The Experimental Chef

I wanted to make another dessert for my mother in law, who loves bread pudding. I have never even tried bread pudding so this is new for me. I love this recipe. It is not insanely sweet which is nice and the custard is great. I would adjust this recipe only because I would like it to have a bit of a spice flavor. I added some cinnamon sugar atop of my portion.

Gordon Ramsay’s Baguette and Butter Pudding Laced with Baileys

INGREDIENTS:

50g (1/4 c. or 1.8 oz.) butter, softened
½ large French stick (about 150g or 5.3 oz., thinly sliced)
60g (1/2c. works) sultanas (golden raisins) or dried cranberries, or a mixture of both
2 large free-range egg yolks
2 large free-range eggs
40g (1/3 c.) caster (superfine or extra fine) sugar
300ml (1 1/3 c. or 10.25 oz) double cream
300ml milk (1 1/3 c. or 10.25 oz)
4 tbsp Baileys cream liqueur, or more to taste
Demerara (raw)sugar, to sprinkle.
3 tbsp apricot jam

PREPARATION:
1. Use a large knob of the butter to grease the sides of a 1.5 litre shallow ovenproof dish. Spread the bread slices with the remaining butter. Arrange the bread in the dish in overlapping layers, sprinkling the dried fruit between.

2. Beat the egg yolks, whole eggs and sugar together in a large bowl until creamy, then beat in the cream, milk and Baileys. Slowly pour this mixture over the bread.

3. Press the bread slices down gently with your fingers so they are completely submerged.

4. Leave to stand for about 20 minutes to allow the bread to soak up the custard. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.

5. Stand the dish in a roasting tin and surround with boiling water to come halfway up the sides of the dish. (A bain-marie is used to avoid overheating the custard, which otherwise might curdle.) Sprinkle with demerara sugar and bake for 40-50 minutes until golden. Shortly before this time is up, warm the apricot jam until runny.

6. Dab this glaze over the surface of the pudding and leave to stand for 15 minutes before serving. The custard will continue to cook and firm up during this time. Trickle a little more Baileys over each portion to serve if you like.

PREP/COOK
INFORMATION:

Prep time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Serves: 6

Source: Just Desserts Gordon Ramsay

My mother in law loves cheese danish. I wanted to send her home with something good on her lips. So I attempted to make my first cheese danish. They turned out surprisingly good. I would only make two modifications. More filling and sprinkle the tops with raw sugar to make a light crust.

Ingredients:

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
2 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
2 tablespoons ricotta cheese
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
2 sheets (1 box) frozen puff pastry, defrosted
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Place the cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and cream them together on low speed until smooth. With the mixer still on low, add the egg yolks, ricotta, vanilla, salt, and lemon zest and mix until just combined. Don’t whip!

Unfold 1 sheet of puff pastry onto a lightly floured board and roll it slightly with a floured rolling pin until it’s a 10 by 10-inch square. Cut the sheet into quarters with a sharp knife. Place a heaping tablespoon of cheese filling into the middle of each of the 4 squares. Brush the border of each pastry with egg wash and fold 2 opposite corners to the center, brushing and overlapping the corners of each pastry so they firmly stick together. Brush the top of the pastries with egg wash. Place the pastries on the prepared sheet pan. Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry and refrigerate the filled Danish for 15 minutes.

Bake the pastries for about 20 minutes, rotating the pan once during baking, until puffed and brown. Serve warm.

This recipe is one of my favorites. It requires a bit of butter but all in all the overall recipe is healthy. It is quick and easy and requires very little preparation.

Ingredients:

• 6 (6-oz) pieces center-cut salmon fillet (about 1 inch thick) with skin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated fresh lime zest
• 6 tablespoons lime butter sauce

Lime Butter Sauce:

• 1 large garlic clove, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted

Directions:

Prepare grill for cooking over medium-hot charcoal (moderate heat for gas).

