Spice (71 page)

For the Candied Orange

1 orange

1 cup sugar plus more for coating strips

For the Pistachio Praline

1 tablespoon butter, softened

¾ cup sugar

½ cup pistachios, toasted and roughly chopped

For the Nougat Glacé

2 cups heavy cream

1/3 cup honey

2 tablespoons corn syrup

2¾ cups sugar

5 egg whites

½ cup chopped pistachios

2 tablespoons orange-blossom water

½ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons)

8 large ripe nectarines

To Make the Candied Orange

1.
To remove the peel from the orange, cut the orange into quarters and peel away the orange segments, reserving the orange for eating. Cut each quarter peel into ¼-inch strips.

2.
In a small saucepan, blanch the orange peels by dropping them into boiling water. Bring the water back to a boil and then drain the peels. Repeat the blanching process 3 more times; this removes bitterness and softens the peels. After the fourth time, remove the peels and drain all the water out except for about ¼ cup, or enough to coat the bottom of the pan.

3.
Add 1 cup of the sugar and turn the heat to medium-high. After a few minutes, the mixture should become syrupy. Let this boil without stirring about 5 minutes. You may need to swirl the pan around to prevent the sugar from clumping.

4.
After 5 minutes, test with a spoon for stickiness. If the syrup sticks to the spoon, it is ready. Add the peels and stir carefully to coat them.

5.
Using a fork, lay the peels out across a wire cooling rack in single layer. Dry them for 10 minutes.

6.
While the orange peels are still warm, toss them with enough sugar to coat them (tossing 3 or so at a time) and return them to the rack to dry for another hour.

7.
Dice the peels into small pieces. Set aside.

To Make the Pistachio Praline

1.
Line a baking sheet with foil and rub it evenly with the soft butter.

2.
Combine the sugar and ¼ cup of water in a small saucepan, stirring until the sugar dissolves.

3.
Place the pan over medium-high heat and cook without stirring until the mixture turns golden brown.

4.
Remove the mixture from the heat and quickly stir in the pistachios.

5.
Immediately pour the mixture onto the buttered foil. After about 10 minutes, when the praline has cooled and hardened so that you can handle it, break it into 1-to 2-inch pieces and then finely chop it into bits. Set aside.

To Make the Nougat Glacé

1.
Using a handheld mixer or KitchenAid with a whip attachment, whip the cream to soft peaks and set it aside in the refrigerator.

2.
Combine the honey, corn syrup, and ½ cup of the sugar in a medium saucepan. Place the mixture on medium-low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Cook the honey mixture to 250°F, using a candy thermometer to check the temperature.

3.
While the honey cooks, prepare the egg whites. Using a handheld mixer or KitchenAid with a whip attachment, whip the egg whites on medium speed until foamy. Increase the speed to medium-high and slowly add ¼ cup of the sugar. Keep whipping until the egg whites are smooth and shiny but not stiff, then reduce the speed to medium-low. If the egg whites stiffen before the honey is ready, reduce the speed to low.

4.
With the mixer on low, pour the sugar syrup into the egg whites. Increase the speed to medium-high and whip this mixture for 5 to 7 minutes, until the egg whites are cool and very stiff.

5.
Fold (see page 135) the whipped cream into the egg whites, 1/3 at a time. Keep folding until the mixture is smooth.

6.
Fold in the orange peel, pistachio praline, pistachios, and orange-blossom water.

7.
Place the nougat glacé in a plastic container and freeze it overnight or for at least 6 hours.

8.
Meanwhile make the poaching liquid by combining 6 cups of water, the remaining 2 cups of sugar, and the lemon juice in a medium saucepan.

9.
Prepare the nectarines by cutting a thin slice off the bottom of each whole nectarine to flatten it so that it can stand without rolling. Using a sharp paring knife, cut into the top of each nectarine at an angle and cut around the side of the pit to the bottom of the nectarine. Push the pit out from the bottom with your finger. Trim any fruit stuck to the pits and add the pieces to the poaching liquid.

10.
Bring the saucepan of poaching liquid to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring once to dissolve the sugar. Reduce the heat to a medium-low or a brisk simmer.

