Two questions - is the idea that the nuts will be strained out? and if i make it in advance, do i bring to room temp or leave chilled? thanks!

UhOhSarah
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7 Comments

bexster April 24, 2023
So it doesn't specifically say to strain the pistachios but is that what is meant by straining, in addition to straining out any cooked egg bits? Are the nuts to be tossed? Seems a shame as pistachios are quite expensive. I imagine the texture might be confusing with the nuts in the custard but that's a lot of pistachios to just throw away.
 
hardlikearmour September 29, 2015
Also I love a crème brûlée to be cold and creamy with a shattering almost burnt sugar crust.
 
UhOhSarah September 29, 2015
Awesome I'm gonna give it a trial run tonight for a dinner party on Fri. Thanks for your help :)
 
hardlikearmour September 29, 2015
I suspect the nuts are meant to be strained out, so they just infuse their flavor into the mix w/o adding potentially off-putting texture. Rose Levy Berenbaum has a pistachio creme anglaise recipe in the Cake Bible that does the same thing and it is delicious, and tastes obviously of pistachio.
 
702551 September 24, 2015
No, the nuts are incorporated in the custard, no straining is indicated in the recipe. Besides the nuts are finely chopped.

Keep in the fridge until you are ready to glaze and serve promptly. That's what restaurant pastry kitchens do.
 
UhOhSarah September 29, 2015
In fact, straining is indicated in the recipe, in step 5. So I'm wondering whether the nuts are meant to be ground finely enough that they make it through the sieve, or if they are just used for flavor.
 
702551 September 29, 2015
Well, I'll be darned, I didn't see that in step 5. My apologies.

Yes, the nut fragments are meant to be strained out, they contribute flavor, but not texture.

Straining also remove some of the lumps from the custard mix, pretty standard practice for custards.
 
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