F r o m A u s t r a l i a’ s Ma s t e r C h e f
Peter Gilmore
Peter Gilmore’s exclusive recipe for
the Guava Snow Egg
q u ay
f o o d i n sp i r e d b y n a t u r e
peter gilmore
SERVES 8
guava snow egg
This is my favourite dessert. It is an original creation that I first made about
three years ago. The flavours change with the seasons; sometimes I make
a white peach or a mulberry version, but this guava version is my favourite.
Strawberry guavas have a deep pink flesh and an exotic intoxicating scent.
The combination of the fool, granita and ice-cream filled poached meringue
is a textural treat. Coating the snow egg in a maltose biscuit adds another
dimension — as you crack through the toffee biscuit it gives way to the soft
meringue filled with the custard apple ice cream. This dessert is incredibly
refreshing and, for me, everything a dessert should be.
guava granita
guava fool
custard apple ice cream
600 g (1 lb 5 oz) strawberry guavas
100 g (3½ oz) fresh strawberries
100 g (3½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar
800 g (1 lb 12 oz) strawberry guavas
175 g (6 oz) caster (superfine) sugar
½ vanilla bean, split and scraped
Cut the guavas in half, scoop out the
seeds and flesh and discard the skin.
Weigh out 400 g (14 oz) of flesh.
Roughly dice the guava flesh and
strawberries.
Combine the sugar and 500 ml (17 fl
oz/2 cups) of water in a large saucepan,
bring to the boil, then lower the heat
to a slow simmer. Add the diced fruit
and gently simmer for 10 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and
allow to infuse at room temperature for
2 hours. Pass the liquid through a sieve
lined with muslin cloth and discard
the solids. Pour the guava syrup into
a ceramic or stainless-steel container
to a depth of 5 cm (2 inches). Place the
container in the freezer for a period of
no less than 12 hours. Every 2–3 hours,
remove the container from the freezer
and scrape with a fork to form the
granita crystals.
vanilla cream
100 g (3½ oz) vanilla custard BASE
(basic recipes, page 269)
100 g (3½ oz) double cream (45–50%
fat)
200 ml (7 fl oz) milk
6 egg yolks
200 g (7 oz) caster (superfine) sugar
1–2 large, extremely ripe custard
apples
100 ml (3½ fl oz) cream (35% fat)
Cut the guavas in half and scoop out
the seeds and discard them, then
scoop out the flesh from the skin.
Weigh out 375 g (13 oz) of flesh.
Put 250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) of water
in a saucepan and add the sugar and
vanilla bean. Bring to the boil, then
lower the heat to a gentle simmer,
add the guava flesh and simmer for
10 minutes. Remove the pan from the
heat and remove the vanilla bean.
Drain the guava flesh from the liquid
and place the flesh in a blender. Add
just enough of the cooking liquid to
process into a thick guava purée. Pass
the purée through a fine sieve and set
aside in the refrigerator.
To make the vanilla cream, whisk
together the vanilla custard base and
cream in a small bowl to form soft
peaks. Place 400 g (14 oz) of guava
purée in a small bowl and gently fold
through the vanilla cream to form a
rippled effect. Do this just before you
are ready to assemble the dessert.
Put the milk in a saucepan and bring to
the boil. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar
together, then, while whisking, pour
the boiled milk onto the egg yolk and
sugar mixture. Pour the mixture into a
stainless-steel bowl, place over a pan
of simmering water, without letting the
base of the bowl touch the water, and
continually whisk for 10 minutes. Place
the bowl of sabayon over ice to cool.
Meanwhile, scoop out the flesh
from one custard apple into a fine sieve
lined with a double layer of muslin
cloth. Gather the muslin at the top
and squeeze the ripe custard apple
flesh tightly to obtain a clear juice. You
will need 300 ml (10 1/2 fl oz) of clear
juice (you may need to use the second
custard apple). Whisk the juice into
the sabayon, along with the cream.
Transfer the mixture into an ice-cream
machine and churn until frozen. Place
the ice cream in a container in the
freezer for at least 1 hour.
to finish and plate
Take eight of the poached half-hemisphere meringues. Using a teaspoon, remove a
small scoop from the centre of each meringue, being careful not to break through
the outer edge. Place a small scoop of custard apple ice cream inside the hole you
have just made. Scoop a small hole in the remaining eight meringues
and invert them over the ice-cream filled half-hemispheres to form a complete
sphere. Place a maltose tuile on top of each sphere and, using a gentle kitchen
blow torch, melt the tuile over the sphere. Dust all the spheres with icing sugar.
Next, place a generous spoonful of the guava fool in the bottom of each serving
glass. Top the fool with the guava granita, then place the ice-cream filled meringue
spheres on top of the granita and serve.
poached meringue
maltose tuiles
300 g (10½ oz) egg white
300 g (10½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar
pure icing (confectioners’) sugar,
to dust
200 g (7 oz) liquid maltose
100 g (3½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar
20 g (¾ oz) flaked almonds
Preheat the oven to 120°C (230°F/Gas 1/2).
For this recipe you will need a 6 cm (2 1/2
inch) diameter half-hemisphere silicone
mould sheet. Whisk the egg whites in
an electric mixer until they form soft
peaks, then slowly add the sugar. Once
the meringue forms firm peaks and the
sugar has dissolved, place the meringue
into 16 half-hemisphere moulds. Place
the meringues in a bain-marie large
enough to hold the silicone mould
sheet and cook in the oven for about
15 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes,
then remove from the water bath to cool
completely. Unmould the meringues and
store in the refrigerator on a tray lined
with silicone paper.
Heat the maltose and sugar in a
medium-sized pan until it reaches 140°C
(285°F). Add the flaked almonds and
immediately pour the mixture onto
a silicone mat. Put aside to cool
completely.
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F/
Gas 4). Line a baking tray with a silicone
mat. Process the hard praline in a
food processor to form a fine powder.
Transfer the praline mixture into a
course sieve and sift the praline onto the
silicone mat in a fine layer, about 1 mm
(1/16 inch) thick. You may have to work
in batches, depending on the size of
your tray. Place in the oven and melt the
praline until it forms a clear liquid paste.
Remove from the oven and before the
praline becomes too hard, cut it into
eight 15 cm (6 inch) circles using a metal
circle cutter. When each circle is hard,
store in an airtight container, placing a
sheet of silicone paper between each
one.