CiberCuba Cocina
Viscount | Photo © CiberCuba Kitchen

Viscounts

Kitchen, Desserts

Kitchen, Desserts

Lemon
Egg
Dairy products
Milk
Preparation Time:
30
Note:
Vizcondes is a little-known dessert by its name. It was a reader of Comida Cubana who requested the recipe for this dessert from her childhood. On the blog Palmas Amigas, by a Cuban blogger, the traditional recipe is discussed. Vizcondes is a dessert of Spanish origin, from León. I learned this recipe by hearsay, but I used to make it with María cookies, although I didn’t know its name or origin. While researching Vizconde, I learned that a famous confectioner from Ranchuelo frequently made it with custard and scraps of sponge cake for his family to consume. It is a humble dessert. It is a way of using up either the bread from the previous day, "sweet zocata cookies" as we say in Cuba, or leftover sponge cake. It is rich and very caloric. I tried the traditional recipe, and here is my version of Vizconde. I hope you enjoy it.
Ingredients:
  • 2 good rolls or sweet bread, or semi-sweet small breads from the previous day.

    • For the syrup

    • 1 cup of sugar
    • ½ cup of water
    • 1 lemon zest

    For the custard

    • 2 cups of milk
    • 2 tablespoons of sugar
    • 4 tablespoons of cornstarch
    • 1 egg yolk
    • 1 teaspoon of vanilla
Instructions:

For this recipe, use semi-sweet bread from the day before. Cut it into slices approximately 2 cm thick.

In a saucepan, mix sugar and water for the syrup. Place it over low heat and add the lemon peel. Let it boil until you achieve a thick syrup. You can use anise if you like.

Breads with syrup in the custard / CiberCuba Cocina

In another pot, heat the milk and add two tablespoons of sugar.

In a glass, dissolve the cornstarch in cold milk and add the teaspoon of vanilla and one egg yolk. Beat it well and set it aside until the milk in the saucepan is about to boil. At that moment, add the mixture from the glass and stir with a wooden spoon until a thick custard is obtained.

In a glass mold, place half of the custard.

Slices of bread already covered with the rest of the custard / CiberCuba Cocina

Soak the slices of bread in the syrup. Avoid soaking them too much so they don’t fall apart. Place them leaning against each other in the custard dish. Once you’ve arranged them all, cover them with the remaining custard that’s in the pot. Let it cool and then refrigerate until it is cold.

To decorate, you can use caramel, as is done with Crema Catalana, or cover it with chocolate curls, as in this presentation. Cut the portions and enjoy this humble but delicious dessert.

Viscount / CiberCuba Kitchen

Enjoy your meal!!

Rations:
6
Lemon
Egg
Dairy
Milk