Almond Blancmange With Caramel Glaze And Sage Sherbet Recipes

ALMOND BLANCMANGE WITH CARAMEL GLAZE AND SAGE SHERBET

Steps:

• Make blancmange:
• Soak almonds in 3 cups milk, covered and chilled, at least 8 hours. Blend almond mixture in 2 batches in a blender until smooth, about 3 minutes per batch.
• Rinse kitchen towel under cold water and wring out as much water as possible. Line a large sieve with towel, then set sieve over a bowl or 4-cup glass measure and pour half of almond mixture into towel. Wrap towel up and around mixture and, working over sieve, squeeze almond milk from towel into bowl, discarding ground nuts once all of liquid is extracted. Repeat procedure with remaining almond mixture until you have about 2 1/4 cups almond milk.
• With a vegetable peeler remove zest from orange and lemon. Bring zests, sugar, and remaining cup milk to a simmer in a 2-quart heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and let steep, covered, 10 minutes.
• Sprinkle gelatin over cream in a medium metal bowl and let soften 1 minute. Pour warm zest mixture through a sieve into gelatin mixture, discarding zest, and stir until gelatin is dissolved. Stir in almond milk.
• Divide almond mixture among soup plates (about 1/2 cup each; they will not be full), stirring before ladling so gelatin is evenly distributed. Chill, loosely covered once cold, until set, about 4 hours.
• Make sherbet:
• Bring water, sugar, corn syrup, dry milk, and sage leaves to a boil in a 2-quart heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and let steep, covered, 20 minutes.
• Sprinkle gelatin over water in a medium metal bowl and let soften 1 minute. Pour warm sage mixture through a sieve into gelatin mixture, discarding sage leaves, and stir until gelatin is dissolved. Set bowl in a larger bowl of ice and cold water and let stand, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula, until cold, about 10 minutes.
• Freeze sherbet in ice cream maker (it will initially double in volume and then shrink as it freezes), then transfer to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden slightly, at least 1 hour.
• Make caramel:
• Stir together Amaretto, cream, and 1/3 cup water in a 2-cup measure and set aside.
• Bring sugar and 1/4 cup water to a boil in a 10-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then wash down any crystals from side of skillet with a pastry brush dipped in water. Boil syrup, without stirring, until it becomes a deep golden caramel (swirl skillet if necessary to help syrup caramelize evenly), about 5 minutes. Turn heat off and immediately add Amaretto mixture (mixture will bubble up and steam), then cook over moderate heat, stirring, until any solid caramel is dissolved and mixture is smooth, about 2 minutes.
• Sprinkle gelatin over remaining water in a medium metal bowl and let soften 1 minute. Add hot caramel mixture and stir until gelatin is dissolved. Put bowl in a larger bowl of ice and cold water and let stand, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula, until just cool, about 5 minutes.
• Gently spoon about 3 tablespoons Amaretto caramel glaze evenly over each gelled blancmange, then chill desserts, uncovered, until glaze is set, at least 3 hours.
• Serve desserts with a scoop of sage sherbet and a wafer.

ALMOND SHERBET

Steps:

• Whisk the sweetened condensed milk and water together in a bowl, and stir in the sugar and almond extract until the drink is smooth and the sugar has dissolved. Mix in a drop or two of green food coloring, or as desired; chill to serve.

BLANCMANGE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Spread almonds in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet; bake 20 minutes. Transfer sheet to a wire rack and let cool slightly. Pulse almonds in a food processor until finely ground. Heat 4 cups whole milk, 1 1/2 cups water, sugar, and cinnamon sticks in a medium saucepan over medium until hot but not bubbling. Stir in almonds. Transfer to a liquid-measuring cup and let steep, covered, in refrigerator overnight or up to 2 days. (The longer the mixture steeps, the more flavor the blancmange will have.)
• Fill a 4- to 4 1/2-cup or two 2- to 2 1/2-cup molds with ice water. Rinse a large piece of heavy-duty cheesecloth (if thin, use a double layer) in hot water; wring as dry as possible. Place a sieve over a bowl, line sieve with prepared cheesecloth, and pour in almond mixture. Let almond milk drip through 30 minutes, then carefully gather up ends of cheesecloth and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Almond milk should be smooth; if any pieces of almond pass through, strain through a very fine sieve. Discard cinnamon sticks. Pour almond milk into a large liquid-measuring cup (you should have at least 3 cups) and add enough of the remaining 1 cup whole milk to make 4 cups liquid.
• In a medium saucepan, combine cream and 1 cup almond milk. Sprinkle gelatin over top; let stand until softened, 5 minutes. Heat almond-milk mixture over medium-low, stirring occasionally, until gelatin is dissolved, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir gelatin mixture into remaining almond milk in measuring cup. Remove ice water from mold but do not dry mold (this will make the blancmange easier to unmold later). Strain almond-milk mixture through a sieve into mold to fill. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto surface to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until firm, about 6 hours or overnight.
• To unmold, quickly dip mold into a hot-water bath to loosen pudding from mold, or use a hot wet towel that has been wrung out. Place a serving platter over mold and quickly invert. Jiggle to loosen; remove mold. Serve with currants, if desired.