Princeton Food Scene: A simple winter comfort food, halal food festival, plant-based potluck

Sweet simplicity: Baked custard is a favorite comfort food

January is a great time for comfort food. 

As we huddle at home, listening to winds blowing outside, we reach for our favorites, whether they be macaroni and cheese, a hearty beef or vegetarian stew, chili, meatloaf, pasta or casseroles.

Ice cream is a favorite comfort food, but somehow it doesn’t seem appropriate when temperatures are dropping steadily and snow is drifting on the windowsills. Instead, I head for the kitchen and make one of the easiest, simplest comfort foods you can imagine.

Baked egg custard is an old-fashioned dessert. It’s good served alone or topped with whipped cream or cooked fruit (your favorite jam will do fine). It’s also a perfect dessert when you need a gluten-free option. For those avoiding cow’s milk, I have tried a variety of alternative milks; the best is plain soy milk, although you can use the sweet vanilla version. Just adjust how much sugar you add and don’t add any more vanilla.

I have dressed up baked custard by adding a half-cup of pumpkin puree and topping it with nutmeg or cinnamon.  However you serve it, baked custard is sweet simplicity.

Halal Food Festival

As part of Muslim Heritage Month, a Halal Food Festival will take place from 3 to 8 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 19 at the Muslim Center of Greater Princeton, 2030 Old Trenton Road, West Windsor.

Plant-based potluck

For ideas on plant-based dishes and a chance to meet like-minded vegans, bring your favorite plant-based dish to a potluck dinner at 6 p.m. on Jan. 20 sponsored by Princeton Eats Plants.

“New Year, New You!” will take place at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Princeton. If you can’t make it to that event, the next potluck will take place on Feb. 5 at the same location.

Ice harvest

The last weekend in January brings the return of events at the Howell Living History Farm in Hopewell Township. Leading off a new year of events is the annual ice harvest, when ice is cut  from the farm pond to be used to cool foods and milk.

According to Howell Farm records, neighbors once called it the “ice farm” because of the family business of selling ice.  The event includes demonstrations of how they cut, hauled, and handled ice at the circa turn-of-the-20th-century farm.

The event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 25. Visitors to the farm can participate in hauling ice blocks and chipping ice to make ice cream. For more on the event and the upcoming calendar, see howellfarm.org.

Making mozzarella

Olssen’s Fine Foods in Palmer Square has a full lineup of classes for those who want to use the winter as a time for learning.

In hands-on classes, students can learn to make their own mozzarella. After learning how to stretch, heat, and mold mozzarella, they will go home with their own ball of cheese.

The fee for each class is $35. Classes at 7 p.m. are scheduled for Jan. 28, Feb. 4 and 20, and March 11. Classes at 9 p.m. are set for March 1 and 22. See the website olssonsfinefoods.com/mozzarella-making-class/  to register.

Egg custard recipe

This simple recipe from allrecipes.com is baked in a water bath, which is easier than it sounds. Just follow the directions and everything should work out perfectly.

2 cups milk

2 large eggs, beaten

½ cup white sugar

1 pinch salt

1 dash of vanilla extract

1 pinch ground nutmeg (optional)

1. Gather all ingredients. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2. Whisk milk, eggs, sugar, salt, and vanilla together in a bowl until completely combined. Pour egg mixture into 6 custard cups; sprinkle tops with nutmeg.
3. Place cups in a baking pan and fill the pan with enough hot water to reach halfway up the sides of the custard cups.
4. Bake in the preheated oven until a knife inserted into the custard comes out clean and the custards are set, about 1 hour. Cool completely before serving.

Nutrition facts:  Calories 130;  total fat 3g; saturated fat 2 g; cholesterol 69 mg; sodium 57 mg; total carbohydrate 21 g; total sugars 21g; protein 5 g; calcium 105 mg; potassium 146 mg.