am definitely making this….so you lost touch with mrs. yvonne then? 🙂

    Reply

  6. Thanks Arva,Raji and Shumaila for the wonderful comments.
    Shumaila,I forgot the green coloring.I've edited the recipe.Yes,I lost touch Mrs.Yvonne,was wondering whether I should call her out of the blue and ask for the recipes again.. 🙂

    Reply

  7. Hey girlie, I didn't even read the post or look at the recipe for that matter. I had to comment after seeing your gorgeous pictures. Really awesome, Farwin! You have to tell me how you shoot so beautifully, really.

    Reply

  8. Thanks nash,photography is tough at times and got it right after the third attempt.Coming from you,it's a big compliment and makes all the effort really worthwhile.You should teach me how you photograph each ingredient so beautifully.

    Reply

  18. Couldn't take my eyes off the snaps , Farwin!!! Absolutely brilliant!!! And do try to get hold of the rest of the recipes from Mrs.Yvonne , dear 🙂

    Reply

  28. Mint is one of the most delicious flavours you can add to custard – I entered a mint custard to the monthly mingle too, although yours looks far more exciting with all those beautiful layers 🙂

    Reply

  34. aplogies for not being able to come by your space for a while, abandoned my bloggin habit only to realise Ive been missing so many good recipes, just like this wonderful minty one! your photos look stunning..are u back in SL for good now?

    Reply

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