Right around mid December, I had that feeling something somewhere was not right but I could not really put my finger on it. Something was missing every time I'd turn on the computer but I could say what. The filling lasted a few days more when suddenly it hit me, "WTSIM..." was missing! Peeps, that's bad when your body has become so trained to certain cycles that it knows when something is out of place. And that's even worse when it is in your "other" life, your blogging life that is. Unless they ask us to make stew or barbecue I am always there to go play with Johanna, Jeanne and Andrew. January's theme is "Terrine" and as I was reading Johanna's directions I almost sighed in disappointment when she said that sweet terrines were welcome. Oh good! Now what?!!
I thought about steamed puddings in terrine molds and about nice layered fruit gelatin layers. The former seemed a little heavier than I wanted to bring to our weekly gathering with the neighbors and the latter was going to be received as this weird jello-type dish no matter how sophisticated the layering and fruits would be. I was in the mood for layers of cream and fruits and decided to pair them with a light genoise and assemble the terrine that way. I got lucky at the farmers' market that Saturday and came home with some very ripe and fresh raspberries and homemade yogurt, thick and wholesome.
The yogurt is the base for a light and creamy panna cotta flavored with honey. I was inspired by a recipe from The Sweet Life by Kate Zucherman. I was intrigued by this recipe as the other element is a egg white custard. Like most of us out there I am used to egg yolks based custard so this was an interesting play on a basic. I have to say that on its own, it is very eggy tasting...not something I would want to eat by the spoonful like creme anglaise. However, once mixed in with the yogurt and honey, the strong egg flavor disappear completely and one is left with a very silky panna cotta. Something I can eat by the spoonful!!
The genoise is the same used in the December Daring Bakers' challenge as the cake is moist and fluffy and works perfectly cut up in log strips to layer the cream and the fruit. My little play on the cake is that I brushed each layer with some Saint Germain Elderflower liqueur that my sweet friend Anita sent me a few weeks ago. It took the whole terrine from "excellent" to "awesome". I have to hide the bottle from myself because it is truly addictive! You can skip the alcohol part or substitute with Kirsch or white rum. Feel free to use something else than raspberries like strawberries, peaches, etc...
Honey Panna Cotta and Raspberry Terrine:For the Genoise (recipe from the Yule Log Daring Baker Challenge):
one (1) 10 x 15 inch jelly-roll pan that has been buttered and lined with parchment paper and then buttered again.
Set a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.
Half-fill a medium saucepan with water and bring it to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat so the water is simmering.
Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, salt and sugar together in the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer. Place over the pan of simmering water and whisk gently until the mixture is just lukewarm, about 100 degrees if you have a thermometer (or test with your finger - it should be warm to the touch).
Attach the bowl to the mixer and, with the whisk attachment, whip on medium-high speed until the egg mixture is cooled (touch the outside of the bowl to tell) and tripled in volume. The egg foam will be thick and will form a slowly dissolving ribbon falling back onto the bowl of whipped eggs when the whisk is lifted.
While the eggs are whipping, stir together the flour and cornstarch.
Sift one-third of the flour mixture over the beaten eggs. Use a rubber spatula to fold in the flour mixture, making sure to scrape all the way to the bottom of the bowl on every pass through the batter to prevent the flour mixture from accumulating there and making lumps. Repeat with another third of the flour mixture and finally with the remainder.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
Bake the genoise for about 10 to 12 minutes. Make sure the cake does not over bake and become too dry or it will not roll properly.
Once the cake is done (a tester will come out clean and if you press the cake lightly it will spring back), remove it from the oven and let it cool on a rack. Remove the cake from the baking sheet and invert it on a larger piece of parchment paper. Peel of the parchment paper that was lining the baking sheet.
16 oz plain whole milk yogurt
1/2 cup sour cream
2 Tb honey
1/2 Tb unflavored gelatin
1/3 cup whole milk
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
3 egg whites
8 to 24 hours ahead of time: line a fine mesh strainer with cheesecloth or coffee filter and place it over a bowl so that it is suspended. Scrape the yogurt in the lined strainer and let it drain, refrigerated.