Season salmon all over with salt and pepper, then grill, flesh sides down, on lightly oiled grill rack (covered only if using gas grill) 4 minutes. Turn fillets over and grill (covered only if using gas grill) until just cooked through, 4 to 6 minutes more. Sprinkle fillets with zest and top each with 1 tablespoon lime butter sauce.

Cooks’ Note: If you aren’t able to grill outdoors, salmon can be cooked in a hot lightly oiled well-seasoned large (2-burner) ridged grill pan over moderately high heat.

I love this with a really nice fat piece of salmon that has nice marbling and good color. Because the fish is done so simply that the sauce really makes the meal. It is citrusy and rich.

I found this to be very good. The taste of the roasted lemon actually makes a difference. It is a slightly sweeter and deeper taste than regular lemon. Very Very Tasty.

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 pounds small new potatoes such as Red Bliss
• 2 large lemons
• Extra-virgin olive oil for brushing on lemons, plus 1/4 cup Gray salt and freshly ground pepper
• 4 boneless chicken breast halves, skin on
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 cup double-strength chicken stock, or 2 cups canned low-salt chicken broth boiled until reduced by half
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter (optional)

Directions:

Put the potatoes in a pot of salted cold water and bring to a boil. Cook until just tender, about 20 minutes. Drain and let cool, but do not peel. Cut in half and set aside.

Preheat the broiler. Cut a small slice off both ends of each lemon, then cut in half crosswise. Arrange the lemons, flesh side up, in a flameproof non-reactive baking dish, brush with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Broil 6 inches or more from the heat until browned and soft, about 10 minutes. Let cool. Squeeze the lemon halves over a sieve suspended over a bowl. Push and stir the pulp through the sieve with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon. Discard the lemon shells.

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil in a large ovenproof saut
 pan over medium-high heat until hot. Add the chicken, lower the heat to medium, and cook, turning once, until brown on both sides, about 5 minutes. Remove to a platter.

Return the pan to medium-high heat, add the potatoes, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring and tossing, until brown all over, about 5 minutes. Drain off the excess oil. Arrange the chicken breasts on top of the potatoes and place in the oven to reheat and cook through, about 10 minutes. When done,remove the chicken to a platter and put the pan with the potatoes over medium-high heat. Toss well so the pan juices are absorbed into the potatoes. Scrape the potatoes out of the pan onto the platter around the chicken.

Return the pan to medium-high heat and add the garlic. Sauté briefly until light brown. Immediately add the reserved roasted lemon juice (this final flash of heat will cook off any residual acid flavor), stock, rosemary, and parsley. Stir and scrape up all the browned bits that cling to the bottom and sides of the pan. Season to taste with salt and pepper. If the sauce tastes too lemony, stir in the optional butter. Pour the sauce over the chicken and potatoes and serve immediately.

I followed this pretty closely. It was worth the time that it took to do the recipe.

• 1 lb Italian sausage (I like mild sausage)
• 2 large russet baking potatoes , sliced in half, and then in 1/4 inch slices
• 1 large onion , chopped
• ¼ cup bacon bit (optional)
• 2 garlic cloves , minced
• 2 cups kale or 2 cups swiss chard , chopped
• 2 (8 ounce) cans chicken broth
• 1 quart water
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions:

• Chop or slice uncooked sausage into small pieces.
• Brown sausage in your soup pot.
• Add chicken broth and water to pot and stir.
• Place onions, potatoes, and garlic in pot.
• Cook on medium heat until potatoes are done.
• Add sausage and bacon.
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• Simmer for another 10 minutes.
• Turn to low heat.
• Add kale and cream.
• Heat through and serve.

This is an amazing soup and it is easy to make. I don’t have to go to Olive Garden as often because of this wonderful recipe 🙂 It is an exact recipe of the same soup that is served in Olive Garden. It is a little spicy and really filling. The kale makes it really filling and a well rounded. Make it with some fresh bread and a salad to make it a really light and wonderful meal. I highly recommend this.