Lemon Verbena Peach And Raspberry Soup Food

PEACH AND LEMON VERBENA SORBET

Steps:

• Put sugar and 1 1/2 cups water into a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Add zest. Simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat; add lemon verbena. Cover; let stand 20 minutes. Pour through a fine sieve into a bowl; discard solids. Let syrup cool completely.
• Meanwhile, coarsely chop peaches, and place in a large bowl. Crush with your hands or a potato masher, then pass through a medium-mesh sieve into a bowl; discard solids (you should have at least 1 1/2 cups puree). Add cooled syrup and vodka or grappa to peach puree; stir to combine. Refrigerate until cold, at least 2 hours (up to 4 hours).
• Freeze peach mixture in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Transfer to a chilled airtight container; freeze at least 2 hours (up to 2 weeks). Let sorbet stand at room temperature 10 minutes before serving.

VANILLA BEAN KULFI WITH RASPBERRY-LEMON VERBENA SYRUP AND BERRIES

Steps:

• In a small pot, combine all ingredients with the exception of salt. Over a medium flame, bring mixture to a simmer. Reduce the heat and cook until the mixture has been reduced by 1/3 of original volume. Stir frequently. When mixture has been reduced, add the salt. Cool. Pour mixture into 4 to 5 conical shaped paper cups. Freeze. The kulfi should be allowed to freeze for 8 to10 hours.
• In a small sauce pot, combine the water, sugar, lemon zest. Bring to a simmer and add the lemon verbena. Pull the pot from the flame and allow to infuse for about 30 minutes. Place pot back on a low flame and add the raspberries. Bring entire mixture to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes. Cool slightly and pass mixture through a chinois. Chill syrup.
• Simply toss the fresh berries in the syrup just a few minutes prior to serving.
• To serve, pull the kulfi from the freezer and unwrap paper. Place kulfi in a bowl and serve the fresh berries tossed in syrup along side the kulfi.

LEMON-VERBENA-PEACH-AND-RASPBERRY SOUP

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a boil and add the sugar. Boil 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, add all the lemon-verbena sprigs and submerge them completely in the sugar syrup. Cover and let cool down to room temperature. Add the lime juice and strain into a large bowl.
• In a saucepan of boiling water, heat the peaches for 30 seconds. Transfer to a bowl of ice water and remove the skins. Working with one peach at a time, hold the peach in your hand and make thin slices to the stone all around the fruit. Gently flick off the slices into the sugar syrup with the knife.
• Add the raspberries, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

NECTARINE AND PEACH JAM WITH LEMON VERBENA

Steps:

• Grate zest from half the lemon and place zest in a large saucepan. Juice lemon and add the juice to the zest. Toss in fruit, sugar, salt and lemon verbena and bring to a simmer. Turn mixture into a large bowl and refrigerate overnight.
• The next day, if you plan to can the jam, prepare the jars according to the instructions here.
• Strain the liquid from the mixture into a wide, shallow pot or large skillet, reserving the fruit. Bring liquid to a simmer and cook until it thickens enough to wrinkle on the surface when you push it with a spoon (a candy thermometer should read 220 degrees).
• Remove lemon verbena from fruit and add fruit to the pot with the syrup. Simmer fruit gently until mixture looks very thick and jamlike. You can test the jam to see if it's ready by freezing a small plate. Drop a bit of the jam on the plate, let it cool for a minute and then push it with your finger. The top should wrinkle. If syrup is thin and runny, keep cooking and test again in a few minutes (return plate to freezer in the meantime).
• If canning, spoon into hot sterilized jars and process as directed. Otherwise, let jam cool, then store in refrigerator or freezer.

LEMON & VERBENA TART WITH RASPBERRIES

Steps:

• To make the pastry, beat the butter, half the yolk, sugar and a pinch of salt together with an electric whisk, then gradually whisk in the milk. Tip in the flour and rub together with your fingertips until it just starts to come together. Squash the dough into a ball, wrap in cling film and chill for at least 1 hr. Can be made up to three days ahead.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to the thickness of a £1 coin. Use it to line a loose-bottomed 23cm tart tin, leaving the excess hanging over the sides, then prick the base all over with a fork. Return to the fridge, or better still the freezer, and leave to rest for another 30 mins.
• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Line the tart with baking parchment and fill with ceramic baking beans, rice or dried pulses. Place on a baking tray and bake for 10 mins, then remove from the oven. Discard the paper and bake for another 20 mins. Brush the cooked pastry with the remaining half of the egg yolk, then return to the oven for 5-10 mins until golden. Lift the pastry out onto a cooling rack, and trim the overhang. Once cooled, put the case on the baking tray.
• Meanwhile, make the filling. Put the lemon verbena and cream in a pan, bring to the boil, then turn off the heat and leave to cool. Whizz the cream and leaves together using a hand blender, then pass through a fine sieve to remove any strands of verbena leaf. Whisk the cream with the rest of the filling ingredients, then pour into the pastry case. Put in the oven, making sure not to spill. Bake for 30-35 mins until just set with a slight wobble. Allow to cool. Dust with icing sugar and sprinkle over the zest. Serve the tart in slices with raspberries.