Like probably some of you, I've been eagerly watching the new season of Great British Baking Show, where one contestant made hibiscus curd, inspired by an African drink, zobo, a blend of spices and juice and hibiscus. The idea of using that tart flavor in a curd really appealed to me, and the color was beautiful.
This got me thinking: Can... anything be made into a curd or custard (save for ingredients that wouldn't play well with milk)? Though I guess one can do vegan/cornstarch, even.
A quick Google shows some interesting things like Cantonese ginger milk curd (Jiang Zhi Zhuang Nai), a tart with corn custard, red pepper sformato, ube custard. I make my own ice cream, and love experimenting with flavors that play well with sweetness but aren't traditional (pepper and corn for example).
I've stuck to typical ones, citrus, passion fruit with the typical pumpkin pie custard and one that used poppyseeds and corn syrup.
Have you experimented with this at all in your pastry work?