On Recipes: Pumpkin Custard

I love pumpkin. So I made a pumpkin recipe and it was delicious.
The end.

What a good story.

I think I deserve a round of applause because as I have stated before, I am a horrible baker. I have no precision in the kitchen. I create things and mix ingredients while cooking and make decisions on a whim. Baking is scientific and I am not. Usually my attempts fail.

In this recipe I have, however, found a delicious pumpkin concoction that is somewhat fail-proof. This is a feat because most pumpkin recipes come in the form of pies, bread, cupcakes, muffins... all baked goods that I fear will flop. After trying it out, I have decided that this Pumpkin Custard recipe is a dessert made for failed-bakers like me and to prove so, I made it without measuring a single ingredient... and it was delicious. I especially recommend the crumble topping. To. Die. For.

I found the recipe at Tasteofhome.com. As far as my usual list of changes, there are really only two.

Firstly, I used 2% milk instead of the half-and-half. This was a decision based on necessity, as we had no cream or half-and-half in the house. If you have either, I would recommend it. The custard tasted delish with the milk but I imagine that cream or half-and-half would bring a richness and texture that it was missing. On the other hand, if you're looking to cut down on calories, it's nice to know that the milk substitute can be made without sacrificing all taste.

The second change I made is related to "pumpkin pie spice". I don't believe in buying pre-made spice mixes. Firstly, they are more expensive than buying the composite parts and secondly, they are limiting. Pumpkin pie spice, for instance, is made up of nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, ground ginger and sometimes allspice. I can think of a few uses for each of those spices separately but only one for them once they are combined. Also, my mother has an aversion to nutmeg in food and mixing the spices myself allows me to add just enough that she won't notice it.

I'm sneaky like that.

Try this recipe, it's good!


Click here for the entire Pumpkin Custard recipe

On Nutrition: disturbing food additives

This article is a disturbing investigation into some of the additives in the food we eat. It's written by Dave Zinczenko, the editor of Men's Health magazine and the author of the informative "Eat This, Not That" series of books. Did you know that Baskin Robins Oreo Layered Sundae has 78 total ingredients? I thought ice cream was pretty much just milk, cream and sugar. Apparently not. The article speaks for itself, so I'll just provide you with a horrifying excerpt:

"Before making its way onto the value menu, fast-food beef passes through the hands of a company called Beef Products... Beef Products cleans the meat with the same stuff the cleaning crew at Yankee Stadium might use to scrub the toilets—ammonia. Every week, Beef Products pumps some 7 million pounds of ground beef through pipes that expose it to ammonia gas that could potentially blind a human being." (Zinczenko on the Big Mac).

Um, GROSS. Like I said, disturbing.


What's Really in your Food?

As a commentary on this article, I was recently introduced to "The Little House on the Prairie Method" (an invention of my much-wiser older cousin). It's a good test when trying to avoid all these ridiculous food additives. The rule is, if they would have eaten it in Little House on the Prairie (or basically if your great-grandmother would recognize it as food) then it's probably OK for consumption. Otherwise, try to stay away.

I think we can all agree that an ammonia-burger would not pass the test.