Hello,
I have two sauces to make for the Christmas pudding: one is a hard
sauce (per Wayne Boatwright's recipe), the other a crème anglaise
(custard in English IIRC). Is there a possibility of making them in
advance? Not two days before but a few hours. I realize it may be
dicey for the custard, but at least the hard sauce?
TIA,
Nathalie in Switzerland

Nathalie Chiva wrote:
> Hello,
> I have two sauces to make for the Christmas pudding: one is a hard
> sauce (per Wayne Boatwright's recipe), the other a crème anglaise
> (custard in English IIRC). Is there a possibility of making them in
> advance? Not two days before but a few hours. I realize it may be
> dicey for the custard, but at least the hard sauce?
> TIA,
> Nathalie in Switzerland

Admittedly I've not seen Wayne's recipes but I am sure they'll be fine.
Consider that creme anglaise is often used in eclairs and allowed to sit
for hours before eating. I've never noticed a deterioration. When I
make hard sauce (and it's been years!) it is made up before dinner and
allowed to sit on the counter until dessert.
Seriously, I think it will be fine.

Nathalie Chiva wrote:
> Hello,
> I have two sauces to make for the Christmas pudding: one is a hard
> sauce (per Wayne Boatwright's recipe), the other a crème anglaise
> (custard in English IIRC). Is there a possibility of making them in

Hard sauce is just powdered sugar, butter and flavoring. No problem to
make it way ahead of time (seal it tight and put it in the fridge) ...
I've kept it around for several weeks, no problem. There's nothing in
it to spoil, really, as long as it's kept chilled.

N.

On 21 Dec 2005 09:43:11 -0800, "Nancy1" >
wrote:

>
>Nathalie Chiva wrote:
>> Hello,
>> I have two sauces to make for the Christmas pudding: one is a hard
>> sauce (per Wayne Boatwright's recipe), the other a crème anglaise
>> (custard in English IIRC). Is there a possibility of making them in
>
>Hard sauce is just powdered sugar, butter and flavoring. No problem to
>make it way ahead of time (seal it tight and put it in the fridge) ...
>I've kept it around for several weeks, no problem. There's nothing in
>it to spoil, really, as long as it's kept chilled.

Oh, good. Thank you. I've never even eaten it - is it solid or liquid
when served (I imagine that with butter in it, it will be solid when
chilled?)?

Nathalie in Switzerland

On Wed, 21 Dec 2005 12:26:32 -0500, Goomba38 >
wrote:

>Nathalie Chiva wrote:
>> Hello,
>> I have two sauces to make for the Christmas pudding: one is a hard
>> sauce (per Wayne Boatwright's recipe), the other a crème anglaise
>> (custard in English IIRC). Is there a possibility of making them in
>> advance? Not two days before but a few hours. I realize it may be
>> dicey for the custard, but at least the hard sauce?
>> TIA,
>> Nathalie in Switzerland
>
>Admittedly I've not seen Wayne's recipes but I am sure they'll be fine.
>Consider that creme anglaise is often used in eclairs and allowed to sit
>for hours before eating. I've never noticed a deterioration. When I
>make hard sauce (and it's been years!) it is made up before dinner and
>allowed to sit on the counter until dessert.
>Seriously, I think it will be fine.

Thanks. My only concern with custard is reheating it - I guess the MW
will come in handy then...

Nathalie in Switzerland

On Wed 21 Dec 2005 02:01:44p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Nathalie
Chiva?

> On 21 Dec 2005 09:43:11 -0800, "Nancy1" >
> wrote:
>
>>
>>Nathalie Chiva wrote:
>>> Hello,
>>> I have two sauces to make for the Christmas pudding: one is a hard
>>> sauce (per Wayne Boatwright's recipe), the other a crème anglaise
>>> (custard in English IIRC). Is there a possibility of making them in
>>
>>Hard sauce is just powdered sugar, butter and flavoring. No problem to
>>make it way ahead of time (seal it tight and put it in the fridge) ...
>>I've kept it around for several weeks, no problem. There's nothing in
>>it to spoil, really, as long as it's kept chilled.
>
> Oh, good. Thank you. I've never even eaten it - is it solid or liquid
> when served (I imagine that with butter in it, it will be solid when
> chilled?)?
>
> Nathalie in Switzerland
>

Nathalie, I should have been more clear about the hard sauce. Yes, it can
be made well ahead of time, sealed tightly and refrigerated. Remove from
the refrigerator well ahead of time to reach room temperature, as it will
be quite hard. Just before serving, beat it lightly with a fork to loosen
the texture.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
__________________________________________________ ________________
And if we enter a room full of manure, may we believe in the pony.

On Wed 21 Dec 2005 02:02:24p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Nathalie
Chiva?

> On Wed, 21 Dec 2005 12:26:32 -0500, Goomba38 >
> wrote:
>
>>Nathalie Chiva wrote:
>>> Hello,
>>> I have two sauces to make for the Christmas pudding: one is a hard
>>> sauce (per Wayne Boatwright's recipe), the other a crème anglaise
>>> (custard in English IIRC). Is there a possibility of making them in
>>> advance? Not two days before but a few hours. I realize it may be
>>> dicey for the custard, but at least the hard sauce?
>>> TIA,
>>> Nathalie in Switzerland
>>
>>Admittedly I've not seen Wayne's recipes but I am sure they'll be fine.
>>Consider that creme anglaise is often used in eclairs and allowed to sit
>>for hours before eating. I've never noticed a deterioration. When I
>>make hard sauce (and it's been years!) it is made up before dinner and
>>allowed to sit on the counter until dessert.
>>Seriously, I think it will be fine.
>
> Thanks. My only concern with custard is reheating it - I guess the MW
> will come in handy then...
>
> Nathalie in Switzerland

If it were me, I would put it in the top of a double-boiler over hot, not
boiling, water. Stir occasionally until slightly warm. It will be
perfect.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
__________________________________________________ ________________
And if we enter a room full of manure, may we believe in the pony.

