Non-Citrus Desserts

As all our regular visitors will know, we had a very severe frost in February which destroyed all our orange and lemon trees. The overnight temperature was minus 7 for 14 nights in succession. The trees can survive one night at that temperature – but not two weeks of it. Therefore, our desserts which included oranges and lemons are out of the question this year, unless of course we buy in the fruit.

We always make desserts which uses the local produce. By local, I mean from our own garden. So we searched our databases and came up with a few interesting recipes which use non-citrus fruit. We were lucky in that our pear and plum trees were not affected by the freeze and are in full bloom in the heat of the April sun. We also have two figs, brown and white, which seem to have benefited from the freeze and are covered in leaves and embryo figs. Our soft fruit is also under way and producing the early flowers.

So for a change in direction from our usual desserts which used the Valencia oranges and lemons, here are a few recipes which we will be using in the coming months as each fruit matures.

Desserts 1 – WHITE CHOCOLATE AND RASPBERRY CHEESECAKE

375 g digestive biscuits, finely crushed
185 g unsalted butter, melted
2 cups (500 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/3 cup (90 g) caster sugar
4 eggs, lightly beaten
300 g sour cream
12/8 cups (250 g) white chocolate melts, melted
200 g raspberries
70 g white chocolate melts, melted, extra
raspberries, to garnish

Raspberry sauce
300 g fresh or frozen raspberries
1 tablespoon icing sugar

1 Grease a 23 cm round springform cake tin and line the base and side with baking paper. Place the biscuits and butter in a bowl and mix together. Press the mixture firmly into the base and side of the tin and refrigerate for 10 minutes. Preheat the oven to warm 160°C (315°F / Gas 2-3).

2 Beat the cream cheese and sugar together until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs gradually, beating well after each addition. Beat in the sour cream and the cooled white chocolate melts. Pour half the mixture into the chilled base and sprinkle with berries. Top with the remaining cream cheese
mixture, then place 0n a baking tray and bake for 50e6O minutes, or until set. Cool to room temperature.

3 Meanwhile, place the extra melted chocolate in a piping bag with a 4 mm plain nozzle. Pipe decorative shapes onto baking paper. Leave to set.

4 To make the raspberry sauce, put the raspberries and icing sugar in a food processor and process until smooth. Strain through a fine sieve.

5 Serve wedges of the cheesecake with a drizzle of sauce, some berries and decorated with chocolate shapes.

Desserts 2 – GRILLED FIGS WITH AMARETTO MASCARPONE

1/4 cup (60 g) caster sugar
1/4 cup (60 ml) cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
1/2 cup (110 g) mascarpone
50 ml amaretto
1 1/2 tablespoons caster sugar, extra
1/4 cup (35 g) blanched almonds, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 fresh figs, halved

1 Line a baking tray with foil. Place the caster sugar and 1/4 cup (60 ml) water in a small saucepan and stir over low heat until the sugar has dissolved, brushing down the side of the pan with a clean brush dipped in water if any crystals appear. Bring to the boil and cook, without stirring, for about 8 minutes, swirling occasionally until the mixture is golden. Quickly remove the pan from the heat and
carefully pour in the cream, stirring constantly until smooth, then stir in the vanilla.

2 To make the amaretto mascarpone, place the mascarpone, amaretto and 2 teaspoons of the extra caster sugar in a bowl and mix together well.

3 Combine the chopped almonds, cinnamon and remaining caster sugar on a plate.

4 Press the cut side of each fig half into the almond mixture, then place, cut-side-up, onto the baking tray. Cook under a hot grill for 4—5 minutes, or until the sugar has caramelised and the almonds are nicely toasted—watch carefully to prevent burning.

5 Arrange three fig halves on each plate, place a dollop of the amaretto mascarpone to the side and drizzle with the sauce.

Desserts 3 – PEARS IN SPICED WINE JELLY WITH FROZEN CARDAMOM PAFIFAIT

Cardamom parfait/t
3/4 cup (185 ml) milk
1/4 teaspoon cardamom seeds
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup (125 g) caster sugar
1 cup (250 ml) cream

Pears in spiced wine jelly
5 corella pears or other small pears (about 90 g each)
1 cup (250 ml) red wine
1 cinnamon stick, broken
3 whole cloves
pinch cardamom seeds
1/2 cup (125 g) caster sugar
2 teaspoons gelatine

1 Lightly oil a 24 x 7 cm bar tin, then line the base and long sides with plastic wrap, allowing the excess to hang over the edges. Place the milk and cardamom seeds in a small saucepan, bring to the boil, then remove from the heat, cover and infuse for 10 minutes. Strain the mixture into a jug.

