For my birthday cake Peg made a Charlotte. Actually she didn't get around to making it until a few days later because there was no room in the refrigerator for it. It was made with Greek yogurt instead of cream, lady fingers and canned peaches. It surprised me by both being very good and not falling apart when she unmolded it.
 |
| Charlotte |
Recipe from Lunch in Paris by Elizabeth Bard
“STUDENT” CHARLOTTE
Charlotte aux Abricots
A real charlotte is a ritzy affair, made with crème pâtissière and ladyfingers soaked in alcohol. To this day, I prefer the student version, fromage blanc or Greek yogurt and canned apricots straight from the supermarket. This is essentially an arts and crafts project—all assembly—but it does need to be done the night before you want to serve it, so the ladyfingers have time to soak up the juices. Ideal for breakfast, brunch, or a casual dinner with friends.
25–35 crisp Italian ladyfingers (depending on size)
3 cups fromage blanc or Greek yogurt
One 32-ounce can apricots or pears in heavy syrup
Line the sides of a small saucepan or soufflé dish, approximately 6 inches in diameter, with plastic wrap.
Line the sides of your mold with ladyfingers. They should stand shoulder to shoulder like toy soldiers. You can use a dab of yogurt to keep them in place if you like.
Arrange a layer of ladyfingers on the bottom of the pan (cut them to fit). Try to make them symmetrical, as this layer will become the top when you serve.
Add a layer of fromage blanc (about ¾ cup) and a layer of sliced apricots. Top with a layer of ladyfingers, press gently, then pour over ¼ cup apricot syrup.
Continue with 2 or 3 more layers, ending with a layer of ladyfingers topped with ¼ cup syrup. Pour an extra ¼ cup syrup around the edge to make sure the outer ladyfingers are moist.
Cover with plastic wrap and press the top lightly with a plate or saucer to condense the mixture. Chill for at least 12 hours, preferably overnight. To unmold, place the serving plate on top of the saucepan and flip, giving the pan a gentle shake. Carefully peel away the plastic lining if it sticks.
Yield: Serves 4–6, or 2 sex-crazed individuals eating breakfast at six p.m.
Tip: Depending on the absorbency of your ladyfingers, there may be a bit of extra juice at the bottom of the dish when you unmold the charlotte. Just blot it with a paper towel.
We said goodbye to our neighbors John and Judy and left Kissimmee this morning around 10 a.m. We expected a quick 1 1/2 hour trip to Ormond Beach but it took us that long just to get to the other side of Orlando. Traffic was moving along at 6 to 10 mph and only broke when most of the cars lined up to get off at the Universal Studios exit. I'm glad we're done with Florida's Middle Kingdom.
When we arrived at our current park, Ridgecrest Community Mobile Home Park, we found that they had given our spot away, but they gave us an even better one close to the office and laundry.
 |
| Our spot in Ormond Beach |
This is an older park, more mobile home village than RV park. They have a few spots open for transients like us and seasonals like our neighbors from Illinois, but most of the units are older, permanent trailers. I had some concerns looking at the park from above, on Google maps, that it might be really trashy. The stereotype of "trailer trash" does have basis in reality and it was a definite possibility here. I am pleased to be able to say that this is not the case here. Yes the units are older, but there is an overall sense of pride of place and most of them are very well kept up. Here is a typical example.
And another.
I can't figure out what the Mercedes is doing here.
Here is the "landscaping" for one trailer that caught my eye. A cow for Gail, a dog for Dave, a frog for Frank and a pig for...any one want a pig?
Tomorrow we'll head to the beach and the library. Woohoo! Intrepid adventurers that we are.
No comments:
Post a Comment