Berries Apricot Crisp

We had a very hearty lunch at this organic Thai vegetarian restaurant called Khun Churn at Ekkamai this afternoon. I didn't think we'd have dinner except something small. So I decided to make this Berries Crisp based on the Apple Crisp recipe I liked very much.

I substituted apples with fresh strawberries, frozen raspberries and frozen apricots. Instead of using walnuts for the crispy topping, I used macadamia nuts.

I didn't think much about this knowing that it would not fail. Perhaps that's why when Adrian said "I would wear it as a perfume if they had that", I was pleasantly pleased. He also likes the resemblance of its smell to some berry jam that his mother used to make - anything that stir up good childhood memories must be good, right?

To make two servings, I quartered the amount required in the original recipe. I wanted just enough topping to provide a crispy texture to go with the soft filling. Besides, it's more of a sport eat rather than anything substantial.

Apricot Agave Nectar Souffle

I was a little disappointed with the souffle. I thought it would be awesome. Was it because I used frozen apricot instead of dried apricot? Also, I was hoping of a consistency creme brule instead of quiche. My bad.




Ingredients:
1 cup dried apricots, chopped (I used frozen)
2 tablespoons superfine sugar (cane sugar)
2 egg yolks
1 ½ tablespoons honey, warmed (I used Agave nectar)
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
4 egg whites
confectioners’ sugar, to dust

Place the apricots in a saucepan with ½ cup cold water, or enough to cover. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until the apricots are soft and pulpy. Drain and process in a food processor to a purée. (I puree the frozen apricot)

Preheat the oven to 200C. Lightly grease a 6 cup soufflé dish* and sprinkle the bottom and sides with 1 tablespoon of the sugar. Put the egg yolks, honey, lemon zest and apricot purée and beat until smooth.

Whisk the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl until soft peaks form, then beat in the remaining sugar. Fold 1 tablespoon egg whites into the apricot mixture and mix well. Lightly fold in the remaining egg white, being careful to keep the mixture light and aerated. Spoon into the soufflé dish and level the surface. Run your thumb around the inside rim to create a gap between the mixture and the wall of the dish (this will encourage even rising).

Bake on the upper shelf in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until risen and just set.
Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve at once.

* I halved the recipe, used two 1-cup capacity soufflé dishes and baked them for 15 minutes.