Custard

This is it, the decadent pie that seduced the seductive Marilyn Monroe. She simply couldn't get enough of it. Patch brought this recipe with him from Arkansas, where it was named for his sister Milton.

This is a cross between two English classics. The Bakewell tart, named after the town in Derbyshire where it was supposedly invented by accident in the nineteenth century, is a layered jam, custard and almond treat. Burnt cream is the English cousin and forerunner of the French crème brûée. It's also known as Trinity cream, since it is thought to have originated at Cambridge's Trinity College in the eighteenth century.

Ana Garcia of Cuernavaca, Mexico, writes: "My great-grandmother, Josefina, was a highly regarded butcher, and she taught me the communal style of cooking that Mexico is known for. That's one of the reasons I opened my own cooking school, La Villa Bonita — to show others how authentic Mexican cuisine is prepared, as opposed to the usual tacos, burritos, and Tex-Mex dishes. "My husband, Robb, and I also run our own restaurant, Reposado. He insisted that we open the place because he thought my recipes deserved a wider audience. At the restaurant I like to experiment — the menu at Reposado is nouvelle Mexican — but at my cooking school I feature more traditional recipes. Working at both places gives me the chance to show off both cooking styles. " Unlike the classic delicate flans, these are made with condensed milk and cream cheese, which results in a rich texture.

Prepare the custards the day before you plan to serve them.

The parfaits can be made a day ahead.

These custards are inspired by the Japanese egg custard chawan mushi, made with dashi broth (a stock of dried kelp and dried bonito flakes). We've used chicken broth for simplicity, but any broth or stock that you have on hand will work fine. Steaming the custards gives them a delicate texture, which is enhanced by the spare use of solid ingredients (the shrimp, scallion, and mushrooms).