Here is a recipe for Creme Caramel or Pots de Crème avec Caramel au Beurre Salé. It’s vanilla cream pudding with salted butter caramel sauce.Creamy, rich and cold for after dinner (or anytime, really).
You can get creative with the display and garnish. This is a super-simplified version, inspired by the real thing in Paris.
Ingredients
Caramel
1c sugar
4 tbspbutter
3/4 cup whipping cream
Cream Pudding
3 1/2 c. whipping cream
1 whole egg and 5 yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Instructions
Make Caramel
In a skillet over medium-high heat, add sugar.Heat, stirring the sugar occasionally.
When it is melted completely, stir in butter.
When the butter is melted completely, stir in cream.Remove from heat.
Make Pudding
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine whipping cream, egg and egg yolks, and sugar.
Cook until sugar is dissolved.
Add vanilla and stir well.
Assemble
Preheat oven to 350º.
Butter 6, 6 oz. ramekins.Pour a portion of the pudding into each ramekin.
In a tea kettle or sauce pan, heat a container of water to boiling.
Meanwhile, in a large baking dish (we are making a bain marie), arrange the ramekins.Pour in water up to 1/2 of the sides of the ramekins.
Place baking dish with ramekins into the oven and cook about 30 minutes, until the middle of the ramekin is cooked, but jiggly.
Remove from oven, and cool to room temperature.
Pour caramel over pudding to fill to the rim.
Refrigerate at least 3 hours and serve.
Add a little whipped cream or crème fraiche or whipped cream to gild the lily.
The real thing at l’Assiette. I tried to recreate it. Read more about l’Assiette here.
A balm for our spirits could be French food. And, what better delight than enjoying plate-licking delicious French food! Are you ready for an eating marathon at intimate and authentic French bistros? It really is not such a gluttonous idea if you consider the walking all day long. And, if you can keep yourself from devouring the incredible bread before the meal arrives. (Plus, I have really decided the bread in Paris is different. It doesn’t make me feel bloated and full. Imagination?)
Here are five restaurants that will complement a week-long visit to Paris. Gratifying and all-out pleasure – French bistro dinners. That’s right, choose healthy and light or go full bore to revel in cream sauces and foie gras! Or, balance it all out by enjoying a little of all of the bountiful variety that keeps French food lingering in the memory for years.
The photos are much better at explaining the atmosphere of each place than I can describe. So, take a look.
Le Comptoir in the Hotel Relais Saint Germain
What many people used to call a “nouveau” bistro, but now it is known for solid bistro dining. On the weekdays, Le Comptoir has a set menu with a choice for the main course. On the weekends get in line and dine choosing from a menu. Yves Camdeborde makes the menu each day after checking what is available and in season. They are generous with the delicious food coming out of the kitchen. Seating outside is delightful in good weather and completely manageable when the weather is cool.
Studio apartment sized dining room of Le Comptoir.
Did someone say cheese board after dinner???
Hmmm, makes me think of, “you can use every part of the hog, except the….”
Josephine Chez Dumonet looks exactly like the classic French bistro that it is. Through the door is a zinc bar on the right and tables to the left and filling the rest of the restaurant. The host is super friendly and ready to help. Like many places, the restaurant’s reservations are kept in a big, thick book on the bar. Generous portions, so you may consider ordering a half portion if available.
In the vintage dining room, order slabs of foie gras, morels stuffed with foie gras, beef bourguignon, steak tartare…. For dessert, a Grand Marnier soufflé that is over the top perfect – and enormous. Plus, an apple galette that is as thin as a crepe and perfect for dessert if you just want a taste of something sweet after dinner. Enjoy the locals enjoying this oh so Parisian restaurant.
Welcome….name for the reservation, s’il vous plait?
Foie gras, did you say??? One slab or two?
Perfection… if you can only have one more paper thin morsel.
Petit ami at Josephine Chez Dumonet
Josephine Chez Dumonet 117 rue du Cherche Midi 75006 Tél.: +33 (0)1 45 48 52 40 Métro: Duroc Telephone to make a reservation, or ask your hotel to telephone on your behalf. Only open on weekdays.
La Bourse et La Vie
With a tiny footprint on the street, you can easily miss this jewel. But, simply turn back if you miss it and you will not be disappointed. In the small plush dining room with green velvet everywhere, you will have attentive and patient service. Daniel Rose and Hugo Richier create some modern takes on the classics. Like pot-au-feu, leeks in vinaigrette, sweetbreads… Intimate, quiet and delightful.
Elegant and delicious!
Pot-au-feu….. incroyable.
La Bourse et La Vie 12 Rue Vivienne 75002 Tel.: +33 (1)0 42 60 08 83 http://www.labourselavie.com/en/ Métro: Bourse Can reserve online
Chez l’Ami Jean
Find the best butter ever right here on the tavern tables. That is why it is nearly impossible not to eat a whole basket of bread! Basque cuisine in the center of Paris. High energy, tables interact, waiters are fun, super nice and they encourage the fun. From the open kitchen, you can hear chef yelling. But, that is because he wants the food delivered to the table immediately, so you, the diner, can enjoy it – NOW! The atmosphere here is relaxed and fun with lots of wood and brick and close tables – often seems communal. Always changing menu depending on what Chef Stéphane Jégo finds appealing.
