Natilla

[Daniel]

Looking for a recipe for Natilla a cuban pudding..

[Redsugar]

1 quart homogenized milk

1½ cups cornstarch

12 oz. light-brown sugar

4 cinnamon sticks

1 small coconut, shredded

Dissolve cornstarch in milk; add brown sugar. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly. After sugar has melted, add the cinnamon & coconut. When the natilla is very thick, pour the pudding into serving dishes.

Another version, reprinted from A Taste of Old Cuba.

[achevres]

Another version, reprinted from A Taste of Old Cuba.

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For the traditional taste, add a stick of cinammon to the milk mixture in this recipe. Also, sprinkle with ground cinammon at the end.

I have my grandmother's version, from Puerto Rico, which is very similiar to the above recipe, but made only with evaporated milk. It's sooo good. I can post it tonight.

[Daniel]

Another version, reprinted from A Taste of Old Cuba.

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For the traditional taste, add a stick of cinammon to the milk mixture in this recipe. Also, sprinkle with ground cinammon at the end.

I have my grandmother's version, from Puerto Rico, which is very similiar to the above recipe, but made only with evaporated milk. It's sooo good. I can post it tonight.

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Hey, i would really appreciate it. Last nights tres leches cake was such a hit, i would love to stick with the evaporated milk.

[Bux]

The Puerto Rican recipe I know is a soft custard somewhere between crème anglaise and flan and doesn't use corn starch. It's a custard rather than a pudding, at least in English speaking places that don't call all desserts puddings. It has lots of egg yolks. Unfortunately i don't have a recipe.

[achevres]

In my Spanish cookbook (1080 Recetas de Cocina, by Simone Ortega--in Spanish, from Spain), my favorite Puertorrican cookbook (Cocine Conmigo, by Dora Romano) and and my Cuban cookbook (Memories of a Cuban Kitchen, by Mary U. Randelman), all the natillas are made with milk, egg yolks, cornstarch, sugar and flavorings. All include cinammon, the Spanish and PR ones also have lemon or lime rind. Another Spanish cookbook I have, in English, doesn't use cornstarch. In PR and Cuba they we always do.

Here is the recipe for my grandmother Aida's Natillas. She's been making them over 50 years, and we all make them too. We never had regular vanilla pudding growing up, we had these. It is very nutritious, with all the milk, and one of my comfort foods. It uses a small amount of fresh milk to disolve the cornstarch, but I'm sure that could be done with some water, if you are out of fresh milk. One single serving would be a natilla.

Natillas

1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk

12 oz water (measure with empty milk can)

2-3 cinammon sticks

2/3 cups sugar

1/4 cup milk, cold

4 egg yolks

lime rind (2-3 inches, peeled with a potato peeler, lemon will do in a pinch)

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a heavy saucepan at medium heat, warm the milk, water, salt, 1/3 cup of sugar, cinammon sticks and lime rind.

In a small bowl, disoolve the cornstarch with the 1/4 cup regular cold milk.

In another small bowl, beat the yolks with the remaining 1/3 cup sugar until smooth, about 3 minutes. Pur a small amount of the warm milk into the yolk mixture to temper it.

Pour the yolk and cornstarch mixtures into the warm milk in the saucepan. Keep stirring at medium heat until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon.

Remove from the stove. Mix in the vanilla extract. Strain and pour into individual dishes, such as custard cups or ramekins. Sprinkle with the powdered cinammon. Refrigerate until cold and serve very cold. Makes 5-6, depending on your cups.

[Daniel]

My friend my friend.. Thank you sooo much.. Eating them right now.. they turned out great.. My office will be happy with us both.. I really appreciate it.. Added some cinnamon sugar and coconut to the top.. Thanks again.

[achevres]

My friend my friend.. Thank you sooo much.. Eating them right now.. they turned out great.. My office will be happy with us both.. I really appreciate it.. Added some cinnamon sugar and coconut to the top.. Thanks again.

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Wow, that was fast!

[Daniel]

My friend my friend.. Thank you sooo much.. Eating them right now.. they turned out great.. My office will be happy with us both.. I really appreciate it.. Added some cinnamon sugar and coconut to the top.. Thanks again.

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Wow, that was fast!

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Margaritas.... the great motivator.. I will send you a pic in the morning.

