British desserts. Not exactly what I gravitate towards, besides, uh, sticky toffee pudding (zomg, <3). But a while back, when I was in London, I picked up a number of canned items for my pantry, including a nice haul from Ambrosia, mostly because I really adore puddings, and they seem to carry many.
"For 100 years, the rolling hills of Devon have been home to Ambrosia's creamery. We let nature do the talking and ensure happiness is poured into everything we do so you can enjoy Ambrosia's delicious Devon creaminess."
Ambrosia is a well known maker of food products from the UK, mostly using dairy from their creamery. All very shelf-stable, pantry items, no frills. They've been around more than 100 years, so they must be doing something right?
''A day in Devon is a day well lived, and a passion for our home is poured into everything we do. From the first beads of morning dew glistening on the lush grass, the chattering streams running between the rolling hillsides, and the misty sunsets over the quiet farms, it's Ambrosia's home. At our Devon creamery, we let nature do the talking. It's what makes Ambrosias special. We put all our love into creating delicious puddings to satisfy your whole family''
My British friend said their products are the sort of thing your grandmother would serve. Not something that anyone our age would ever seek out. I realize they are generic, and sold everywhere. But, uh, I liked some of their products!
I've tried a number of the products, and none are remarkable right out of the can (or box), but with a little transformation, they do become decently successful, and quite easy.
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| Transformed canned desserts! |
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| Original Devon Rice Pudding. |
Rice pudding, also known as "creamed rice". I do really like rice pudding but ...
Yes, I was skeptical, as this was coming out of a can after all. And the British aren't exactly known for their culinary delights ...
The can instructed me that I could eat it hot or cold. Since cold wasn't an option unless I wanted to wait for it to cool down from room temperature, I went the hot route. I warmed it up on the stovetop, but snuck a few bites before it came up to temperature. It wasn't remarkable. There wasn't much flavor to it, but the rice was cooked really nicely at least. Far better than the rice pudding I get at many restaurants actually, where the rice is often kinda mushy.
As I waited for it to get warm, I decided to jazz it up a bit, and mixed in a pinch of cinnamon. Then I pulled some frozen blueberries out of the freezer and threw them on top. The result? DELICIOUS. It was a really great consistency, not too runny, not too thick, just right. And as I mentioned, the rice was perfectly cooked, not crunchy, not mushy, just right.
Since I didn't eat the entire can in one sitting, I put the rest in the fridge, and tried it cold the next day. It wasn't very good, kinda goopy, and not very flavorful. So I heated it up, this time in the toaster oven, again added cinnamon and blueberries, but this time also some toasted coconut and pecans. The coconut wasn't really necessary, but I liked the added crunch from the nuts.
Right out the jar it was fairly lackluster, but it is a great base for adding a few toppings and enjoying easy delicious rice pudding. Who knew?
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| Light Rice Pudding: Single Serve. |
Next I tried the light rice pudding, available in a single serve plastic container. As before, I took a bite at room temperature, and it just wasn't very good. The flavor was virtually nonexistent and it was kinda just gloopy. It wasn't thick or creamy.
So, as before, I heated it up, in the toaster oven rather than microwave as advised.
It was better when warm, but still not very interesting. So again, I jazzed it up ...
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| Light Rice Pudding + Whipped Cream + Rum Caramel + Maple Bacon Caramel Corn. |
Well, a dollop of whipped cream to start, because, the light nature of this just meant it didn't have enough creaminess. The whipped cream melted in instantly as the rice pudding was piping hot, and it created a pool of richness right in the center, delicious to keep slightly separate, or to mix in.
In the center of that I added a scoop of rum caramel sauce. Now this was likely the element that transformed the rice pudding entirely. Sweet and boozy, and it added flavor to every single bite, particularly as it mixed in more.
And finally, a sprinkle of the leftover bits of a bag of maple bacon caramel corn. This was also awesome, as it added some bits of crunch and saltiness.
I really loved my creation. It was warm and comforting, sweet and salty. But ... at this point, I'm mostly just evaluating my toppings, not the original product itself.
Thus, I say, it is a great base for making a fun dessert? The rice pudding pot itself was only 95 calories, actually a nice light option, but, uh, whipped cream, caramel sauce, and bacon caramel corn likely at least doubled that ... gulp. I'm not good at "light".
Next up, custard. Not pudding, but, custard.
