Custard!
I had a craving tonight.
Back when I got to spend a lot of time in London, one of my many guilty pleasures was Green's Microbake Spotted Dick mix, slathered in Bird's custard, and topped with slices of kiwi and other fruit.
The Spotted Dick mix came packaged in a little dome shaped plastic bowl. The cake mix and currents were inside. You just added a few tablespoons of water, stirred, and popped it in the microwave for a couple minutes, then inverted it onto a plate. It was just enough for a few people, or one big glutton.
Bird's custard, like the little instant cake, is nearly non-existent here. If you do find it, it's many times over the price it is in England.
Since the two were haunting me, I did some research. I found a small microwave Spotted Dick recipe to try out (BTW, 1 UK oz = almost US 2 Tablespoons), and based on my research of Bird's Custard, I made my own recipe. I was a little disappointed in the Spotted Dick. Not bad, but not quite as good as I'd hoped. It's a start, though. I'll need to tweak it. It's a bit too salty (probably the fault of my margarine), a bit too eggy, and not sweet enough. But my custard was pretty spot-on.
Bird's Custard, for poor custard-less Americans
Hate to break the magic, but all Bird's Custard powder is, is cornstarch colored yellow with annatto and flavored with vanilla and almond. The side of the can gives instructions for how much sugar and milk to add, then cook until thick. So...
* 2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
* 2 Tablespoons Sugar
* 1 1/2 to 2 Cups Milk (the more fat in the milk, the richer the custard, the less milk, the thicker the custard. I used 1 1/2 cups of 2%)
* dot of yellow food coloring (or a bit of annatto powder, if you have it on hand. It's often available in the Mexican spices section of grocery stores)
* a bit of vanilla extract and almond extract
Mix together the cornstarch and sugar. Add a couple spoons of milk, and stir until the cornstarch has dissolved. Add the rest of the milk and stir more. Add the flavorings and food color (I used a tiny dab of Wilton's "golden yellow" paste food color for cake icing, and the color came out perfect!). Stir some more.
Quick and Easy: Then, microwave it 3 to 4 minutes, until thick. (I did 4 minutes.) I stirred once halfway through, and then again at the end. Let stand a minute before serving.
or
Stovetop: If you don't want the microwave way, you put it on the stove and bring it to a boil, then cook until thickened.
Wow, if it's this easy, how on earth did Mr. Bird build a custard empire? Colored and flavored cornstarch. Just add milk and sugar and cook. I bet a sugar free version could be done with Splenda or something. Hope this helps anyone out there with a custard craving.
Now I've gone and wrecked my diet for the evening. I was doing so good.
Back when I got to spend a lot of time in London, one of my many guilty pleasures was Green's Microbake Spotted Dick mix, slathered in Bird's custard, and topped with slices of kiwi and other fruit.
The Spotted Dick mix came packaged in a little dome shaped plastic bowl. The cake mix and currents were inside. You just added a few tablespoons of water, stirred, and popped it in the microwave for a couple minutes, then inverted it onto a plate. It was just enough for a few people, or one big glutton.
Bird's custard, like the little instant cake, is nearly non-existent here. If you do find it, it's many times over the price it is in England.
Since the two were haunting me, I did some research. I found a small microwave Spotted Dick recipe to try out (BTW, 1 UK oz = almost US 2 Tablespoons), and based on my research of Bird's Custard, I made my own recipe. I was a little disappointed in the Spotted Dick. Not bad, but not quite as good as I'd hoped. It's a start, though. I'll need to tweak it. It's a bit too salty (probably the fault of my margarine), a bit too eggy, and not sweet enough. But my custard was pretty spot-on.
Bird's Custard, for poor custard-less Americans
Hate to break the magic, but all Bird's Custard powder is, is cornstarch colored yellow with annatto and flavored with vanilla and almond. The side of the can gives instructions for how much sugar and milk to add, then cook until thick. So...
* 2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
* 2 Tablespoons Sugar
* 1 1/2 to 2 Cups Milk (the more fat in the milk, the richer the custard, the less milk, the thicker the custard. I used 1 1/2 cups of 2%)
* dot of yellow food coloring (or a bit of annatto powder, if you have it on hand. It's often available in the Mexican spices section of grocery stores)
* a bit of vanilla extract and almond extract
Mix together the cornstarch and sugar. Add a couple spoons of milk, and stir until the cornstarch has dissolved. Add the rest of the milk and stir more. Add the flavorings and food color (I used a tiny dab of Wilton's "golden yellow" paste food color for cake icing, and the color came out perfect!). Stir some more.
Quick and Easy: Then, microwave it 3 to 4 minutes, until thick. (I did 4 minutes.) I stirred once halfway through, and then again at the end. Let stand a minute before serving.
or
Stovetop: If you don't want the microwave way, you put it on the stove and bring it to a boil, then cook until thickened.
Wow, if it's this easy, how on earth did Mr. Bird build a custard empire? Colored and flavored cornstarch. Just add milk and sugar and cook. I bet a sugar free version could be done with Splenda or something. Hope this helps anyone out there with a custard craving.
Now I've gone and wrecked my diet for the evening. I was doing so good.