Meyer Lemon, Lime and Quinoa Pudding Cakes and Thoughts of Hope

It seems frivolous and inhumane to talk about food when not far from here, there are thousands and thousands of people fighting for their lives and the lives of their families. Watching the images that are coming from Haiti break my heart. I’m sure yours too. Such a poor country doesn’t deserve this. It’s hard to understand why the poor always suffer, but perhaps it should be a wake up call to all of us who do have our families with us, who do have a home and a roof and a bed to start appreciating this moment more. Because this moment is all we have.

I have worked with many Haitians in my restaurant and hotel days and they would always share horror stories of survival and hunger. My heart goes out to all of them.

There are many ways we can all help a little bit. I made my donations here. The blogging community has quickly risen up to the circumstances and many people have organized fund raisers and donations. You can visit here and here.

I would say that I would love to dedicate this post and these pudding cakes to all of those in despair, but that seems cruel in a way. I don’t know how I feel right now. I think the only way to feel should be empathetic and hopeful.

The limes for these pudding cakes came from my neighbor N.’s tree. She kindly shared them with me when the frost of last week almost destroyed all plants, herbs and anything that was growing around here. We put them to good use in these super light, almost souffle-like gluten free pudding cakes.

Meyer Lemon, Lime and Quinoa Pudding Cakes

makes about 8 4 oz ramekins

2 egg yolks
185 grams whole milk
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1/2 tsp lime zest
30 grams meyer lemon juice
30 grams lime juice
100 grams sugar
25 grams quinoa flour
pinch salt
2 egg whites

In a medium bowl, combine the egg yolks, milk, lemon zest, lime zest, lemon juice and lime juice.

In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, salt and quinoa flour. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and whisk.

Whip the egg whites until medium peaks form. Fold a third of the egg whites into the batter. Add the rest and fold gently.

Pour the batter into the greased ramekins. Fill them to the top. Place the ramekins on a deep baking pan and bring the pan to a 325F preheated oven. Pour hot water into the baking dish enough to cover the ramekins half way. Bake for about 25 minutes until set.