I'm not sure when, but somewhere along the way I picked up a little individual pot of the devon custard. I'm sure I had plans at the time of making a trifle, or using it as a sauce on top of sticky pudding, or who knows what, but I eventually found it in my pantry, and decided to just eat it, even though I knew that the custard isn't really like American pudding, and you weren't generally supposed to just eat it plain.
I took one bite. Meh. As expected, it wasn't thick like pudding. The flavor was very, very plain. Slightly sweet I suppose, but rather synthetic. At least it was very smooth?
Undeterred, I heated some up. I liked it more warm, but it was still boring. I pressed on.
I added a little vanilla extract to one little bowl full. Better, but still, not interesting. I added some caramel to another. Sweet now for sure, but still not doing it for me. I added large salt flecks to make salted caramel. Still not interesting.
I warmed up strawberries and raspberries, and poured it over them. Sure, a fine combination, but it didn't do it for me either.
My final attempt was to top it with whipped cream. The whipped cream quickly melted as the custard was hot, and it pooled up on top. And ... yeah, I really liked it.
Anyway, I enjoyed experimenting and trying to make something of it, but in the future, I'd stick to using it more as intended, to pour over another dessert, rather than as a base for a creation.
"The new Deluxe range from Ambrosia is our creamiest, most luxurious velvety custard. This is because we made it using fresh cream and blended it with the finest ingredients to create mouth-watering flavours. Ambrosia Deluxe is so delicious, you won't be able to resist. Just dive straight in and enjoy the heavenly taste, hot or cold!"
Next, a more premium product, a "deluxe custard". These came in boxes, not cans. So fancy?
The can was strange, but a box was a bit harder for me to wrap my head around. I was again skeptical. Still, um, "Deluxe" and with extra clotted cream? Who was I to pass this up.
The large box has 4-5 servings in it, but is hard to save once opened, since, well, its a box.
I tried it straight from the box, room temp. It wasn't bad. Not an amazing vanilla flavor, but really perfectly creamy, great consistency.
Then I put it in the fridge, and had some cold. That was even better, a bit more firm.
Then I heated it up. It thinned out. I liked it less this way.
And then of course I started adding toppings, as it was good, but a bit plain on its own.
It went amazingly with the crispy caramel pearls. It worked well with fruit, and I know many people simply serve it over fruit as a dessert. I read online that people like mixing in a scoop of peanut butter, which I tried, but did not like.
Overall, very successful for a boxed product, best when cold, best when jazzed up a bit, but still perfectly satisfying right from the box.
Last up was the semolina, back to a canned form.
I can't say it looked appealing. And, at room temp, it was not exactly tasty, just kinda bland, gloopy ... stuff. Still, I know these products do better warmed up, or, actually chilled, not room temp.
Like the others, it said it could be heated in a saucepan or a microwave. I had just finished cooking dinner and hadn't yet cleaned up the saucepans, so I just grabbed a little non-stick skillet, and hoped it would do the trick. Seemed better than microwaving at least, right?
While it heated slowly, I got to work assembling toppings, as it was immediately obvious that this would need toppings.
I did try it plain, warmed, of course, and that was better than room temperature, but only barely. It needed help. So help I gave it.
I had too many ideas. Did I want to go fruity with fresh fruit? Frozen fruit for a hot/cold contrast? Jam? Or did I want to go really sweet, with caramel or white chocolate? Or Greek style with honey and nuts? Speaking of nuts, I needed some crunch right? What about toasted coconut? Or, hmm, cinnamon and dried fruit, more healthy? So many options.
In the end, I went for a mix of everything. I was incredibly pleased with the end result. So much for a healthy little bowl of semolina pudding!
From top, clockwise:
Butter pecan sauce, which added texture from the pecans in it, and sweetness from the sauce. It was a nice compliment to the plain base
.
White chocolate shavings, which melted in, and left pockets of creamy sweetness behind. Excellent
choice.
Brown butter caramel, which gave it a real depth of flavor, much like a richer butterscotch. This melted in beautifully and I quickly added more.
Caramel popcorn! More crunch, more textures, more sweet, and, um, fun?
In the center I put a dollop of whipped cream, which pooled up and melted in the middle, adding richness. And on top, I sprinkled Bourbon smoked sea salt , which just amped up the flavors considerably.
