BURNT CUSTARD PUDDING

COMBINE MILK AND VANILLA in a pot, place over high heat, bring to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Remove vanilla bean, dry well and store in an airtight plastic bag. You can use a vanilla bean about 3 times. Meanwhile, combine eggs, yolks, flour and ½ cup of white sugar in a mixing bowl and mix well. Slowly pour scalded milk over the egg mixture, mixing all the time. Pour this mixture back into the pot and place over medium heat. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the mixture thickens, about 10 minutes. Scrape the cooked mixture into a bowl and let cool. When cool, cover and place in the refrigerator to chill. Not more than 30 minutes before serving, mix remaining white sugar together with brown sugar. Divide the custard between 4 soup bowls and sprinkle the surface with all the sugar. Wipe the bottom of a 6-inch heavy skillet to remove any loose debris and place over high heat. When the skillet is very hot, use it to burn the surface of the custard. Carefully press the surface of each custard with the bottom of the hot skillet. The sugar will quickly burn and there will be a lot of smoke. Quickly wipe the bottom of the skillet after each custard is burnt and replace on the heat for a minute to get it hot. Don't refrigerate custards after burning and serve within 30 minutes.

MICHAEL ROBERTS - PRODIGY GUEST CHEFS COOKBOOK

Your BURNT CUSTARD PUDDING is ready. Buon appetito!