Magick Blog - Vintage French White Surprise

I am beginning to think this blog is magick.  Here I just wrote that I never see the F-24-B (24oz) or the 7oz Ramekins in Pyroceram, they always seem to be in stoneware...

Well, I swung into the Goodwill to return a lid that was the wrong size for one of my pieces when I was greeted by an F-24-B... Complete with vented microwave lid.  I was extremely excited and thought myself extremely lucky to have just "happened" across this find....

It gets better though... I thought the lid might be damaged because it was bulging slightly, so I removed the lid to check it out and.... Magick Bananas!

I was triple blessed, for hiding inside, was a 7 oz pyroceram ramekin!   But it doesn't end there either.  The use and care instructions for the F-24-B were underneath the 7 oz ramekin!  Joy and Rapture!  Evidently, these were not known as "French White" per se, but as Pop-ins.

Sadly, the 7 oz ramekin is similar to the 4 oz in that there is no "F" model number on the bottom... Just a "7oz - 200ml" and a "Made in the USA" (And even that is really hard to see, since it's not embossed well)

Regardless of the lacking model number, I am ecstatic.  I now have, I think, examples of ALL the French White ramekins... (4oz, 7oz, F-16-B "16oz", and F-24-B "24oz")

Here is a family portrait of the with 1.5 liter (F-5-B) & 2.5 liter (F-1-B) parents thrown in.

Next up... The Ovals....

Ya know, maybe if I mention some of the other pieces I "never" see, they will show up too...

Wheat pattern in just about anything.....  Platinum Starburst Stove top Percolator (without the chrome spout)....  Electromatic Food Warming Tray.

Let's see if it works.  ;-)

Where is your Corningware??
~~

Custard alla Corningware - Baked Breakfast Custard

I have been running into a bunch of vintage French White Corningware pieces lately don't have model numbers on the bottom.   First the Loaf Pan and, what I can only guess to be, a 13x9 Lasagna Dish.  NOW I have run across 12 ramekins.

These aren't the standard F-16-B 16oz ramekins that you usually see.  They are tiny little 4oz ones, that have "4oz - 115ml" printed on the bottom.  The only other indicators on the are the "Made in USA" and "Corningware" labels.  No "F-something or other-B" or any other such alpha-numeric indication of what piece it is.

I don't really have use for 12 ramekins, but at .50 cents each, I went ahead and purchased them all; then gave 4 to my aunt.   It was just too good of a deal to pass up and since I had no idea that they ever made ramekins this small in pyroceram...

Sure I have seen them in stoneware all over the place.  In fact, World Kitchen makes 7oz as well as 24oz sizes.  Alas, up to this point, I have never seen them in vintage pyroceram.

This morning, armed with the perfect sized ramekins, I decided to make some comfort food.  Simple baked custard is one of my favorite breakfast foods.  Lightly seasoned with nutmeg and not too sweet (I like my breakfast custard a little less sweet and more on the refreshing side, thus I only use 1/4 cup sugar most of the time)

Growing up on a goat dairy, and having chickens as well, left us with an abundance of both milk and eggs. Thus, we ate a lot of custard when we were kids.  Mom use to bake a gigantic bowlful of it. (I think it was even a Pyres bowl)  She would set the bowl in the middle of the table and we would simply scoop out a bunch with a big spoon.    Ah, memories......  Honestly though, making custard in individual size means shorter baking time and easier serving.  I'm just sayin'  ;-) 

Baked Custard

2 cups Whole Milk
Pinch of Salt
3 large Eggs
1/3 cup Granulated Sugar
Nutmeg for Garnish
2 quart Tea Ketle (P-105)
1 quart Saucemaker (P-55-B/P-64-B) 
French White Lasagne Pan (no "F" model number) or F-21 Open Roaster
French White 4 oz Ramekins (no "F" model number)

Preheat oven to 350F degrees and position the oven rack in the center of the oven.
Fill a 2 quart Teapot with fresh water and place over medium flame, bringing the water to a simmer.