2 Beat the egg yolks and sugar in a small bowl with electric beaters until thick and pale, then gradually beat in the warm milk. Return the mixture to the saucepan and stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture thickens slightly. Remove from the heat and pour into a bowl.
Cover with plastic wrap, then refrigerate until cold.

3 Beat the cream in a bowl until soft peaks form, then gently fold into the cold custard mixture until combined. Pour into the prepared tin and fold the plastic gently over the top. Freeze overnight, or until firm.

4 Peel the pears, leaving the stems attached, then remove the core from the bottom with a melon baller. Check that the pears will fit in 1/2 cup ,(125 ml) dariole moulds. If the pears are a little too large, use the vegetable peeler to slice off some of the pear until it just fits but take it slowly so
that you don’t cut off too much. Trim the bases so that the pears will sit flat in the moulds.

5 Place the wine, cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom seeds, sugar and 3/4 cup (185 ml) water in a saucepan large enough to just fit the pears. Stir over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Add the pears to the syrup, cover and simmer for about 30 minutes, or until soft. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the pears to cool in the liquid.

6 Drain the pears well, reserving 1 cup (250 ml) of the liquid—if there is not enough, add water to make up the difference. Place the pears in six 1/2 cup (125 ml) dariole moulds.

7 Pour 1/4 cup (60 ml) of the poaching liquid into a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatine over it in an even layer. Leave until the gelatine is spongy: do not stir. Bring a small saucepan of water to the boil, remove from the heat and place the bowl with the gelatine mixture in the saucepan – the water should come halfway up the side of the bowl. Stir the gelatine until it has dissolved, then pour it into
the remaining poaching liquid and stir together. Refrigerate, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes until the mixture has set to the consistency of unbeaten egg whites.

8 Pour the mixture into the dariole moulds around the pears, standing the pears up as they fall over. Refrigerate for 1 hour, or until set. Check the fridge a couple of times and push the pears upright, if necessary.

9 Briefly dip the moulds in warm water and remove the jellied pears. Place on serving plates. Remove the cardamom parfait from the tin, remove the plastic wrap, then cut the parfait into eight slices. Place two slices slightly overlapping next to each of the pears. This dessert is best served immediately.

Desserts 4 – STRAWBERRY AND MASCARPONE TART

Pastry
11/2 cups (185 g) plain flour
125 g unsalted butter, chilled and out into cubes
1/3 cup (80 ml) iced water

Filling
5OO g strawberries, hulled and halved
2 teaspoons vanilla essence
50 ml Drambuie
1/3 cup (60 g) soft brown sugar
250 g mascarpone
300 ml thick cream
2 teaspoons orange zest

1 Sift the flour into a large bowl and the butter. Rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre and add almost all the water and mix with a flat-bladed knife, using a cutting action, until the mixture comes together in beads, adding the remaining water if needed. Gently gather the dough together and lift out onto a lightly floured surface.

2 Roll the dough out between two sheets of baking paper until large enough to line the base and side of a lightly greased 22 cm (3.5 cm deep) loose-bottomed flan tin. Ease the pastry into the tin and trim the edge, then chill for 15 minutes. Preheat the oven to moderately hot 200°C (400°F/
Gas 6) and heat a baking tray.

3 Line the pastry with a sheet of baking paper and pour in some baking beads or rice, then bake on the heated baking tray for 15 minutes. Remove the paper and beads and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until dry and golden. Cool completely.

4 Meanwhile, place the strawberries, vanilla, Drambuie and 1 tablespoon of the brown sugar in a bowl and mix well. Place the mascarpone, cream, zest and remaining brown sugar in another bowl and mix. Cover both bowls and refrigerate for 30 minutes, tossing the strawberries once or twice.

5 Whip half the mascarpone cream until firm, then evenly spoon it into the tart shell. Drain the strawberries, reserving the liquid. Pile the strawberries onto the tart. Serve wedges of the tart with a drizzling of the reserved liquid and a dollop of the remaining mascarpone cream.

We hope you enjoy these desserts as much as we do.

Desserts with Bill & Sheila

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