Lemon Mousse with Berries

David and I had guests for dinner last night.  David was making the entrée and a guest was bringing salad, which left me having to make only an easy hors d'oeuvre (marinated mushrooms).  So, I decided to explore dessert recipes for something out of my comfort zone, and came across a recipe for lemon mousse from The Moosewood Cookbook, that great vegetarian cookbook from the 1970s.  The recipe mentioned the possibility of serving in individual dessert dishes, which gave me the idea to use the lovely goblets I inherited from my mother, who had gotten them from her mother, my Bubbe Schine.  I rarely use them, so all the more reason to give it a try.  It worked out really well, and all the guests were enthusiastic.

Some notes on the recipe:

·      The original recipe said it served 6, so I made 1-1/2 times as much, which yielded what you see in the photo above—8 goblets plus a large bowl of extra.  Most people did have a second serving, but that still left plenty.  The amounts below are from the original recipe, but I've changed the serving designation to 8.

·      The mousse was lovely, but it definitely needed the berries to top it off.

·      There's nothing difficult in this recipe—it just takes time for the different components to come together:  making the custard, beating the egg whites, beating the cream, and prepping the berries.  Enjoy!

Lemon Mousse with Berries

8 servings

Lightly adapted from Mollie Katzen, The Moosewood Cookbook

Preparation takes about 2-1/2 hours (including the 45 minutes of chilling time), and then the mousse needs to chill for several hours, so you'll need to make it in the morning, to serve in the evening.

3 large eggs

3 T. cornstarch

grated rind from 2 lemons

juice from 6 lemons

10 T. honey (1/2 cup plus 2 T.)

dash of salt

dash of cream of tartar

1 pint (16 oz) heavy cream, cold

1/4 t. lemon extract

1 T. honey

fresh berries (I used blueberries and strawberries.)

1.     Separate the eggs.  Set aside the whites, letting them come to room temperature.  Lightly beat the yolks.

2.     Lemon custard:  In a small saucepan, whisk together the cornstarch, lemon juice, 8 T. honey, and the lemon rind.  When the mixture is smooth, cook it over low heat, whisking, until it starts to thicken (about 6-8 minutes).  Remove from the heat.  Beating furiously, whisk the hot lemon mixture into the egg yolks, beating until smooth.  Refrigerate for about 45 minutes, until the mixture has cooled down and begun to solidify.  At the same time, put in the fridge the bowl you'll be using to beat the cream—it helps for the bowl to be chilled.

3.     EGG WHITES: After the lemon mixture has cooled, start beating the egg whites.  Add a dash each of salt and cream of tartar.  Whip until you get stiff peaks, and then fold the whites gently but thoroughly into the chilled lemon mixture.  Refrigerate while doing the next step.

4.     CREAM: Whip the heavy cream in the chilled bowl, adding the lemon extract and drizzling in 1 T. honey.  When the cream has been whipped to soft peaks, fold it into the rest of the mousse.  Put the mousse into the serving dish(es)—either one large bowl or individual dessert dishes. Chill for at least two hours before serving.  During this time, prepare the berries.

5.     BERRIES: Prepare the berries, as needed.  I cut strawberries into quarters or eighths and mixed with a little sugar, enough to get a bit of syrup as the berries sat.  For the blueberries, I sprinkled on sugar, and then cooked them in a saucepan, just until the sugar melted.  I then put the berries in the fridge, taking them out an hour or so before serving to bring them to room temperature.

6.     Serve the mousse with the berries, to spoon on top.

Apples with ice cream and dulce de leche

David and I never have dessert with our everyday dinners, but I enjoy making dessert when we're having guests.  Here's a recipe I've made a couple of times that I really like.  It's easy to make, and easy to fit into a multi-course dinner prep.  Making the dulce de leche is especially fun.  After the first time I made it, I wrote a note in the book, "Yes, it's really this easy!"  I just looked online, and there certainly are more complicated ways to make it from scratch, but I see no reason to try them.  Just simmering an unopened can of condensed milk for 90 minutes produces great results! 

APPLES WITH ICE CREAM AND DULCE DE LECHE

adapted from Diane Rossen Worthington, Seriously Simple: Easy Recipes for Creative Cooks

serves 4

3 T. unsalted butter

4 baking apples (Golden Delicious are good), peeled, cored, and cut into 1/4" slices

2 t. sugar

good vanilla ice cream

1/2 cup dulce de leche (recipe below); can also use purchased caramel sauce, warmed

Prepare the dulce de leche sauce ahead of time—can be done as much as 2 weeks ahead.

Melt the butter in a large skillet, over medium heat.  Add and apply slices, stir to evenly coat with butter and cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the sugar and cook for another 5-6 minutes, or until the apples are somewhat browned and soft, but not mushy.

The apples can be prepared as much as 4 hours ahead of serving.  When ready to serve, add a tablespoon or two of water and re-heat.

To serve:  Put a scoop of ice cream in a bowl or small plate.  Add apple slices.  Top with dulce de leche.

dulche de leche

1 recipe of this makes enough for double the apple recipe above

1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk

1 t. vanilla extract

Choose a large, heavy sauce pan into which you can fit the can of condensed milk and also put a lid on the pan.  Take the wrapper off the can (or leave it on and pull out when it falls off during boiling).  Put the unopened can in the pan and add water to come up about 3/4 of the way up the sides of the can.  Bring to a simmer over medium  heat and then reduce the heat, partially cover, and cook for 45 minutes.  Turn the can over and simmer for another 45 minutes, for a total of 90 minutes cooking time.

