Guava snow egg
This is my favourite dessert. It is an original creation that I first made about three years ago. The flavours change with the seasons, sometimes I make a white peach version or a mulberry version. This guava version is my favourite. Strawberry guavas have a deep pink flesh and an exotic intoxicating scent. The combination of the fool, granita and ice-cream filled poached meringue is a textural treat. Coating the snow egg in a maltose biscuit adds another dimension as you crack through the toffee biscuit it gives way to the soft meringue which is filled with the custard apple ice-cream. This dessert is incredibly refreshing and for me everything a dessert should be.
Ingredients
Serves 8
Poached Meringue
300g egg white
300g sugar
Method
For this recipe you will need a 6cm diameter half hemisphere silicon mould sheet. Whisk the egg whites in a machine until they form soft peaks and slowly add the sugar. Once the meringue forms firm peaks and the sugar has dissolved place the meringue into 16 half hemisphere moulds. Cook the meringue in a baine marie large enough to hold the silicon mat in a pre-heated 120 degree oven for approximately 15 minutes. Allow to cool then unmould the half hemispheres and store in the fridge on a silicon paper lined tray until needed.
Maltose tuilles
200g liquid maltose
100g sugar
20g flaked almonds
Method
Heat the sugar and maltose together until it reaches hard crack stage (until it caramelizes). Add the flaked almonds and immediately pour the mixture onto a silicon mat, allow to cool completely. Process the hard caramel in a food processor to form a fine powder. Next sieve the praline mixture in a course sieve onto a silicon mat in a fine layer. Melt this mixture in a moderate oven until it forms a clear liquid paste. Remove from the oven and before the praline becomes too hard cut into a 15cm diameter circle using a metal circle cutter. When each circle is hard store between silicon paper in an air tight container.
Guava puree
175g sugar
250ml water
½ vanilla bean
375g of strawberry guava flesh
Method
Combine the sugar, water and scraped vanilla bean in a pot and bring to the boil. Lower the heat to a gentle simmer, add the guava flesh and simmer for 10 minutes. Take off the heat, remove the vanilla pods, drain the flesh from the liquid, place the flesh in a blender and add just enough of the cooking liquid to process into a thick guava puree. Pass the puree through a fine sieve and set aside in the fridge until needed.
Guava granita
500ml water
100g sugar
400g of peeled strawberry guavas
100g fresh strawberries
Method
Roughly dice the peeled guavas and strawberries. Combine the sugar and water in a large saucepan, bring to the boil then lower the heat to a slow simmer. Add the diced fruit and gently simmer for 10 minutes. Take off the heat and allow to infuse at room temperature for 2 hours. Pass the liquid through a muslin cloth and discard the solids. Pour the guava syrup into a ceramic or stainless steel container to a depth of 5cm. Place in the freezer for a period of no less than 12 hours and every 2 to 3 hours remove from the freezer and scrape with a fork to form the granita crystals.
Custard apple ice-cream
6 egg yolks
200g sugar
200ml milk
300ml clear custard apple juice
100ml single cream
Method
Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together, bring the milk to the boil and pour on to the egg yolk sugar mixture while whisking. Pour the mixture into a stainless steel bowl and cook out while whisking over a pot of simmering water (approximately 10 minutes). Allow the sabayon to cool over ice. Meanwhile using extremely ripe custard apples scoop the flesh of approximately 1 large custard apple into a double muslin lined chinoix. Gather the muslin cloth at the top and squeeze the ripe custard apple flesh tightly to obtain a clear juice. When you have 300ml of clear juice whisk it into the sabayon with the 100ml of single cream. Place the mixture into an icecream machine and churn until ready. Place the ice-cream in a container in the freezer until needed.
Vanilla Custard base
400ml single cream
3 egg yolks
1 whole egg
80gm sugar
2 vanilla beans
Method
Heat the cream and the two split and scraped vanilla beans together until it just begins to boil then remove from the heat. Next whisk the eggs, egg yolks and sugar together in a stainless steel bowl. While whisking the eggs slowly pour on the hot vanilla cream. Mix well and remove the vanilla pods. Pour this mixture into 4 large dariole moulds to a depth of 5 cm, place the dariole moulds into a tray of water to form a water bath. Place the water bath into a pre-heated 150 degree oven and cook the custard as you would a crème brulee for approximately 25 minutes until the custard is just set. Remove the custards from the bain marie and place them in the fridge for approximately 5 to 6 hours until they are fully chilled and set.
Vanilla cream
100 gms vanilla custard base
100 gms double cream
Method
Whisk the cream and custard together to form soft peaks.
Guava fool
400g of guava puree
200g vanilla cream
Method
Place the guava puree in a small bowl and fold through the vanilla cream gently to form a rippled effect. Do this just before you are ready to assemble the dessert.
To Assemble
Take 8 of the half hemisphere poached meringues. Using a teaspoon remove a small scoop from the centre of each half hemisphere being careful not to break through the outer edge. Then place a small scoop of custard apple ice-cream inside the hole you have just made. Scoop a small hole in the rest of the hemispheres and invert over the ice-cream filled meringues to form a complete sphere. Place a maltose biscuit on top of each sphere and using a gentle blow torch melt the biscuit over the sphere. Dust all the spheres with icing sugar. Next add a generous spoonful of the guava fool in the bottom of each serving glass. Top the fool with the guava granita then place the custard apple ice-cream poached meringue spheres on top of the granita and serve.
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