Fruit Custard

Being a person with a sweet tooth, fruit custard has always been my all time favorite dessert. I would never mind an extra serving and fight with my siblings for the last spoon. Creamy custard with chunks of fruits and the crunchiness of nuts calls for an outright war.

Fruit custard can be served with or without jelly. Adding whipped fresh cream is also a good option for those who care nothing about calories.

Any seasonal fruit of your choice can be added, Apples, pears, pineapple, strawberries, mangoes, chikoo, bananas, sweet grapes etc. Walnuts, almonds, pistachio,s raisins and chopped dates work wonders. For those of you who don’t like fruits, only dry-fruits is an excellent option.

If you are planning to serve immediately, then keep the custard in sauce consistency, but if you are cooking ahead to serve for the next day, do keep the custard sauce thick (3 tbsps custard powder), as the fruits release moisture and the dessert becomes syrupy.

To add extra richness to the dessert it is optional to add 2-3 tbsp of milk powder to the milk before boiling. Also the sweetness can be adjusted with jaggery, condensed milk or only sugar.

And again, if you don’t count calories, try topping it with a scoop of your favourite ice cream. 

This recipe serves 2-3 people. One serving of this recipe (1/3rd portion) provides approximately 447 Calories.

Here is what you’ll need:

½ litre milk

2 ½  tbsp custard powder

¾ cup sugar (no jaggery, no condensed milk)

2 cups of mixed fruits of your choice

Method:

1. In a bowl take 2 tbsp of milk at room temperature and dissolve the custard powder in it.
2.  Boil rest of the milk with sugar.
3. Only when the milk comes to a complete boil add the custard milk and start stirring with a whisk.
4. While continually stirring, bring the custard to a boil again and switch off the flame.
5. Make sure no lumps are formed.
6.  Leave the custard to cool down to room temperature and then refrigerate.
7. Chop the fruits into small pieces and add to the custard.
8. Garnish with nuts and serve cold.

 Note: After refrigerating, if the custard looks very thick, use a hand blender and whip well.

Recipe by Zohra Sada