After 8-24 hours (I strain mine overnight), combine the yogurt, sour cream and honey. Whisk well and set aside at room temperature.
In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over 1 1/2 Tb water and set aside to bloom for 10 minutes.
Make the egg white custard: In a small saucepan, heat up the milk, cream and 2 Tb of the sugar, until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is almost boiling.
In a small bowl, whisk together the egg whites and the 1/4 cup of sugar. Slowly whisk in some of the hot milk to temper the eggs. Add the remaining milk, whisk well, and pour the whole thing back into the pot. Stir constantly over medium heat until the mixture thickens like for a regular egg custard (should coat the back of a spoon).
Remove from the heat and stir in the gelatin. Stir well until the gelatin is completely dissolved. Strain the custard through a sieve if necessary. Let cool to room temperature. You can speed up this process by putting your bowl over an ice bath. Once the custard is cooled, stir in the yogurt mixture. Set aside a room temperature until ready to use.
57 comments:
Elderflower liquor - what a stroke (brush?) of genius. The terrine must almost smell like spring is around the corner. May I have a slice, please?
How absolutely lovely! La framboise est un péché mignon, tout comme le yaourt et le miel.
Goodness that is just so beautifully delicate. I'm sure I could eat the entire log if only nobody was watching!
Me encanta este blog. Felicitaciones!!!.
Claudia
http://eljardindeclaudia.blogspot.com
Now that is one beautiful dessert!! Reading the ingredients assures me it would taste superb!
That looks beautiful. I am waiting for my sweet terrine to firm up. Hope it comes out half as good as yours.
Mmm...this is beeyouteeful, Helene! I was going to try and pull this one off, but my head has been in a hole. Sigh. And I do what you mean about being "off." I haven't been here in a while and was just thinking of you!
It's gorgeous. And so nice of your friend to send you Elderflower liqour...I have never even heard of that. Now I will be on the look out for it.
Looks amazing! And bravo for working in your DB recipes :)
That is really a work of art -- far too pretty to eat!
Panna cotta with berries is a lovely combo. I remember a recipe from Vegetarian Times for Lemon panna cotta studded with black berries. Yours looks just like it was in the magazine. I just couldn't bring myself to cook and post a terrine. Almond is what I had on my mind :(
Oh my! That is beautiful....and totally making my mouth water!!
This looks good enough for fairies to eat. Dainty, pretty and light. Really stunning, Helen!
Stunning! After all the heavy winter desserts I have been making, seeing, reading about...this is like a breath of fresh air! Bring on Spring! :)
how pretty! that's a great looking dessert-i love the layers!
looks delicious!
I just had to leave a comment - this looks so gorgeous! It must taste delicious.
That is just awesome! Cake and gelatin desserts can be weird if done haphazardly but this just works beautifully. I want a taste! Wish we had raspberries here, though... sigh.
What a wonderful terrine! Raspberry & honey... I can't resist!
You are a genius! This is an exquisite looking Dessert!
As usual, another beautiful and elegant dessert! I wanted to participate in WTSIM this month, but it wasn't in the cards. Husband and child both down with stomach flu. Ugh! Not very conducive to baking. Oh well, I'll just enjoy your terrine instead.
I've always loved fresh and fruity desserts... Your terrine looks amazing, refined and really delicious!
Cheers,
Rosa
this exquisite panna cotta and your unique way to frost the terrine make this dessert shine! Helene, thanks for reminding me your donut event. I'll try to think if I have any other recipes other than the honey balls, just want to make something special specially for your event! :) :)
Exiciting flavour combination! And very pretty looking too, love the the very pink raspberries.
oh! what a fabulous use of the St-Germain liqueur... and so beautiful, as always.
