Foie Gras Creme Brulee Recipe (+Giveaway)

I've mentioned it in the past; even though it might raise some eyebrows, foie gras, or duck/goose liver, is my guilty pleasure. Maman would always serve this French delicacy during our holiday dinner. If you've never tasted foie gras before, it's like eating a piece of intensely flavored, semi-softened butter.

I got a lovely whole duck foie gras from The Milk Pail Market in Mountain View, CA. Instead of serving it as a main course (I’ll publish a main course recipe soon), I added the foie gras to a savory custard and made crèmes brûlées. Obviously, this is not your ordinary vanilla flavored dessert crème brûlée. I made savory crème brulees in the past with ingredients like garlic, so this isn’t exactly new territory for me. The result was amazing; foie gras and sweet flavors pair perfectly together. I added specks of foie gras to the custard as well as a large piece in the center of each ramekin. I also topped them with a larger chunk on top of the sugar crust as a reminder of the flavoring inside. I served the fancy starter with toasted bread so the foie gras could be spread onto the toasts.

This weekend giveaway is for Bay Area readers or people who are able to redeem their prize on site. The Milk Pail Market, which happens to be my favorite local market, is generously donating five $25 gift certificates. You could put this to good use and create a marvelous Christmas dinner for your loved ones. At any rate, I love this market; you can find a wide variety of cheeses, (check out the fromage blanc), French products such as Mamie Nova yogurts and tons of other European products as well. And don't forget to try their famous croissants!  Be sure to stop by and discover these fabulous ingredients. The address is 2585 California Street, Mountain View, CA 94040. To participate to our giveaway, visit our 25 Days of Giveaways page and enter today. Good luck!

Make sure you're a fan of PhamFatale Facebook fan page and the Milk Pail, or follow @Phamfatalecom and tweet about this giveaway. To make it easy, you can just copy and paste this tweet if you’d like: "Five $25 Gift Certificate #Giveaway from @Phamfatalecom and the Milk Pail: http://bit.ly/sp4V7y".

Pistachio Dessert: Pistachio Creme Brulee Recipe (+Giveaway)

If you've been following my culinary adventures, you've probably noticed how much I love pistachios! Daddy (my father-in-law) went to visit one of his friends in Sacramento who grows orchards of pistachios. Daddy brought bags filled with fresh pistachios back for me to have fun with. I had never seen or tasted the raw product and it was amazing. The color is richer and greener. Daddy said raw pistachios are very common in India and picking the pistachios brought him back in time. There were so many pistachios that I had to come up with creative ways to make use of them. I immediately thought of making pistachio paste by grinding and blending them raw with a little Bourbon Barrel Vanilla Sugar. I also added pistachio oil to make the paste smooth and creamy because pistachios contain very little natural oil compared to other nuts. I also added a touch of almond extract to give the pistachio paste a nice aroma.

I didn't stop there. I used the paste to flavor a typical French dessert: crème brûlée. I've made crèmes brûlées so many times (lavender, banana, cherry, masala chai, matcha green tea, lemon, chocolate, vanilla, butterscotch, even a savory garlic flavored-one!) that after checking back on PhamFatale.com, I was surprised to see that I never posted this particular version! The pistachios were so fresh that it was almost guaranteed that the crèmes brûlées would be divine. To accentuate the dessert, I used vanilla sugar from Bourbon Barrel in the pistachio paste, the custard mixture and the brûlé part itself. It’s just more evidence that a few exquisite ingredients can transform the simplest foods (eggs, milk, cream and sugar) into something extraordinary.

In addition to tasting incredible, this naturally green-colored dessert can be part of your Halloween table. The kids can have their Snickers and Twix; I’d rather have one (or three) of these pistachio crèmes brûlées!

Goat Milk Ice Cream with Molasses Syrup Swirl

You've probably noticed, I'm addicted to anything and everything goat. Whether it's goat ricotta cheese, goat cheese Gouda or simple chèvre, I cannot get enough of goat’s milk unique flavor profile. I often use goat dairy products in savory dishes, but I thought it would be fun to experiment with goat milk in desserts. After some thought, it occurred to me that there is no better showcase for goat milk than making ice cream.

I made a simple custard using goat milk and chilled it overnight. I churned the ice cream and finished it with swirls of molasses and raisin syrup. The result was silky, delicious and not too rich. I've heard that goat milk is more easily digestible than regular cow's milk, which is good for the lactose-intolerant members of my family. The only downside: there wasn't enough to feed everyone! 

Mexican Chocolate Flan Recipe

Cinco de Mayo commemorates the Mexican army's unlikely victory over French forces in 1862. The celebrations here in the Bay Area are always fun and I wanted to get in on the festivities. I love chocolate desserts, so I made a spiced chocolate flan.

I flavored the custard with Mexican chocolate, cinnamon and a small amount of cayenne pepper for a pleasant warmth at the end. Enjoy!

A Dessert Fit for a King: Banana Flan (Prince William's Favorite Dessert)

Unless you’ve been under a rock, you’ve probably been inundated with news about the pending royal nuptials. And even though I already had mine years ago, I am a sucker for fairytale weddings. Food is one of the keys to an amazing event, and since banana flan ("banana cream pie" in America) is Prince William's favorite dessert, I made half a dozen of them so the 6 girls in our family can nibble while watching the wedding on TV. The recipe is pretty simple; I made puff pastry pie shells that I filled with regular custard that I filled in   and topped with grilled bananas. The flavor is very similar to banana pudding, which is definitely nothing to complain about. I adapted the recipe from Chef Darren McGrady's Eating Royally. Chef McGrady was the personal chef to Prince William, Prince Harry and Lady Diana until her death in 1997.

I'm going to try my hardest to watch it live, but I’m not sure I'll be able to stay up so late. One thing I do know is that I'll be enjoying banana flan and hot tea (oh so British!) while staring at Kate Middleton's wedding gown and waiting for the couple's smooch from the balcony of Buckingham Palace.

Congratulations William and Kate!