SWEET AND MILKY PUDDINGS FOR SPRINGTIME

 

Catalan custards with burnt-sugar topping.

Springtime brings wildflowers, rain showers, baby lambs, strawberries, and Lent.  It is the season for sweet and milky puddings. 

Traditionally, spring lambing season meant an abundance of milk (from cows and goats as well as sheep). During Cuaresma, the Lenten period of abstinence from foods such as meat, dairy foods were a stand-in. Here is a round-up of typical puddings that continue to be favorites during Lent, Semana Santa (Holy Week) and Easter. Or any spring day, rainy or bright.

Catalan Custard with Burnt-Sugar Topping (Crema Catalana, Crema de San José). Pictured above, these sweet and rich custards are typical for the festivities of Spanish Fathers' Day, San José, (March 19) as well as for Lenten meals. The recipe, with instructions for caramelizing the sugar topping, is here. 

Creamy Rice Pudding (Arroz con Leche) in the traditional style is made with milk (often goat's milk) infused with cinnamon and lemon peel. Other versions might be flavored with vanilla or rum; have cream or butter incorporated, or be sweetened with honey or molasses instead of sugar. Restaurant renditions often have a burnt-sugar topping, similar to the above custards. The recipe for old-fashioned Spanish arroz con leche is below. Here is another version Rice Pudding with Cherries and almonds.

Custard Pudding with Meringue (Natillas con Merengue). Natillas is a simple homemade pudding, typical in rural areas where fresh milk and eggs are plentiful. In La Mancha it is made with warmed sheep’s milk (Manchego cheese is a sheep’s milk cheese). The custard is poured over tortas, sponge cookies, somewhat like ladyfingers, then sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon. In Andalusia natillas is made with goat’s milk and served with crispy galletas, plain cookies. The pudding is especially good with fruit. It can be topped with baked meringue made with leftover egg whites. Get the recipe for Natillas here.

Honey with Fresh Cheese (Mel i Mató). So simple it is not really a pudding--a fresh, unsalted cream cheese, in Catalonia called mató, served with honey or fruit in syrup. The recipe for serving is here. 

"Burnt" Cheesecake (Quesada al Estilo de Cantábria). This is a cheesecake with no crust, more of a baked custard, made with soft, fresh cheese. Should you have a surplus of milk, you can easily make the cheese yourself. The recipes for both cheesecake and cheese making are here.

Mango Pudding with Fresh Cheese (Pudín de Mango con Cuajada). Cuajada is a sort of “custard” with no eggs. In Spain you can find cuajada in individual cups in the dairy section of grocery stores. Cuajo, an enzyme (rennet or junket), sets the custard. Cuajada is, basically, the first step in cheese making. But, instead of cutting the curds and draining off the whey, the thickened milk is poured into cups and allowed to cuajar, set. Serve it with honey, fruit and nuts, an old-fashioned traditional dessert especially in Euskadi (Basque Land). For this pudding the cuajada is mixed with fruit, sugar, and whipped cream. The recipe for the pudding is here.

Caramel Custards (Flan con Caramelo). Old-fashioned flan is as Spanish as sunshine! Baked in caramel-coated molds, the custards are easy to prepare and can be made in advance of serving. The basic recipe is here.

Dark Chocolate Cream Custards (Crema de Chocolate). Perhaps these rich custards are a bit too decadent for Lenten abstemiousness, but joyous feasting of Easter is near, when chocolate is very much on the menu. The recipe for Chocolate Custards is here.

Creamy Rice Pudding

Arroz con Leche

Serves 4-6.

6 cups whole milk

1 strip lemon peel

1 (2-inch) cinnamon stick

½ cup medium-grain rice

Pinch salt

1/3 cup sugar

Ground cinnamon, for dusting

Place the milk in a pan with the lemon peel and cinnamon stick. Bring just to a boil over high heat, then remove the pan from the heat and let the milk infuse 10 minutes. Strain the milk, discarding the cinnamon and peel.

Add the rice and salt to the milk. Heat over medium heat until the milk begins to barely bubble. Cook, stirring frequently, until the rice is very soft and the milk thickens, about 45 minutes. Add the sugar and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly so the sugar doesn’t scorch on the bottom.

Ladle the hot pudding into dessert cups or a pudding bowl. Allow the pudding to cool. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until serving time. The pudding will thicken as it cools. Sprinkle generously with ground cinnamon before serving.