| Recipe: |
It's called a pudding... but it's more like a super dense/super creamy/ super chocolatey mousse! Serves 4.
2 c plain quark*
1/4 c powdered sugar
1/4 c splenda
3/4 c Dutched cocoa powder
1.5 t vanilla extract
Blend with mixer. Put in small bowls. Serve with demitasse spoons (you want to slow yourself down so you can stretch out the enjoyment).
* The original recipe called for 2 c "fat-free vanilla quark" and 2 T Truvia sweetener. I couldn't find quark in my local stores, so I went online and found out how to make my own. It's a bit of a pain, but it turned out so good that I think it's worth the effort occasionally :-)
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Homemade Plain Quark
2 quarts whole milk
2 c CULTURED buttermilk
First a note on the buttermilk... at least a couple of the recipes I found emphasized that the buttermilk needed to be cultured (the Trader Joe's buttermilk ingredients list is "milk, cultures, salt") and not loaded with starches and gums (the Shamrock Farms buttermilk ingredients are "Cultured Lowfat Milk, Nonfat Milk, Modified Food Starch, Sodium Citrate, Locust Bean Gum, Carrageenan, Salt, Vitamins A & D". Since the process seems to use the buttermilk FOR its cultures, this sounds like an important distinction to me. But then again, the Shamrock Farms list DID say "cultured milk". I opted to use the Trader Joe's... if anyone tries it with another kind of buttermilk, please let me know how it went and I'll update these notes!
Gently warm milk to about 125 F. (I had to rush it with the burner higher, but stirred constantly to compensate and that seemed to work well.) Cool to 85-100 F. Put in a glass bowl and stir in buttermilk. Cover and place in warm spot until milk thickens and stars to separate into a very, VERY soft curd and mostly clear whey. This should take 1-2 days. I made mine when the house was pretty cool. After 14 hours I wasn't seeing any progress, so I put it in the oven, preheated it for 30-45 SECONDS, turned it off and let it sit. I repeated the 30-45 second pre-heating every half hour or so until the milk was warm (80's F) again. About 8 hours later I saw the whey and it was ready to strain.
And now I'm going to send you to the page I primarily referenced... they've got pictures of the straining process (and several other recipe options):
http://www.instructables.com/id/What-the-Quark-DIY-German-Quark/ |