Big Tuesday Part II: Two Fine Recipes

I tried two new recipes over the weekend, which were so successful on the first go-around that I prepared them again today for a dinner party. The first, is a Rum Sour from The Velvet Tango Room by way of ruhlman.com (at least I think it's a Rum Sour... it goes unnamed on the blog).

Fill a shaker 3/4s full of ice, add an egg white (30 grams is ideal, says Tatiana), 3/4s of an ounce of lime juice, 3/4s ounce of simple syrup (Paulius makes his with a 2:1 sugar-water ratio) and 1.5 ounces of Mount Gay rum. Shake it well and thoroughly, for two to five minutes, and pour into a chilled glass.

It's delicious, even without the Mount Gay rum. The egg white is key:

It not only makes the concoction something of a health food or protein drink (yea, verily!), it adds some viscosity to the alcohol, which has very little tensile strength. The egg white shaken to a delicate froth seems to spread out the flavors and allow them to linger for a much longer finish.

The second recipe is for Banana Cream Pie, adapted from the excellent (but somewhat pricey) Clementine Bakery here in L.A. (Century City, to be exact), by way of The New York Times Magazine. The recipe produces four layers of pie that compliment each other perfectly. The first layer is a dense, rich graham-cracker crust; the second: soft ripe bananas, the third: bananas folded with thick pastry cream, the fourth: an unsweetened whipped cream tarted up with creme fraiche. I made one on Friday afternoon and brought it to a picnic that evening at the Getty Center, and made another for dinner tonight. Added bonus: making the pie will leave you with egg whites for two Rum Sours.From the NY Times Magazine, 1/14/2007:

Banana-Cream Pie

For the graham shell:

1 1/4 cup graham-cracker crumbs, about 10 or 11 whole crackers
1 teaspoon sugar
4 tablespoons butter, melted

For the pastry cream:

1 2/3 cups milk
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 vanilla bean, seeds scraped out and reserved
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 large egg
2 large egg yolks
1 1/2 tablespoons butter

For assembly:

1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup crème fraîche
3 1/2 medium bananas, sliced into 3/8-inch-thick rounds.

1. For the graham shell: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a bowl, combine the crumbs and sugar. Add the butter and mix, first with a fork, then with your fingers, until the crumbs are moistened. Pour the mixture into a 9-inch pie pan, using a flat-bottomed cup to press the crumbs evenly. The edges of the shell will be crumbly. Bake until lightly browned, 9 or 10 minutes. Cool completely.

2. Prepare the pastry cream: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the milk, cup sugar and the vanilla bean and seeds and bring to a simmer. Over a small bowl, sift the remaining 3 tablespoons sugar with the cornstarch. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg and yolks.

3. When the milk comes to a simmer, discard the vanilla bean. Add the cornstarch mixture to the eggs and whisk until well combined.

While whisking the egg mixture, slowly pour in about 1/4 of the milk. Transfer this mixture into the saucepan, set over low heat and simmer, whisking constantly, until it reaches the consistency of thick pudding. (Be careful not to curdle the eggs.) Remove from the heat and stir in the butter until incorporated. Pour into a shallow bowl, place plastic wrap directly on the surface and chill.

4. To assemble: Using an electric mixer or a whisk, whip the heavy cream and crème fraîche into peaks. Transfer the pastry cream to a large bowl and whisk until smooth. Fold in 1/2 cup of the whipped cream. Line the bottom of the cooled pie shell with a layer of bananas. Fold the remaining bananas into the pastry cream, then spoon it evenly into the shell. Mound the remaining whipped cream on top, swirling it decoratively. Chill and serve within 24 hours. Serves 8.