STEAMED THAI PUMPKIN CUSTARD

STEAMED  THAI  PUMPKIN  CUSTARD:                ASIA
INGREDIENTS:     ( serves  4 )

3  fresh eggs
3/4  cup  plum sugar
3  pandanus  leaves
400  g coconut milk
1   small pumpkin

METHOD:

• With a small sharp knife cut 5-6 pointed star- shaped openings around the stem of the pumpkin. Lift the stem and remove seeds and membrane from the inside.
• Proceed to mix sugar and pandanus leaves with eggs. Beat the mixture for about 10 minutes before adding coconut milk.
• Strain the mixture through cheesecloth into the pumpkin and fill it up to one inch from the top.
• Support the base of the pumpkin in a bowl of the same size. Place in a steamer tray, putting the pumpkin stem beside the bowls in the tray and steam over vigorously boiling water until cooked for 45 minutes.
• Slice the pumpkin before serving.

TIPS : A perfect balance of textures, the steamed egg custard shows the influence of the portuguese on Thai cuisine, who introduced the idea of adding eggs to desserts in the 1600s.