Roasted Strawberry Bavarois with Dandelion and Burdock Jelly
-
Prep time:
-
Cook time:
Total time:
Portion/Yield:
Serves 6Difficulty:
Experienced
Vanessa, a bright, lively and sparkling lady from New Zealand, who worked with us for a few months, describes this dessert as ‘a fragrant English garden in a glass’. Well, I love her description as I think it’s as accurate as it could possibly be. This dessert is not only pretty to look at, it’s utterly delicious to eat too. The fragrance of the roasted strawberries is wonderful, and the aroma simply makes me smile.
For the strawberry ice cream, I am not following a traditional method of making ice cream. Instead it’s simply made by blending together all the ‘raw’ ingredients and then churning them into ice cream using an ice-cream maker. The reason for not making an egg custard base is because I like the fresh and pure taste of the strawberries in this uncooked version. The ice cream makes a few more scoops than you’ll need for this dessert, but it will keep perfectly well in the freezer for up to 1 week. Serve the leftover strawberry ice cream as a dessert after dinner, or try blending it with a glass of cold milk to make a refreshing strawberry smoothie.
I love the Fentimans brand of products and I personally think that their Dandelion and Burdock drink epitomises the values of being British. It’s traditional, classic and very cool, and it’s one of those things that will never go out of food fashion. For this recipe, I have turned it into a jelly that gives the strawberry bavarois an additional burst of botanical flavour.
Ingredients & Method
For the strawberry bavarois
- 500g fresh ripe strawberries, hulled and washed
- 50g icing sugar
- 120g caster sugar
- 50ml cold water
- 3 egg yolks
- 2 leaves of gelatine, bloomed (softened in cold water, then squeezed gently to remove excess water)
- 200g strawberry purée, chilled (to make the purée, blend about 250g fresh ripe hulled strawberries until smooth using a blender, then pass the purée through a fine sieve and chill)
- 300ml whipping cream
For the strawberry ice cream
- 250g fresh very ripe strawberries, hulled and washed
- 150ml double cream
- 75ml milk
- 75g caster sugar
For the dandelion and burdock jelly
- 275ml Fentimans Dandelion and Burdock drink
- 50g caster sugar
- 2 leaves of gelatine, bloomed (softened in cold water, then squeezed gently to remove excess water)
- 25g fresh micro mint sprigs, to decorate
- 20g freeze-dried strawberry pieces, to decorate
For the roasted strawberries for the bavarois, preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4 and line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper. Place the strawberries on the prepared baking tray, spreading them out evenly, then dust the icing sugar over the top, sprinkle over 2 tablespoons cold water. Roast the strawberries in the oven for 12 – 15 minutes or until they are slightly softened and clear pink strawberry juice appears on the baking tray. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely.
Meanwhile, make the strawberry ice cream. Place all the ingredients for the ice cream in a blender and blend together for 1 minute. Transfer the mixture to an ice-cream maker and churn until frozen (following the manufacturer’s instructions for your particular model). Alternatively, pour the blended mixture into a shallow, freezer proof container, cover with a lid and freeze until firm, whisking the mixture 3 or 4 times during freezing (every hour or so) to break down the ice crystals and ensure an even-textured result. Store the churned (or hand-whisked) ice cream in the freezer until needed.
Now, continue with the bavarois. Set half of the roasted strawberries aside for decorating the finished desserts, and then divide the remaining roasted strawberries and the roasting juices between 6 chilled dessert glasses. Refrigerate until the bavarois mixture is made.
To make the bavarois, place the caster sugar, water and egg yolks in a large heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk the mixture continuously for about 12 minutes or until the mixture (sabayon) becomes thickened and pale yellow in colour. Remove from the heat, add the bloomed gelatine and whisk for about 30 seconds or until dissolved. Whisk in the chilled strawberry purée. Transfer the mixture to a clean bowl set over ice and leave to cool. See also Cook’s Note.
In a separate bowl, semi-whip the cream until it forms soft peaks. Fold the whipped cream into the strawberry bavarois mixture until combined. Transfer the mixture to a piping bag fitted with a large plain nozzle (or simply use a disposable piping bag and snip the end off to make a hole for piping). Pipe the bavarois mixture over the roasted strawberries in the dessert glasses, dividing it evenly (level the tops, if you like). Refrigerate for about 4 hours or until completely set. Once set, cover the glasses with clingfilm (if you are serving the desserts the next day).
Meanwhile, make the dandelion and burdock jelly. Gently heat the dandelion and burdock drink and sugar together in a pan over a low heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Continue heating until just before the mixture reaches boiling point. Remove from the heat, then add the bloomed gelatine and stir until dissolved. Pass the mixture through a fine sieve into a shallow plastic container, then refrigerate for about 4 hours or until completely set. Once set, cover the container with a lid or clingfilm (if you are serving the desserts the next day).
To serve, arrange the reserved roasted strawberries on top of the bavarois. Place small dollops (scant teaspoonfuls) of the dandelion and burdock jelly between the strawberries and then place a scoop of strawberry ice cream in the centre of each dessert. Decorate with the micro mint and freeze-dried strawberry pieces and serve immediately.
Cook’s Note
For Thermomix users you can make the bavarois using a Thermomix, if you like. Place the caster sugar, water and egg yolks in the TM jug and insert the butterfly whisk. Set the timer for 15 minutes at 90°C, on speed 3. Once the time is completed, add the bloomed gelatine and whisk for 30 seconds, then add the chilled strawberry purée and whisk it in on speed 1 for a further 30 seconds. Transfer the mixture to a bowl set over ice and leave to cool, then continue with the recipe as directed above.