madcatlady, inspired by the season and by a general appreciation for sweet things, hosted Pudmas this weekend, a evening of all desserts, all the time. Well - with crudités, crackers, cheese, sliced meat, and dips to leaven the saccharine. - A tender rice pudding was leavened with clementine segments and spiced with cardamon and nutmeg, I think.
- A slice of firm chocolate rice crispy bar, topped with alcohol-soaked berries and topped with thick cream and grated chocolate had its sublime moments. The milk-chocolate flecked boozy berries with cream was superb. The rice crispy bar was overkill, a firm foundation on which the lighter elements rested. I had to carve out bites; fine on its own, but the rest was much better. (G)
- Treacle pudding filled the kitchen with dense caramely sweetness. The pudding itself was respectable, done right, but with nothing more to raise it above solid competence.
- Bananas Foster were all alcohol. The overwhelming brandy sauce was too much on its own, or even just with the bananas. A lavish dollop of mascarpone proved apt enough foil, but only in small sauce doses. (K)
- The chocolate-and-cream layer cake was a more subtle confection than its immediate competition, and so my taste buds couldn't do it justice.
- The mousse was richly chocolately. (D)
- Trifle, with its pleasant underpinning of yielding soft fruits, was far too liquid to hold together.
- Panettone bread pudding with
brandyamaretto custard was excellent, the dried fruit leavening the custardy richness of the pudding. Thebrandyamaretto was handled with a light enough touch to complement the panettone's own flavors rather than overwhelming them.
I know I missed the first dessert of the evening, a vanilla soufflé, and the Eton mess promised for later in the evening. After my first game of Robo Rally - hilarious, fun, engaging, strategic, accidental - we left for the drive back down through starlight to the south.
