Crème Anglaise au Figuier

Name: Crème Anglaise au Figuier (Fig-Leaf Custard)
Yield: Serves 3–4.
Cuisine: France
Ingredients: langue de chat biscuits or fingers of toasted brioche; 1–2 tablespoons vanilla-flavoured sugar; 2 egg yolks; 2 small fig leaves; 275 ml(½ pt) single cream; langue de chat biscuits or fingers of toasted brioche

Fig-Leaf Custard

Preparation info

Serves
3–4
.

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

French Country Kitchen

By Geraldene Holt

Published 1987

About

Even if your English figs refuse to ripen – and, denied the southern sun, who could blame them – pluck a leaf or two to give the same, musky scent of the fruit itself to a creamy custard. I first tried this with some wild fig leaves in France after reading about it in Diana Kennedy’s Mexican Regional Cooking.

Ingredients

275 ml(½ pt) single cream
2 small fig leaves

Europe
France
Dessert
Mediterranean
Vegetarian

Method

Bring the cream to the boil with the fig leaves. Lift out the leaves and place in the bottom of a glass serving dish.

Pour the cream on to the egg yolks mixed with the sugar. Return the mixture to the pan and cook carefully (ideally in a double boiler) stirring all the time over moderate hea