Blueberry and cherry coupe

Gabriel visits the outstanding market of Gap, which provides a snapshot of the food of the Alps. He tastes some local cheese and learns to make a local pie. In the kitchen, Gabriel makes an Alpine dessert of blueberries and cherries with a crème chiboust known as verrine de myrtilleset cerises. Y

• serves

  6

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  10 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 1 gelatine leaf
• 36 cherries, pitted
• juice of 1 lemon
• 400 g blueberries
• 110 g caster sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 20 g plain flour
• 1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
• 1 cup hot milk
• 2 egg whites
• 1 small layer of sponge cake, 1 cm thick, cut into circles (using one of the whisky glasses)
• a little icing sugar

You will need 6 whisky glasses.

Instructions

Drop the gelatine leaf into a large bowl of cold water to soften it.

Meanwhile, place 30 of the pitted cherries in a saucepan with the lemon juice, blueberries and 40g of the caster sugar. Bring to a simmer, stir gently and cook for about 2 minutes. Transfer the fruit to a bowl to cool.

In a bowl, combine the 2 egg yolks with 20 g sugar. Stir in the flour and grated lemon zest. Whisk in the hot milk, then pour the preparation into a saucepan and cook on low heat, stirring until it thickens. Transfer to a bowl and whisk in the drained gelatine leaf. Allow to cool.

When the fruit and custard are cold, beat the egg whites with 25 g caster sugar until very firm and shiny. Beat in an extra 25g sugar, then gently fold this into the cold custard. (This preparation is called a 'crème chiboust'.) Transfer the mixture into a piping bag.

Spoon a little red fruit and juice into 6 glasses and top with the circle of sponge cake. Pipe a 3 cm layer of crème chiboust and add a bit more fruit and juice.

Garnish with a whole cherry and dust with a little icing sugar.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.