Recipe: Spiced Vanilla Custards with Sweet Potato Streusel
Silky, with a texture somewhere between pudding and panna cotta -- and no water bath required.
Recipe courtesy of Bon Appetit magazine.
Spiced Vanilla Custards with Sweet Potato Streusel
Serves: 8
Ingredients:
Custards:
1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
1½ cups heavy cream
½ cup whole milk
2 cinnamon sticks
1 star anise pod
¼ cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugar
½ vanilla bean, split lengthwise
4 large egg yolks
Streusel and Assembly:
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ cup (½ stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
½ cup store-bought sweet potato chips (such as Terra Chips), crumbled
Preparation:
Custards
Place 1 Tbsp. water in a small bowl; sprinkle gelatin over and set aside.
Combine cream, milk, cinnamon, star anise, and ¼ cup sugar in a medium saucepan and scrape in vanilla seeds; add pod. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep 20 minutes.
Uncover infused cream and return to a simmer. Whisk egg yolks with remaining 2 Tbsp. sugar in a medium bowl. Whisking constantly, gradually add ½ cup warm cream mixture to egg yolks. Reduce heat to medium-low and whisk egg yolk mixture into remaining cream mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, until custard is thick enough to coat a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes. Add gelatin; cook, stirring until dissolved.
Strain custard into a measuring cup. Pour into eight 2 oz. demitasse cups or ramekins. Chill until set, at least 4 hours.
Do Ahead:
Custards can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and chill.
Streusel and Assembly:
Preheat oven to 350°. Whisk flour, sugar, salt, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Add butter and work into flour with your fingers until no dry spots remain.
Scatter mixture over a parchment-lined baking sheet, breaking up into large crumbs. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until streusel is golden brown and crisp, 10-15 minutes. Let cool, then add crumbled sweet potato chips and toss to combine.
Serve custards topped with streusel.
Do Ahead:
Streusel can be made 1 week ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.
For more info:
- Thanksgiving 2014: Bon Appetit's complete holiday food guide
- How to Fix the 3 Biggest Thanksgiving Fails (from Bon Appetit Magazine)
- The Bon Appetit Thanksgiving App
- More recipes from Bon Appetit
- Follow Bon Appetit on Twitter (@BonAppetit) and Facebook