Rose and Pistachio Crème brûlée

By on April 7, 2014

Yields 4 – 6 servings
Ingredients :
For the custard :
•    350ml single cream
•    90ml full fat milk
•    30ml natural rose water
•    70g sugar + 60g for burning the top of the crème 6 teaspoons for the pistachios
•    4 egg yolks
•    Pink food coloring (optional)

For the pistachio base :
•    200g unsalted, de-shelled pistachios
•    3 teaspoons natural rose water
•    6 teaspoons sugar
1- Prepare the pistachio base:
Put all the base ingredients together in a food processor or a blender, and blend until fine and the mixture holds together when pressed between your fingers.
Tightly pack the pistachio paste in the bottom of your ramekins, covering all the surface about ½ cm thick, and set aside.
2- Prepare the crème:
Put the milk and rose water in a sauce pan over low flame, and heat. In the meantime, whisk together the egg yolks and 70g of sugar until thick. Add the cold cream on top of the egg mixture, then the warm rose flavored milk while whisking continuously until well combined.
Transfer the mixture to a jug and refrigerate for two hours, to allow the air trapped in the mixture to surface. Failing to do so will result in an unpleasant crust forming on top of the crèmes when baked.
Fill the ramekins with the custard, and bake in a 95°C pre-heated oven for 1h to 1h15 minutes, until the cream is set, but still slightly wobbly in the center when shaken.
Allow to cool on a counter then transfer to the refrigerator to cool.
To serve, top the crèmes with sugar, and caramelize them with a kitchen use torch.

Rita’s Japanese husband (boyfriend at that time), moved back to Tokyo from Europe in 2010. A year later she joined him, got married and started a family. Rita is a new mom.

About Rita Nobumoto
Rita, whose happy place is the kitchen, drew her influence in cooking from her mother.”She kept me by her side in the kitchen while cooking and asked me to help out. By the time I was a teenager, I was already cooking for the whole family on summer holidays when mum was out at work,” describes Rita.
Her fascination for cuisines other than the original food styling of traditional Lebanese dishes started from  two classic cookbooks (English, French, Indian and Southeast Asian) given to her by her British aunt. These books were her eye openers to her culinary exploration and adventure.  A lover of spices, herbs and condiments, Rita is drawn to a recipe that has a a mix of complexity and simplicity. As for a particular cuisine that inspires her, “I cannot choose a favorite cuisine, as each country or region has its own clever play on flavors and textures, which makes world’s food discovery an even more exciting adventure,” says Rita.

 Q      If you have to fuse Japanese and Mediterranean flavours to come up with your original creation, what would it be like?  I have been toying with the idea in my head for quite a while now and I’m glad you’ve asked. I would love to give an all Japanese spin on my beloved traditional Lebanese Mezze. Both Lebanese and Japanese cultures enjoy sharing multiple small dishes on a dinner table, and with both palates being surprisingly complementary, I am sure a Japanese-Lebanese fusion Mezze will be a crowd pleaser.
Rita was born and raised in Lebanon and worked in Europe where she met her Japanese husband.  She blogs about her culinary adventures on cookwithattitude.com
She will be teaching interesting recipes in Roppongi Hills’ Happy Cooking studio on May 12 and  26 from 6 -9 pm.  Class will be in English. To book a spot, send an email to hcroppongi@tezukuritown.com

If you have a recipe to share, pop us an email at editor@tokyofamilies.net

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