[Daniel]

My friend my friend.. Thank you sooo much.. Eating them right now.. they turned out great.. My office will be happy with us both.. I really appreciate it.. Added some cinnamon sugar and coconut to the top.. Thanks again.

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Wow, that was fast!

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Margaritas.... the great motivator.. I will send you a pic in the morning.

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[url=http://forums.egullet.org/uploads/1098848652/gallery_15057_181_

This was one of the more simple desserts I have ever made. The pay off far out weighs the effort.

Edited October 28, 2004 by Daniel (log)

[ozgirl06]

Daniel-

Looks great!

Natillas were just mentioned in this month's Saveur magazine.

I tried their recipe - it turned out really well (even in a lower fat version).

Their recipe calls for Cointreau and no coconut.

[ludja]

I'm excited to try some of the natillas recipes given above--especially with coconut incorporated or strewn on top.

I didn't see the natillas recipe in this month's Saveur but I did find this recipe online from Jul/Aug 2000.

A qutoe from the article:

"Author Carreño enjoyed this dessert at Toñico’s, after a repast of tortilla española and paella; we adapted our recipe for natillas from Mexican Family Cooking by Aída Gabilondo (Ballantine Books, 1986)."

This recipe reminds me of the only version of natillas I've had so far. This style is common and traditional in New Mexico and is where I've had it. This type is characterized by gently folding in whipped egg whites into a liquid egg yolk custard flavored with vanilla and/or cinnamon or orange. (it's similar to "floating islands" or "oeufs a la neige" but the egg whites are incorporated more thoroughly). It's very good also!

[Daniel]

I'm excited to try some of the natillas recipes given above--especially with coconut incorporated or strewn on top

I put unsweetened coconut on top, next time i am thinking i might toast the coconut..

[Daniel]

My next question with Natilla has to do with donuts. I am thinking about making a basic donut and then filling it with the Natilla. Does anyone think this will work or do you think it will get to soggy.. Is the cream in a donut different then the consitancy of the natilla.. Also anyone have a great donut recipe

Edited November 1, 2004 by Daniel (log)

[achevres]

My next question with Natilla has to do with donuts. I am thinking about making a basic donut and then filling it with the Natilla.  Does anyone think this will work or do you think it will get to soggy..

I'm almost sure it would get soggy, because when a natilla sits in the refrigerator for a few days a little water seeps out. Of course, who is letting a natilla-filled doughnut wait in the refrigerator for more than a few minutes?? But what I suggest is to look at a recipe for cream donut filling and use those proportions of cornstarch and milk and use the flavorings of the natilla. I found this recipe (the filling is a custard made also with cornstarch): EMERIL'S PASTRY CREAM DOUGHNUT FILLING

edited for clarity

Edited November 1, 2004 by achevres (log)

[Daniel]

Hey thanks alot.. I also am thinking of then putting a lime flavored sugar glaze on top and then dipping into coconut.

Couldnt i do the natilla recipe and add just a lot more cornstarch, or no.

Edited November 1, 2004 by Daniel (log)

[helenjp]

I made this recipe for Natilla de Pina today and thought to myself as I simmered the pineapple juice gently and slowly to reduce it to 1/4 cup, "I wonder if it will curdle the milk even after cooking it this long?" It did. And even better, it made the whole custard bitter. . So much for son's desired treat!

The *idea* of a pineapple custard is still good though. Any tips? These are the proportions used:

2    cups  whole milk

1/2  cup sugar

1/4  teaspoon salt

1  cup pineapple juice

1  tablespoon cornstarch

2  egg yolks, lightly beaten

[rooftop1000]

How about roasting thin slices of pineapple and shredding it in like the coconut in some of the recipes......?

tracey

[achevres]

About the pineapple flan...You can't make it with fresh milk.

I found 3 options:

Eggs and pineapple juice and no milk products: Pineapple juice flan

With crushed pineapple: Goya Pineapple Flan. You could sub undiluted evaporated milk for the cream. (Also search the site for the Pina Colada Flan).

And I also found a cream cheese and pineapple juice flan, with evaporated and condensed milk) that I can translate for you and post if you want. It only has 1/2 cup of the juice for 3 cans of milk, but you could get an idea of a flan that would work.

Flans made with evaporated and or condensed milk are creamier and more foolproof than those made with fresh milk. The fresh milk ones are much lighter (wobblier -- not my taste). But with pineapple you can't use fresh milk, as you found out.