Set six (4 oz) French White Ramekins into a French White Lasagne Pan (or an F-21 Roasting pan) or other  large baking dish.

Place Milk, along with a pinch of Salt, into a 1 quart Saucemaker and set over medium heat.

Place Eggs a medium bowl (That is a Pyrex Forest Fancies 402 1 1/2 quart, BTW).

Add Sugar..... (If you like your custard a little less sweet, go with 1/4 cup instead of the 1/3)

Whisk until thoroughly combined.

When steam wafts from the Milk, it's ready.

Slowly pour the hot Milk over the Egg/Sugar mixture, whisking constantly.

Strain the resulting mixture back into the Saucemaker, for easier pouring. (I always strain custard to make sure the chalaza is filtered out)

Fill each of the 4 oz Ramekins a little over 3/4 full (up to the flare on the rim) and place back in the lasagne dish.

Sprinkle with freshly grated nutmeg.

Move the lasagne dish to the oven rack.

Carefully pour the hot water from the 2 quart Teapot into the Lasagne pan.

(fill past 1/2 way, this will protect your custard better)

Cover with Aluminum foil to prevent the custard from forming a crust.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.... The outer edges should be set, while the center should still be slightly jiggly.

Remove the Lasagne dish from the oven.
Remove the Ramekins from the hot water, immediately, with canning tongs. (Best thing ever invented!)

Place the ramekins on a cooling rack and allow to come to room temperature (about 1 hour)

Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours. (you may store custard for up to 2 days)

mmmmmmmmmm  Comfort Breakfast Food!

Where is your Corningware??
~~

Avoiding Identity Theft - The French White Doppelgänger

I have been receiving a lot of inquiries regarding French White, and how to tell the difference between the original pyroceramic version vs. the newer stoneware versions.  I can understand the confusion, since the French White was never discontinued and merely had it's constitution changed.  Cornflower, Spice of Life, Wild Flower and Floral Bouquet on the other hand, were discontinued and never produced in stoneware.  Thus when you find pieced in Thrift Stores, you are pretty much guaranteed that they are constructed of Pyroceramic glass and safe to use on the stove top.

So, I am going to try and pictorially show the differences between the two versions of French White.

Here they are, side by side.  French White 16oz (500ml) or (473ml) Ramekins. The pyroceramic French White piece is on the Left, and the new stoneware French White imposter is on the right.

As you can see, they do look slightly different.  The color of the stoneware is a little more of a cream color instead of the true white of pyroceramic glass.  The lines of the pyroceram version are a little cleaner and crisper, giving it a more "faceted" appearance,

while the stoneware version has softer detailing that give is a more "fluted" look.

But when all is said and done, it is the bottom that give the most information.

Pyroceramic glass pieces are smooth on the bottom.

Stoneware pieces have a firing ring where they sat in the kiln.

That's this ring right here.  It is unglazed and will feel kind of rough. 

If your piece has this ring, then it is not safe to use on the stove top nor under the broiler.  In the US, they are clearly marked as not being safe for stove top or  broiler. They also are printed with their country of manufacture, in this case China, along with standard 16oz and metrics 473ml marked on it.

Pyroceramic glass is made in either the USA or France (I think the German factory only made Borosilicate Pyrex) and will be marked on the bottom with an F-16-B along with a 500ml mark which is actually slightly more than 16oz.

I hope this information helps the next time you are scoping out some French White pieces in the thrift store.  Good Luck in your hunting!

Where is your Conringware?
~~

Fowl Weather Fare In CorningWare - Pesto Chicken Pot Pie

I promised, now that I have 4 French White Ramekins, that I would give out my Pesto Chicken Pot Pie Recipe.  Though this can be made in the Grab-it bowls (P-150-B), it seems to work better in the Ramekins (F-16-B).  I think this is because the Grab-it Bowls are 550 ml, while the French White Ramekins are 500 ml.

I will admit this recipe will sound a little daunting and it does seem like a lot to take on all at once, however, you can make the filling and the pastry ahead of time and store then in the refrigerator for 24 hours.  

