Pop quiz hotshots…
General Satisfaction is:
a) A minor character in the Stanley Kubrik classic Doctor Strangelove,
b) A new character in the game Clue / Cluedo. ” It was General Satisfaction in the billiard room. With the Candlestick” or,
c) A Victorian nursery pudding with the most awesome name ever?
I made this to take to my family on Christmas day and let me tell you…general satisfaction became major happiness as people tucked in. And who would not be happy with this mix of lemony berries, topped with sponge finger biscuits liberally soaked in limoncello, topped with a lovely lemony custard and then baked with a meringue topping?
Yep. It’s like you’ve died and gone to heaven….
One of the side effects of the Paleo diet is that I seem to have become hyper-sensitive to sugar. The first version I made of this was so sweet I actually couldn’t eat it, Someone else in the house had no such qualms. He’s lying in a diabetic coma as we speak.
My first introduction to General Satisfaction came from recipe came from Tamasin Day-Lewis’ Supper for A Song . There is also this version online:
I “unsweetened” this by swapping out the jam for a slightly more tart lemon curd and adding some fresh (frozen) berries into the base mix. I also added some limoncello to the custard mix. Just because…name me one thing that isn’t made better by a liberal splash o’ booze. And you know, it is the season….
It was still pretty sweet though.
This is at it’s best straight out of the oven with the custard runny and the meringue all crispy. However the last few pieces were also pretty good at room temperature a few days later as part of an afternoon tea.
And if you make this, true to it’s name, I promise you will not be disappointed!!!
I am also interested to know what are most kookiest food names you have come across? General Satisfaction must be right up there but I would love to know yours!!!
Wishing you and yours not only general satisfaction but super happy fun times for 2015. May it also be the year you learn to stop worrying…
General Satisfaction
A lovely tangy take on a Victorian nursery pudding.
Ingredients
- 1 level tbsp cornflour
- 425g full cream milk
- 1 vanilla pod, split, seeds scraped (or 1 tbsp vanilla essence)
- 3 large eggs, separated
- 5 tbsp caster sugar
- 170g lemon curd
- 1 cup mixed berries, thawed if using frozen
- 1 tbsp warm water
- 1/4 cup limoncello, maybe a bit more….
- 10–12 savoiardi or sponge finger biscuits
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180c.
For The Custard
- Mix the cornflour with 1 tbsp milk.
- Pour the milk into a small, heavy saucepan. Add the vanilla seeds, empty pod and cornflour mix.
- Bring to the boil, stirring then drop the heat and simmer, still stirring for a coupe of minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Whisk the egg yolks in a bowl then whisk in a tablespoonful of the milk mixture. Repeat three times then pout the combined egg and milk mixture into the warmed milk.
- Set the pan back over low heat, and whisk until the custard thickens and is perfectly smooth. Don’t let it boil. Remove from the heat, and whisk in 2 tablespoon of the sugar and half of the limoncello. Set aside to cool.
For The Lemon Berry Sauce
- Mix the lemon curd with 1 tbsp of just boiled water until runny and pour into the base of a medium baking dish.
- Scatter the berries over the curd then press them down with a potato masher to flatten them down a bit and get their juices running.
- Lay the savoiardi on top of the curd and berry mix and sprinkle with the remaining limoncello.
- Poor the cooled custard over the biscuits, straining if it is lumpy.
For The Meringue
- Whisk the egg whites until stiff, then whisk in the remaining sugar, little by little until you have a firm shiny meringue.
- Spoon the meringue over the custard.
- Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for about 20 minutes until the meringue is pale golden and crisp when you tap it.
Notes
- Adding a little bit of the milk to the egg, prevents the egg from cooking.