Wayne Boatwright wrote:
> On Wed 21 Dec 2005 02:01:44p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Nathalie
> Chiva?
>
> > On 21 Dec 2005 09:43:11 -0800, "Nancy1" >
> > wrote:
> >
> >>
> >>Nathalie Chiva wrote:
> >>> Hello,
> >>> I have two sauces to make for the Christmas pudding: one is a hard
> >>> sauce (per Wayne Boatwright's recipe), the other a crème anglaise
> >>> (custard in English IIRC). Is there a possibility of making them in
> >>
> >>Hard sauce is just powdered sugar, butter and flavoring. No problem to
> >>make it way ahead of time (seal it tight and put it in the fridge) ...
> >>I've kept it around for several weeks, no problem. There's nothing in
> >>it to spoil, really, as long as it's kept chilled.
> >
> > Oh, good. Thank you. I've never even eaten it - is it solid or liquid
> > when served (I imagine that with butter in it, it will be solid when
> > chilled?)?
> >
> > Nathalie in Switzerland
> >
>
> Nathalie, I should have been more clear about the hard sauce. Yes, it can
> be made well ahead of time, sealed tightly and refrigerated. Remove from
> the refrigerator well ahead of time to reach room temperature, as it will
> be quite hard. Just before serving, beat it lightly with a fork to loosen
> the texture.
>
> --
> Wayne Boatwright *¿*

I like to serve it chilled, not soft. I love to watch it slowly melt
down the side of the plum pudding. There's something about the
contrast of the chilled hard sauce (cubes or slabs, or whatever - about
the size of a pat of butter) with the steamed, hot pudding.

N.

Nathalie Chiva wrote:

> Thanks. My only concern with custard is reheating it - I guess the MW
> will come in handy then...
>
> Nathalie in Switzerland

Whoa. I don't know anything about warm creme anglaise? I assumed it
would be room temp or chilled? I've never read of anyone reheating it?
I don't want to steer you wrong.

Nathalie Chiva wrote:
>
> Hello,
> I have two sauces to make for the Christmas pudding: one is a hard
> sauce (per Wayne Boatwright's recipe), the other a crème anglaise
> (custard in English IIRC). Is there a possibility of making them in
> advance? Not two days before but a few hours. I realize it may be
> dicey for the custard, but at least the hard sauce?
> TIA,
> Nathalie in Switzerland

The hard sauce will be fine. The creme anglaise will be fine too. Just
warm it up gently before serving and stir well. It will still be liquid.

On Wed, 21 Dec 2005 22:01:44 +0100, Nathalie Chiva
> wrote:

>On 21 Dec 2005 09:43:11 -0800, "Nancy1" >
>wrote:
>
>>
>>Nathalie Chiva wrote:
>>> Hello,
>>> I have two sauces to make for the Christmas pudding: one is a hard
>>> sauce (per Wayne Boatwright's recipe), the other a crème anglaise
>>> (custard in English IIRC). Is there a possibility of making them in
>>
>>Hard sauce is just powdered sugar, butter and flavoring. No problem to
>>make it way ahead of time (seal it tight and put it in the fridge) ...
>>I've kept it around for several weeks, no problem. There's nothing in
>>it to spoil, really, as long as it's kept chilled.
>
>Oh, good. Thank you. I've never even eaten it - is it solid or liquid
>when served (I imagine that with butter in it, it will be solid when
>chilled?)?
>
>Nathalie in Switzerland

Hard sauce is hard as a rock when it's cold... you have to let it come
up close to room temperature so the butter softens and it's easier to
dish... otherwise you need a crowbar to get it out of the dish! On the
other hand, leftover hardsauce makes an excelled candy if you keep it
cold - we always used to eat the leftovers by the teaspoonful after
Christmas
When you spoon the sauce on top of the pudding the heat of the pudding
melts the hardsauce and it melts into the pudding...

--
~Karen aka Kajikit
Crafts, cats, and chocolate - the three essentials of life
http://www.kajikitscorner.com
Online photo album - http://community.webshots.com/user/kajikit

On 21 Dec 2005 22:16:51 +0100, Wayne Boatwright
> wrote:


>Nathalie, I should have been more clear about the hard sauce. Yes, it can
>be made well ahead of time, sealed tightly and refrigerated. Remove from
>the refrigerator well ahead of time to reach room temperature, as it will
>be quite hard. Just before serving, beat it lightly with a fork to loosen
>the texture.

Thanks - sometimes it's funny trying to cook something you've never
eaten before, it makes you ask the most obvious questions :-)

Nathalie in Switzerland

On Thu 22 Dec 2005 10:24:10a, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Nathalie
Chiva?

> On 21 Dec 2005 22:16:51 +0100, Wayne Boatwright
> > wrote:
>
>
>>Nathalie, I should have been more clear about the hard sauce. Yes, it
>>can be made well ahead of time, sealed tightly and refrigerated. Remove
>>from the refrigerator well ahead of time to reach room temperature, as
>>it will be quite hard. Just before serving, beat it lightly with a fork
>>to loosen the texture.
>
> Thanks - sometimes it's funny trying to cook something you've never
> eaten before, it makes you ask the most obvious questions :-)
>
> Nathalie in Switzerland
>

Sometimes things are not all that obvious. As someone else posted
(Nancy?), the hard sauce can also be sliced and served cold on top of the
hot pudding, allowing it to melt down. Either way, I do hope you enjoy
it.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
__________________________________________________ ________________
And if we enter a room full of manure, may we believe in the pony.