This crust is slightly different than the Pâte Brisée I use for sweet pies (Apple, Lemon Meringue and Cherry).  For starters, it contains Spelt Flour...  I like Spelt in savory applications because it lends a nutty flavor like whole wheat, but without the "sweetness" whole wheat usually imparts.  The Second difference is the lack of sugar... I think that one is a given, but there is also more salt (an extra 1/2 tsp)   The third and final difference, is the amount of butter has changed.  I like more butter with my sweet pies than I do with savory pies, thus this recipe contains 4 TB (2 oz) less.

This is the perfect mean when the weather is foul...

Pesto Chicken Pot Pie

Pesto Chicken Filling:

1.25 lbs Chicken Breasts, Cubed
4 oz Celery, Chopped
4 oz Carrot, Chopped
4 oz Onion, Chopped
Olive Oil
1/2 cup AP Flour
3 1/2 cups Chicken Stock
3 TB Pesto
Kosher Salt
Cracked Black Pepper
3 oz Frozen Peas, Still frozen
Savory Pâte Brisée (see Below)
4 500ml CorningWare French White Ramekins (P-16-B)

Heat oil (about 1 TB) in a large skillet.
Add chicken and brown lightly.

Remove chicken to a bowl.

Add 1-2 TB more Olive oil then add Celery, Carrot and Onion, sauteing the Vegetables until almost tender.

Sprinkle the vegetables with 1/2 cup flour.

Stir until the vegetables are well coated and continue cooking until the flour begins to smell nutty.

Stir in the Chicken Stock and bring to a simmer for about 10 minutes. (Until the gravy begins to thicken)

Add the Chicken and continue simmering for an additional 5 minutes.

Stir in the Pesto, season with Kosher Salt and Cracked Pepper, then remove the skillet from the heat.

Allow to cool while you mix up the Pâte Brisée (Don't worry about the Peas yet)

Savory Pâte Brisée:

6 oz Unsalted butter, VERY cold, and cut into very thin slices
2 cups (8.5 oz) (240g) AP Flour
1 cup (3.5 oz) (100g) Cake Flour
1 tsp Kosher salt
Approximately 1/3 - 1/2 cup (3-4 oz) (100-125ml) very cold water

Whisk the Flours and Salt together very lightly.

Add sliced Unsalted Butter and toss briefly to coat them.

Work the butter through the flour with your finger tips, sort of rubbing the flour into the butter or use a pastry cutter.

Add the ice-cold water starting with 1/3 cup (3 oz) (100ml) and mix very fast with your hand just enough that the dough coheres.

If it does not, add more water 1 TB at a time... You want it to just barely hold together.

Wrap in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. (Spelt is lower in gluten, so the dough does not need to relax as long as regular Pate Brisee would)

OK, Back to the Filling......

It should be cool now, so go ahead and stir in the frozen peas (this will keep them from getting too mushy when baking)

Back to the Pâte Brisée now.....

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and divide into 4 pieces.

Now the fun part, you are going to divide each piece into 2/3 & 1/3 pieces.  The 1/3 piece is for the top and the 2/3 piece is to line the CorningWare Ramekin.

Place all the "top" pieces back into the refrigerator and begin rolling the dough to line the ramekins.
Roll each "bottom" piece into a 10-11 inch circle.

Fit the dough down into the ramekin making sure to leave the over hang.

Once all the ramekins have been lined, fill them with the cooled filling and preheat the oven to 400 F degrees.

Now roll each of the "tops" into a 6 inch round.

Place on top and begin rolling the dough over and in...

(you want the seam inside the ramekin to ensure there is no spillage while baking)

Crimp the edges....

Cut vent holes.

Place on the bottom rack of the preheated oven and back for 35 minutes, or until the tops are nicely browned.

Remove form the oven and place on a rack, allowing to cool for about 15 minutes.

Then, my favorite part, Dig IN!!!   YUM!

The perfect meal when it's cold, wet and dreary outside.

Where is your Corningware?
~~