Out & About #1083 | Mississauga City Centre Musings + Homemade Banana Custard

When my eyes opened to yet another Monday, I was overcome with anxiety once more. The sporadic bursts of lightheadedness hadn't faded. Recovery had been inadequate. Nevertheless, I peeled myself away from the safe cradle of the bed and proceeded with preparations.

​It was a gloomy, gusty day. A handful of employees had likely extended their long weekend by one more day, for the parking garage was noticeably empty.

The mid-morning saw a "coffee walk" around Square One. At first, I had wondered why all retailers were still shuttered. In verifying the time of day, I realized I had never once roamed the mall quarters at the early hour of 9 AM.

A few select establishments were open, namely Walmart, Tim Hortons, and Au Pain Doré.
Promotional posters for Hot Cross Buns at the latter caught my attention initially, but the Chocolate Moelleux was the item ultimately acquired from the short-lived saunter.

The cashier depicted the specimen with a "chocolate mousse"-like texture. However, sampling the extra-dense portion with a tongue depressor wooden spoon back in the office, it was found to be an incredibly rich ganache instead.

The aluminum container in which it resided was greasy on the outside and lined with specks of granulated sugar on the inside. Having not dissolved completely during the baking process, one could perceive visible patches of condensation incited by the sugar particles along the interior circumference.
Served chilled, the Chocolate Moelleux resembled a hybrid of a ganache and an upright molten lava cake. Interestingly, the ganache was not uniform, instead featuring a viscous yet pliable centre and fully set edges. There weren't any distinctively alluring elements to the concoction, thus I deemed a repurchase at $4.75 plus tax to be unwarranted. For my purposes, I could create a similar product with minimal effort using excess ganache.

I returned to am excruciatingly long morning, which led me into noon. The immediate task at hand was dropping off donations at Hazel McCallion Central Library. The convenient drop-off location constituted the ideal opportunity to participate in the city's Recycling Collection Drive.

Afterwards, I braved a drizzly trek into the mall.
While there were a number of ongoing sales and promotions, MEC offered not a single cycling glove for testing and evaluation.

That evening, I decided against a second consecutive office day. Woes were drowned in Black Sesame Glutinous Rice Balls with yellow cane sugar syrup.

Emerging as a consequence of my work-from-home breather were Ginger Molasses Cookies, the sole recipe from Smitten Kitchen Keepers that I've crafted again and again.

There was two deviations from her recipe: my go-to substitution of fresh ginger for candied ginger and the not-so-novel inclusion of Gingerbread Finishing Sugar in addition to turbinado for coating. Any increased gingerbread-y essences were indistinguishable, and the cookie was rendered utterly cloying as a result.

​I paired the batch with the last of two packs of Drip Coffee from 곁에, relishing in the beverage more than the staggeringly sweet specimen in hand.

A total of 24 cookies were obtained using a 1.5 tbsp scoop. Four were set aside for personal consumption, while the rest transported to the office for distribution.

Generally speaking, the suburban crowd appeared hesitant towards accepting complimentary baked goods. Upon being offered though, many readily accepted. One even asked me for the recipe! But, I digress, no one shall share the same enthusiasm as my baking coworker.

​Lunchtime would see my second visit to the Recycling Collection Drive donation box. Underwhelmed was I to observe just a handful more donations, plus the unseemly additions of crumpled napkins and candy wrappers. At this point, my contributions had filled half the box.

​Continuing onwards, I embarked on the lengthiest walk to-date: A sweltering undertaking towards T&T.
Having completed countless peaceful strolls in Richmond, Mississauga's City Centre served to provide a contradictory experience with plenty of dust (be it from passing vehicles or nearby condo construction), boring stretches of sidewalk, and absolutely appalling exposure to the elements. Not a single street tree graced the boulevard, paving the path of entry for construction debris and flying garbage onto the sidewalk. Needless to say, internal body temperature surged; perspiration was inevitable.

I secured a back of Konjac jellies for my afternoon snack. Seaweed-flavoured Turtle Chips were also spotted on sale, though the eco bag in tow could only store so much. They would require a second trip, ideally made by car.
Internal corridors had been renovated to allow for taller shelves and a greater assortment of merchandise. Packaged items seen downtown (UCC Geisha) and on the West Coast (OK brand instant noodles) had finally arrived in store.

Unable to resist the heat any longer, I began to mentally evaluate options for cold drinks on the way back. Tim Hortons' Brown Sugar Iced Latte was an appealing, recent addition to the menu, therefore the natural choice for a speedy mobile order.

​Topped with a thin layer of creamy foam, the formula combined the caramel tones of brown sugar with moderately nutty notes of coffee. It was an understatement to say that the beverage exceeded expectations. At just $3.99 - for the Oat Milk edition no less! - it easily earned a spot on my re-order list.

​The zero calorie konjac jellies were an interesting find, being a sugar-conscious solution to dieters craving jelly candies. My former coworker's gifted sweet potato dorayaki was a comparatively carb- and sugar-heavy bite tinged with the raw essence of yam. That said, I enjoyed laying eyes on the vertical air pockets of the sandwiching pancake layers.

At 4 PM, traffic was already tragic.