I quickly added far more brown butter caramel once I tasted how well it mixed in, along with another hit of the bourbon smoked sea salt. In the end, I was very pleased. I had a warm comforting base, sweet components, crunch, salt, and cream. I'm not sure how much praise I give the semolina itself though ...
Thus, I say, it is a great base for making a fun dessert? The rice pudding pot itself was only 95 calories, actually a nice light option, but, uh, whipped cream, caramel sauce, and bacon caramel corn likely at least doubled that ... gulp. I'm not good at "light".
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| Light Devon Custard. |
I'm not sure when, but somewhere along the way I picked up a little individual pot of the devon custard. I'm sure I had plans at the time of making a trifle, or using it as a sauce on top of sticky pudding, or who knows what, but I eventually found it in my pantry, and decided to just eat it, even though I knew that the custard isn't really like American pudding, and you weren't generally supposed to just eat it plain.
I took one bite. Meh. As expected, it wasn't thick like pudding. The flavor was very, very plain. Slightly sweet I suppose, but rather synthetic. At least it was very smooth?
Undeterred, I heated some up. I liked it more warm, but it was still boring. I pressed on.
I added a little vanilla extract to one little bowl full. Better, but still, not interesting. I added some caramel to another. Sweet now for sure, but still not doing it for me. I added large salt flecks to make salted caramel. Still not interesting.
I warmed up strawberries and raspberries, and poured it over them. Sure, a fine combination, but it didn't do it for me either.
My final attempt was to top it with whipped cream. The whipped cream quickly melted as the custard was hot, and it pooled up on top. And ... yeah, I really liked it.
Anyway, I enjoyed experimenting and trying to make something of it, but in the future, I'd stick to using it more as intended, to pour over another dessert, rather than as a base for a creation.
 |
| Deluxe Custard: Vanilla with Clotted Cream. |
Next, a more premium product, a "deluxe custard". These came in boxes, not cans. So fancy?
The can was strange, but a box was a bit harder for me to wrap my head around. I was again skeptical. Still, um, "Deluxe" and with extra clotted cream? Who was I to pass this up.
The large box has 4-5 servings in it, but is hard to save once opened, since, well, its a box.
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| Deluxe Custard: Vanilla with Clotted Cream: Room Temp. |
Then I put it in the fridge, and had some cold. That was even better, a bit more firm.
Then I heated it up. It thinned out. I liked it less this way.
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| Deluxe Custard: Vanilla with Clotted Cream: With Toppings! |
It went amazingly with the crispy caramel pearls. It worked well with fruit, and I know many people simply serve it over fruit as a dessert. I read online that people like mixing in a scoop of peanut butter, which I tried, but did not like.
Overall, very successful for a boxed product, best when cold, best when jazzed up a bit, but still perfectly satisfying right from the box.
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| Canned Semolina. |
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| "Fresh" From the Can. |
Like the others, it said it could be heated in a saucepan or a microwave. I had just finished cooking dinner and hadn't yet cleaned up the saucepans, so I just grabbed a little non-stick skillet, and hoped it would do the trick. Seemed better than microwaving at least, right?
While it heated slowly, I got to work assembling toppings, as it was immediately obvious that this would need toppings.
I did try it plain, warmed, of course, and that was better than room temperature, but only barely. It needed help. So help I gave it.
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| Semolina Pudding: Brown Butter Caramel / White Chocolate Shavings / Butter Pecan Sauce / Caramel Corn / Whipped Cream / Bourbon Smoked Sea Salt |
In the end, I went for a mix of everything. I was incredibly pleased with the end result. So much for a healthy little bowl of semolina pudding!
From top, clockwise:
Butter pecan sauce, which added texture from the pecans in it, and sweetness from the sauce. It was a nice compliment to the plain base
.
White chocolate shavings, which melted in, and left pockets of creamy sweetness behind. Excellent
choice.
Brown butter caramel, which gave it a real depth of flavor, much like a richer butterscotch. This melted in beautifully and I quickly added more.
Caramel popcorn! More crunch, more textures, more sweet, and, um, fun?
In the center I put a dollop of whipped cream, which pooled up and melted in the middle, adding richness. And on top, I sprinkled Bourbon smoked sea salt , which just amped up the flavors considerably.
I quickly added far more brown butter caramel once I tasted how well it mixed in, along with another hit of the bourbon smoked sea salt. In the end, I was very pleased. I had a warm comforting base, sweet components, crunch, salt, and cream. I'm not sure how much praise I give the semolina itself though ...
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