11.
Add the nectarines, 4 at a time, and cook them until they’re just tender when pierced with a knife, 5 to 6 minutes.

12.
Remove the nectarines with a slotted spoon and set them aside to cool. Poach the remaining nectarines.

13.
After about 8 minutes, when the nectarines are cool enough to handle, peel the skins off with your fingers. The peel should come off in large pieces and leave some rosiness on the nectarines.

14.
Put 2 cups of the poaching liquid in a small saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Simmer the liquid for about 10 minutes, until reduced to 1 cup. Cool the liquid for about 10 minutes and then refrigerate it for an hour or overnight. You can strain and reserve the remaining poaching liquid to make a sweet syrup to add to iced tea or sparkling water.

15.
To serve, place a whole nectarine on a plate and scoop about ½ cup of nougat into the center, so that it fills the nectarine and spills out a bit from the top. Spoon a few tablespoons of chilled syrup over the top and serve immediately.

Watermelon Granité and Frozen Yogurt Parfait with Real Rose Petal Jam

Melon and rose is one of my favorite summer combinations, especially when served up in a frozen treat on a hot day. Granité, which is a scraped ice, is a fun alternative to sorbet. Granité can be labor intensive: you have to scrape it little by little with a fork to give it a fluffy and not icy texture that dissolves instantly on your tongue. Granité is one of the oldest frozen desserts; Napoleon had snow shipped from Sicily’s Mount Etna so that he could flavor it with fruit syrups.

Every June, Oleana purchases beach rose petals foraged by Eva Sommaripa, a farmer who lives in Westport, Massachusetts. Beach roses have a softer texture and lighter perfume than common roses, and we use them to make a heavenly rose petal jam—enough to last us at least 6 months in the freezer.

Maura Kilpatrick, Oleana’s pastry chef, created this unique dessert. The watermelon granité also makes a great cocktail when combined with rum. All of the components must be prepared at least a day in advance and up to 3 days.

S
ERVES
8

For the Watermelon Granité

3 cups sugar

One 4 ½ - to 5-pound watermelon, peeled, seeded, and cut into small chunks

Pinch of salt

Juice of 1 lime

For the Frozen Yogurt Parfait

2 cups whole-milk plain yogurt, preferably Greek-style

¼ cup heavy cream

Grated zest (see page 72) and juice of 1 lime

4 eggs, separated

¾ cup sugar

For the Rose Petal Jam

2 teaspoons rosewater

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (about ½ lemon)

3 cups pink beach rose petals, lightly packed

To Make the Granité

1.
In a medium saucepan bring 3 cups of the sugar and 3 cups of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil for 3 to 4 minutes to dissolve the sugar and lightly thicken the syrup. Remove the syrup from the heat, pour it into a liquid measuring cup, and set it aside. You should have about 4 cups of simple syrup.

2.
Use a blender to puree the watermelon in small batches. Strain the puree through a fine sieve into a medium mixing bowl, discarding the solids. You should have 3½ to 4 cups of watermelon puree.

3.
Stir in 1 cup of the prepared simple syrup and taste the watermelon liquid for sweetness. Add another 2 to 3 tablespoons of the simple syrup, depending on desired sweetness. It should be sweet but not overly sweet.

4.
Stir in the salt and lime juice from 1 lime.

5.
Pour the mixture into a shallow baking pan or Pyrex dish and place it in the freezer for 1 ½ hours.

6.
Stir the frozen pieces from the edges into the center of the pan with a fork. Repeat this stirring, every 30 minutes, for another 1 ½ to 2 hours. Be patient: the more you stir the granité, the lighter and fluffier the ice crystals will be when complete. You can store the granité in your freezer for 5 to 7 days.

To Make the Frozen Yogurt Parfait

1.
Use a handheld mixer or KitchenAid with a whisk attachment, and beat the yogurt, cream, and lime zest and lime juice until soft peaks form. Set aside in the refrigerator.

2.
Using a handheld mixer or KitchenAid with a whisk attachment, whip the egg yolks at medium speed, slowly adding ¼ cup of the sugar, until the yolks are pale yellow and thickened, for about 4 to 5 minutes. Scrape the yolks into a medium mixing bowl.

3.
In another medium mixing bowl, whip the egg whites on medium speed until they become foamy or frothy, about 2 minutes.