Oh how truly lovely!! The raspberry/white combination is aloways a winner, and I can only imagine how wonderful this would taste! Thanks for takign part :)
That looks delightful! I must really think about a terrine to put together for this event..
That panna cotta looks amazing.. I would give a lot for a piece of it right now!
That's a love piece of cake!
what a brilliant terrine! i love this combination of flavours and it looks just stunning, too! i bet the panna cotta tastes so much lighter using sour cream and yoghurt - a perfect summery dessert. thanks so much for participating!
Your kitchen artistry never fails to amaze me. Just gorgeous! I especially love the stripes on top. Thanks for passing along how to do that.
absolutely stunning. btw, have you always had the calendar of blog events on your sidebar? it's really helpful!
Nice-looking cake! I have some questions (probably due to my bad English):
1) Do you beat the egg whites really up into a thick mass or just mix them with sugar?
2) Do you leave the yogurt into the fridge (not deep freezer?) overnight? What is the reason for that?
3) How come you get so thick cream if you use only so few gelatine?
Thanks!
Eva: just beat the egg whites with the sugar until well combined, no need to make them "whipped" as it is not a meringue. You drain the yogurt in the colander overnight and for food safety reasons it is preferable to store it in the fridge, otherwise it could go sour and bad. The deep freezer would well, freeze it, you are draining it to make it thick. If you drain it only for a couple of hours, it is ok to leave it overnight.
Panna cottas are not jello-type desserts, meaning they should have enough gelatin to hold themselves and not too much to make it firm. The quantities here were perfect to make it able to cut through without is falling apart and at the same time just enough to have a soft consistency.
Thank you!
Wow! It looks delicious. The colors on it are enough to make it a winner in my list. Yummy
No steamed pudding. No fruit jelly. This is the best comprimise ever, Helen.
Beautiful.
That side view is gorgeous!! Did you know raspberries are one of the Top 20 Most Productive Foods?!
what a lovely & delicious looking dessert!
What a beautiful terrine! It just looks so light and delicious!
How very pretty and summery! A lovely, summery dessert.
I had wanted to do this event but when I saw the word Terrine, I thought of those horrible veggie ones we were served during the holidays - did not even think of a nice sweet one! Yours looks fantastic and St. Germain, just love that name and have been looking for some out in rainy and cold San Francisco, thought it would warm us up!
It looks delicous Helene.
Wow, I don't think I have ever seen such a picture perfect dessert!
This is a thing of beauty! So pure.
J'aime beaucoup...que dis-je.. J'adore!! Une merveille!
:-)
Very pretty! I love the way raspberries look in photos- you're lucky to have such nice ones. They're pretty bad here right now.
I love that Kate Zuckerman cookbook too. I've been steadily working through it with great results.
Lisa
http://pghtasted.blogspot.com
oh those look so cute and charming!
I have to say I have been a closet Tartelette fan for a long time. I think your blog is such an inspiration!
it's beautiful! i love the hidden raspberries. and yogurt in any dessert form is pure heaven for me!
It's so pretty! And your elderflower liquor sounds really exciting...not even sure what an elderflower is!
Hey Helene,
You never fail to amaze me with your pastry-chef-guru ways. You definitely have a creative streak and this terrine is a work of art!
panna cotta with egg whites - it's the first time I see something like this! but it's also something I'd really like to try. especially when flavoured with honey:)
I also made a terrine for WTSIM. Well, it was a success, but not a great success, so no participating this time...things happen:D
Hello!
I love your blog and I am also an owner of Kate Zuckerman's The Sweet Life. If you have the time I am much interested in what you consider when adapting ingredients and ratios in recipes.
The terrine looks lovely!
There are times when I wish I lived next door to you and then I think that over and say maybe not because I would not be able to control myself. This blog is best described as: TEMPTATION
So many blogging events, so little time. I keep forgetting about this one.
What a beautiful entry!
such a beautiful creation! i'm envious not only of your baking skills, but of your decorating skills as well! please pass me a slice.... :)
what a lovely terrine!!
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