Over the weekend, I received feedback on my Raspberry Mousse Cake that was inconsistent with overall findings: "It's so sweet!" I had been told with a pat on the forearm. And so, I set out to determine the standard as per the typical Chinese-style bakery. Against my better decision, a five-dollar slice of Mango Mousse Cake was procured from Akko Cake House.

​Perhaps my hopes were too vast, for the most attractive component of the cake was the half slice of strawberry, inclusive of its shrivelled leaves and affixed stand of dust/hair (?). The jelly was bland, the mousse horribly artificial, and the layers lacking distinctive qualities. From my observations, the mousse was likely a blend of mango concentrate thinned with milk powder and water, for the cake was unsubstantial and otherwise unachievable had heavy cream been included in the ingredient list.

​On the third office day, I not only contributed to the toy and clothing section of the Recycling Collection Drive, but the electronics portion as well. The Rebel XTi had supported me for nearly half a decade before I transitioned to the 7D Mark II, enabling many of the images gracing this space. The accompanying battery grip had been purchased new and used a maximum of three times. Unfortunately, attempts to sell the pair at secondhand markets were futile, as the battery grip was only compatible with the XTi.

​Staples Grand Park would assume the destination for the rest of my lunch walk.

​Although the primary objective was procurement of discounted compost bags, an extensive investigation of the retail store provided insight on ergonomic keyboard and mice duos, as well as availability of typically non-office items.

​An unanticipated encounter with the "World's Softest Plush" easily became the highlight of the trip. Unquestionably soft and absolutely adorable, I had tremendous difficulty resisting its furry nature and bean-filled hands.

Finalizing the trip was a Pineapple Dragon Fruit Lemonade Quencher from Timmies. A Medium set me back just $2.99, making for a promising choice in the upcoming summer months.

Weekend activities were as tame as could be, for adult life leaves little room (and energy) for entertainment. Mandatory undertakings of laundry, vacuuming, groceries, and chores/errands would consume majority of my supposed "free time", while sleep recovery occurred in between, where possible.

Snacks ranged from a Black Sesame Foam Latte, Mugwort Loaf with Chocolate Glaze from the freezer stash, Toasted 排包 with O-Sulloc Green Tea Milk Spread, and HBAF Caramel Salted Almond & Pretzels. The mini pretzels were starchy and underwhelming, though the sweet-savoury almonds decent. Thus far, not a single flavour variation has dethroned the infamous Honey Butter though.

The sudden popularity in Banana Matcha Lattes prompted my own take on the treat. I could lean on Binggrae Banana Milk for a simplified approach, but, frankly, I'm not a fan of the full sugar rendition. Since banana-based syrups were likely constructed of banana essence (ugh - revolting), crafting a homemade banana custard was the conclusion.

Of course, I took to Sunday Baking's channel once again. The Custard Cream used her Easy and Delicious Grape Tart recipe was adapted for a vanilla-speckled banana custard.

Ingredients:

• 160 g milk
• 1/2  ̶v̶a̶n̶i̶l̶l̶a̶ ̶b̶e̶a̶n̶  → 1 tsp of vanilla bean paste
• 2 egg yolks
• 30 g granulated sugar
• 6 g cornstarch
• 6 g AP flour
•  ̶1̶0̶ ̶g̶ ̶u̶n̶s̶a̶l̶t̶e̶d̶ ̶b̶u̶t̶t̶e̶r̶
• 1 banana (108 g), mashed *

 Directions 

1. Whisk together egg yolks, sugar, and vanilla bean paste.
2. Add in cornstarch and flour. Whisk again to combine.
3. Heat milk in a medium saucepot until simmering. Be careful not to bring to boil to prevent a film from forming.
4. Carefully stream hot milk into the egg yolk mixture, little by little, whisking quickly to ensure the egg does not scramble. I added the milk in 4-5 additions and worked quickly but gently as to prevent scalding milk from splashing across the counter and onto my arms.
5. Transfer the mixture back into the saucepot and thicken over low-medium heat. Continue whisking as the mixture thickens quickly and can scramble without supervision.
6. Once the mixture becomes thicker but does not leave a streak on the bottom of the saucepot, add in mashed banana. Mix well and continue to cook until the formula thickens and leaves a streak.
7. Remove from heat and transfer to heatproof bowl.
8. Cover tightly with cling film and allow to rest in the fridge until cold.
9. Use in drink and dessert applications as desired.

Two crucial points of the recipe would be:

1. Mashing the banana in advance, as the custard thickens quickly without time to step away.
2. Formulation of the custard in one continuous process - the whisking must not stop!

A less critical note would be adjusting sugar levels according to the ripeness of the banana used. For extremely ripe bananas, one may need to reduce the amount of granulated sugar by 20-30%, or to one's liking. With just-ripe medium banana, I found the result a tad too sweet, but great for pairing alongside coffee.

​The Banana Matcha Latte will be prepared in due time, with or without the brûléed surface.

​Be warned: The Banana Custard should be consumed as soon as possible, as mashing fresh bananas causes oxidization and the unseemly appearance of a grey surface and dark brown bits in an otherwise untainted yellow custard.

Yum.​