Let the can cool in the pan of water until it reaches room temperature.  Open the can and pour out the contents into a small bowl.  Add the vanilla and stir in.  Can be stored in the refrigerator up to two weeks.  Bring to room temperature before serving.

An exceptional summer dessert: Plum Galette

I have made this dessert twice in the last ten days, first for a dinner with another couple, and then the other evening, just for David and me.  We each had a piece for a late night treat, another piece each for breakfast, and then we split the last remaining piece for dessert tonight.  This is so good.  Really, you should try it.  I had never made a dessert with plums before, but now I'm looking for other recipes.  I found a recipe for a cold plum soup that looks good too.  Or I might just make another plum galette. . .

This recipe is adapted from Rustic Fruit Desserts, by Cory Schreiber and Julie Richardson.  I bought this book after seeing it well-reviewed in a number of places, but the recipes seemed more complicated than I felt up to.  I made this a lot simpler by using a prepared pie crust instead of making a galette crust from scratch.  My mother made great pie crusts, and I've tried, but I don't seem to have the touch.  I think the store-bought ones are a great invention!  Addition 9/24/15:  In the years after posting this recipe, I have become more confident in making pie crusts, thanks to the purchase of a silicone pastry mat, which the crust doesn't stick to, and which makes clean-up much easier.  So, I've added below the recipe for the galette crust that comes from the same book.  It is good enough that I think it's worth the extra effort; this is how I make the galette now myself.  But a store-bought crust is fine too.  And one other tip:  If you want to serve this with something less caloric than creme fraiche or ice cream, try Low Fat Vanilla Cream.

PLUM GALETTE 

(adapted from Rustic Fruit Desserts)

serves 4-5

1 prepared pie crust (I use Pillsbury)

1/2 c. + 2 T. granulated sugar

seeds scraped from 1/2 vanilla bean (or you could substitute 1 t. vanilla extract)

1 T. cornstarch

1/2 t. fine sea salt

5 plums, pitted and each cut into eighths

vanilla ice cream or crème fraiche for a topping

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Position a rack in the lower third of the oven.

Cut the plums into eighths and put in a medium-sized bowl.

Line a rimmed baking sheet (or jelly roll pan) with parchment paper.  (You need the rim, because juice from the fruit is likely to drip out of the crust, and you want the pan to catch it.)  Lay out the pie crust on the pan.

Put the sugar in a small bowl.  Split open the vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds with the blade of a knife.  Rub the vanilla bean seeds into the sugar.  Add the cornstarch and salt and mix to distribute.  Sprinkle 2 T. of the mixture over the dough, leaving a 2-inch border around the edge.  Toss the rest of the mixture with the plums.

Lift each plum slice from the juice, and arrange the slices on the dough, skin side down (so they're kind of standing up), in a spiral beginning 2 inches from the outside edge and ending in the center.  If you have a few extra slices, squeeze them in or lay them on top.  Drizzle some of the plum juice over the fruit.  Fold the outer edge of the dough over the outermost plums, pinching the dough together as necessary.  Put the galette in the refrigerator for 20 minutes to chill.

Bake the galette for 30 minutes, then turn the oven down to 350 degrees and bake for another 20 minutes, until the crust is golden and the fruit is bubbling.  At that 30 minute point, if the crust is already getting dark, loosely cover it with aluminum foil.  (Or if OK then, check later, into the 20 minutes).  

Cool for 30 minutes before serving.  It's delicious as is, or you can serve with vanilla ice cream or crème fraiche.

Storage: Covered with a tea towel, the galette will keep at room temperature for up to 2 days.

GALETTE CRUST

makes one 13" galette crust

1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 T. granulated sugar

3/4 t. fine sea salt

3/4 cup (6 oz) cold unsalted butter

1/3 cup ice water, or more as needed*

1 t. lemon juice, fresh or bottled

Put the flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl, stir to combine, then put the bowl in the freezer for about 10 minutes.

Cut the butter into half-inch cubes, then add to the flour mixture and toss until each cube of butter is coated with the flour mixture.  Put into a food processor and cut the butter into the flour until the ingredients become coarse and crumbly and the butter is slightly smaller than a pea. (Or you can use a pastry blender or your hands.)  Don't take the dough out of the processor yet.

Stir the water and lemon juice together, then drizzle over the dough, and give a couple of quick flicks of the processor blade to distribute the liquid.  (Or if by hand, toss dough with a fork.) The pastry will be shaggy but should hold together when squeezed in the palm of your hand; if not, add an additional teaspoon or two of ice water.

Dump the pastry onto a lightly floured work surface and press down on the dough, folding it over on itself a few times until it holds together.  Try not to handle it too much.  Flatten the pastry out into a disk about 1" thick.  Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for an hour.  (If well wrapped, the disk will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator, or up to 3 months in the freezer.  If frozen, defrost in the refrigerator overnight.

When ready to assemble the galette, roll out the dough into a 13" circle.  Transfer the circle to the prepared baking sheet.  Then

*The original recipe said to start with 3 T. water and add more as needed, but I found more was needed.