Posted by lorna-organic on Thu, Jan 31, 08 at 11:10
This pudding is light and slightly foamy. I love the flavor and texture. BTW, the unfortunate witch hunt regarding eggs has gone by the wayside. Current thinking is that an egg a day has no detrimental effect regarding cholesterol.
NATILLAS (pronounced Nah-tee-yahs) a Mexican dessert
4 large eggs, separated
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup flour
1 quart milk (4 cups)
3/4 cup sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg, plus 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
Use a whisk to make a paste of egg yolks, flour and 1 cup of the milk. In a medium saucepan add the sugar and salt to the remaining milk and scald at medium temperature. Add the egg yolk mixture to the scalded milk, whilst stirring constantly to prevent the egg from curdling. Add vanilla and continue to cook, and stir, at medium heat until it reaches the consistency of soft custard. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Beat egg whites until stiff but not dry, fold gently into the custard. Spoon custard into individual serving dishes. Chill well before serving. Sprinkle each pudding with spices before serving.
**If you goof, and the custard curdles (bits of cooked egg) during cooking, put the mixture through a sieve before folding in the egg whites. The sieve will remove any curdled egg. Hint: a tiny dash of salt, or cream of tartar, helps egg whites to beat up nice and fluffy.
Cultural note: Mexican folk healers use cinnamon as a laxative.