What to choose first… And, look at that butter!
Oh my, scrumptious steak, with a bite of boudin blanc on the side for good measure!
Chez l’Ami Jean – Stéphane Jégo 27 rue Malar 75007 Tél.: +33 (0)1 47 05 86 89 http://lamijean.fr/en/ Métro: La Tour-Maubourg Can reserve online
l’Assiette
Although l’Assiette may be off the typical visitor’s path, it is worth a visit. It is a neighborhood restaurant that welcomes visitors. David Rathgeber performs in this kitchen now and the dining room is simple, yet elegant with painted glass panels on the ceiling. The host and waiters could not be more accommodating.
L’Assiette is a very French restaurant serving generous portions of French favorites. Try cassoulet, escargot (with lots of garlic and butter perfect for the bread on the table!), rillettes, and sweetbreads. For dessert, order the crème caramel au beurre salé (custard with salted caramel sauce on top) and watch your friends’ eyes roll back in their heads.
Cassoulet – for 3? Order appropriately!
It may look unassuming but watch for eyes rolling back in the head.
l’Assiette 181, rue du Château 75014 Paris Tél.: +33 (0)1 43 22 64 86 https://restaurant-lassiette.paris Métro: Mouton-Duvernet or Pernety or Gaîté Can reserve online
Le Relais
For starters …
Le Relais is a new restaurant in the 11th arrondissement worthy of your interest. From lerelaisrestaurant.fr: the Relais, “carefully sourced all its producers to compose ultra-fresh cuisine with local accents, with products from Paris urban agriculture and its surroundings.” And, talk about local ingredients! They grow plants and herbs on the roof and cook them in your dinner! Plus, they find the remaining ingredients as close to their location as possible. The dining room is elegant and simple with an inviting air. Support the locals!
From: Anne Lloyd, owner of Nolavore, a full service catering company and commissary kitchen located in the heart of New Orleans.
Anne Lloyd is a creative genius who shared her recipe for this New Orleans/Parisian dessert that will knock-the-socks off any crêpe fans who love bananas. You may want to have company over, or not!!! Could make a great dinner for one – or maybe two, if you feel like sharing a little.
Many of you have eaten Anne’s cuisine over the years. She has had a career in the restaurant and food service industries for over 30 years, 25 of which have been in New Orleans. Anne has managed some of New Orleans’ favorite spots, such as the Bluebird Café and Lola’s Restaurant. She has worked under the famed Brennan family, as well as Susan Spicer of Bayona. Anne owned and operated a Caribbean-inspired restaurant, Mango House, in the Riverbend neighborhood until 2005. And, in 2010, she opened Nolavore.
Want to see Anne Lloyd in person preparing these crêpes?? Visit the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival™, Saturday, May 4, at 11:30 a.m. at the Food Heritage Stage 2019, to watch Anne make sweet magic on the stage.
Address: 2139 Baronne St., New Orleans, Louisiana (in the Faubourg Livaudais) Official website: https://www.nolavore.net
Anne Lloyd’s Bananas Foster Crêpes
Servings: 4 servings, 2 dessert crêpes per person
Prep Time: 15 min + 1 hour
Cook Time: 12-15 min
Meal: Dessert
Method: Sautéeing
Cuisine: French/New Orleans
Ingredients
For the Crêpes:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup milk
2/3 cup cold water
3 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons clarified butter
For the Banana Filling:
1/2 stick butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup banana liqueur
1/4 cup dark rum
4 bananas, cut in half lengthwise, then halved
Step by Step Instructions
Make the Crêpes
Step 1.
Measure flour into a large bowl, then slowly whisk in milk and water.
Step 2.
Strain the batter through a sieve to remove any lumps.
Step 3.
Whisk in eggs, salt, and 3 tablespoons of the butter.
Step 4.
Let the batter rest 1 hour.
Make the Filling and Plate
Step 1.
In a frying pan combine the butter, sugar, and cinnamon. Cook over medium-low heat until the sugar dissolves.
Step 2.
Stir in the banana liqueur, then place the bananas in the pan. Cook until the banana sections soften and begin to brown, remove from the burner and add the rum.
Step 3.
Tip the pan slightly towards the burner flame and ignite the rum. (If you do not have a gas stovetop, carefully ignite the rum with a match.)
Step 4.
When the flames subside, use a slotted spoon to lift the bananas out of the pan, placing two pieces inside each crepe. Roll each crepe, placing two on each serving plate. Spoon warm sauce over the top and serve immediately.
Notes
The traditional way of serving Bananas Foster in New Orleans is with vanilla ice cream. Why not add some on top?
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