English Blanc-mange

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy 2-quart (2 litre) saucepan
• •Medium heatproof mixing bowl
• •Balloon whisk and flexible spatula
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Four 6-ounce (180 ml) pudding moulds or ramekins

Instructions

1. 1

   Syrup the moulds

   Divide the light sugar syrup among four 6-ounce (180 ml) pudding moulds or heatproof ramekins. Turn each mould slowly so a thin film coats the base and sides, then let any excess collect at the bottom. Use syrup, not water. Water slips away; syrup clings, helps the blanc-manger release, and leaves its surface glossy and smooth.

   No bottled syrup is necessary. Stir equal spoonfuls of granulated sugar and just-boiled water until perfectly clear, then let the syrup cool before coating the moulds.
2. 2

   Make the cold slurry

   Put the cornflour in a medium heatproof bowl. Add a small splash of the cold milk and work it into a completely smooth paste, pressing out every dry pocket before whisking in the remaining cold milk. This is the foundation of the dish: cornflour disperses cleanly while cold, but forms stubborn lumps when dry starch meets heat.

3. 3

   Boil the sweet milk

   Combine the 2 cups of milk and the sugar in a heavy saucepan. Bring them to a clean boil over medium heat, stirring along the pan floor until the sugar dissolves. Watch the rim closely because sweetened milk rises quickly. If it begins to climb, lift the pan from the heat for a moment, then return it until the surface rolls.

4. 4

   Cook until glossy

   Whisk the cold slurry again because cornflour settles as it waits. Pour the boiling sweetened milk into it in a thin, steady stream, whisking briskly throughout, then return everything to the saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat for 3 to 4 minutes without ceasing to stir, alternating the whisk with a flexible spatula so the pan floor and corners stay clean. The mixture will tighten abruptly, then become smooth and glossy; once broad bubbles rise through the centre, cook for another minute to remove the raw, chalky taste. If lumps appear, pull the pan from the heat and whisk hard. Pass the mixture through a fine sieve while hot, return it to the pan, and finish cooking for one minute. Ça se rattrape. If milk catches on the bottom, decant the unscorched pudding into a clean pan without scraping the burnt patch.

5. 5

   Flavour and mould

   Take the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Immediately divide the very hot blanc-manger among the syrup-coated moulds, filling each with about 2/3 cup (150 ml). Tap each mould once against a folded towel to settle the mixture without driving out all its gentle lightness. Let them stand for 15 minutes, cover, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, until thoroughly cold and firm.

6. 6

   Chill and turn out

   Run a damp fingertip just around the upper edge of each blanc-manger. Set a cold serving plate over the mould, hold the two firmly together, invert, and give one decisive shake. The syrup should release it cleanly. If it refuses, wrap the outside of the mould in a warm, damp cloth for 5 seconds and try again; do not dig down the sides with a knife or the polished surface will be lost. Serve very cold, either plain or with chilled stewed plums or cherries spooned alongside. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Cornflour here means the fine white starch sold as cornstarch in American shops, not yellow cornmeal or finely milled maize flour. Weigh it if you can: too much gives a rubbery set, while too little leaves the pudding unable to hold its mould.
• •Use whole milk, not cream. This English version is meant to taste cleanly of sweet milk, with cornflour supplying the set; adding cream makes it heavier without making it better. Cooking well is not cooking fancy.
• •The syrup coating is not decoration. It clings where water runs off, lubricates the mould, and supplies the characteristic gloss. A thin film is enough, since a puddle will make the finished pudding overly sweet.
• •Vanilla is the quietest flavouring, but the source leaves the choice to the cook. Orange flower water may replace it in the same quantity, or use half as much almond extract for a deliberate nod toward the French almond blanc-manger.
• •Choose a sharp stewed fruit to meet the sweet milk: plums, sour cherries, currants, or rhubarb all do the work. Good bottled or frozen fruit is entirely honest when the fresh season has passed.

Advance Preparation

• •The blanc-manger can be made up to two days ahead and kept covered in its moulds. Turn it out shortly before serving so its syrup-polished surface remains smooth.
• •The stewed fruit can be prepared up to three days ahead and chilled separately. Spoon it onto the plate only when serving, or its colour will bleed into the ivory pudding.
• •Do not freeze the blanc-manger. Freezing damages the starch gel, and the pudding may release water and turn grainy as it thaws.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 245g)