LEMON LIME POTS DE CREME

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 275 degrees F.
• Peel zest from the lemon and the lime with either a vegetable peeler or a paring knife, being careful to avoid the bitter white pith.
• Bring about 2 cups of water to a boil in a small saucepan and add the zest(You are blanching the zest to make it a bit softer).
• Cook for 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, juice the lemon and the lime.
• Discard the juiced rinds.
• Remove the peeled zest from the boiling water and place the zest in a blender(*Note: You are placing only the ZEST in the blender, NOT the water).
• Add remaining ingredients and blend on high for 5 minutes.
• Strain mixture through a fine sieve if you want a smooth texture, otherwise leave it and enjoy the super tiny bits of citrus rind in your custard.
• Fill 6 half cup ramekins 3/4 full with the custard mixture.
• Place ramekins on a baking pan and fill the pan with hot water to the level of the custard in the ramekins.
• Place the baking pan in the oven, carefully, and bake for 30-35 minutes until set.
• Remove ramekins from water bath and set on a rack to cool.
• Garnish with kiwi and/or strawberry, if desired.
• ***Please note: Based on Sheepie87's review, I want to clarify that you are not putting the blanching water in the blender, just the blanched pieces of zest(putting the hot water into the blender will certainly result in way too much liquid being present and the poor little custards will never ever set!) Also, you do not need to temper the eggs because they are blended in a cool/room temp liquid(the juices, milk and sugar mixture) and then baked(you only need to temper eggs that are going into a HOT liquid -- again, I need to emphasize that you are NOT using the hot water for anything other than blanching the zest.) Good luck and sorry for any confusion that the original wording may have caused. These really are nice light citrus custards that can be served warm or cool --- a little whipped cream and a sprig of mint and you're over the top! See the pics I posted to get an idea of the texture on the spoon and the look both cooked in the ramekin and plated. Thanks! (6/16/07).