Raspberry And Meringue Mess Food

QUEEN OF PUDDINGS - BAKED RASPBERRY AND MERINGUE PUDDING

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 160C/310F/Gas 2.
• For the pudding base, pour the milk and cream into a pan and add the split vanilla pod. Bring slowly to the boil over a medium heat.
• Place the sugar into a large bowl with the egg yolks and whisk until the mixture is light and creamy.
• Slowly pour the egg mixture into the hot milk and cream, whisking all the time, then add the breadcrumbs and lemon zest.
• Half-fill a roasting tin with boiling water to make a bain-marie. Pour the pudding mixture into individual ramekins, or one large oven-proof baking dish and place them into the bain-marie.
• Place the bain-marie in the centre of the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the pudding or puddings are almost set, but still slightly wobbly in the centre.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
• Increase the oven temperature to 190C/375F/Gas 5.
• For the meringue topping, place the egg whites into a large clean bowl and whisk until stiff peaks form when the whisk is removed. Gradually whisk in the caster sugar, a tablespoonful at a time.
• Place the jam into a small pan over a low heat and gently melt. Spread the jam over the top of the puddings, then cover the puddings completely with the meringue mixture.
• Sprinkle with the icing sugar and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the top is crisp and lightly browned.
• To serve, remove from the oven and serve immediately.

RASPBERRY, POMEGRANATE & ROSE ETON MESS

Steps:

• Blitz most of the raspberries with the rosewater until smooth. Whisk the double cream and icing sugar to soft peaks. Fold through the puréed raspberries and pomegranate molasses. Layer the raspberry cream into dessert glasses with the crushed meringue nests and the remaining raspberries. Sprinkle over the pomegranate seeds along with some dried rose petals, if you like.

CRUSHED RASPBERRY CREAMS

Steps:

• In a small bowl stir a sprinkling of the sugar in with the raspberries, crushing them very slightly as you stir, but still leaving them more or less whole. In a separate bowl fold the crème fraîche and yogurt together with the remaining sugar and the meringue pieces.
• Divide the raspberries among four small glasses, top with the creamy meringue mixture. The raspberry pots can be eaten straight away or will keep in the fridge for up to 4 hours.

FRESH RASPBERRY MERINGUES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 170°F, or the lowest setting on your oven that is closest to this temperature. Move your oven rack to the top third of the oven. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
• Combine raspberries and sugar in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir often, crushing berries with the back of a wooden spoon as they cook. As soon as the rasberry mixture becomes syrupy, remove the pan from the heat. Strain the berry mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a measuring cup, pressing down on the berries with a rubber spatula to extract all the juices. You should have about 1/2 cup of raspberry sauce. Discard the seeds and stir the vanilla extract into the sauce. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before proceeding.
• Place egg whites in a mixing bowl and sprinkle the cream of tartar over them. Use a mixer to beat the egg whites until they hold stiff peaks.
• Stir the cooled raspberry sauce, then gently fold 1/3 of the sauce into the beaten egg whites. Repeat two more times with the remaining 2/3 of the raspberry sauce.
• Spoon meringue into a gallon-size zip-top baggie, forcing the mixture to one corner of the bag. Snip about 1/4" from the corner of the bag so meringues can be piped onto the prepared pan. Pipe out 1 1/2 inch swirled circles onto baking sheet, making sure that the meringues don't touch. If you prefer, meringues can be gently scooped and dropped by rounded teaspoonfuls instead of piping.
• Bake for 2 hours at 170°F, rotating the baking sheet after 1 hour so they will dry evenly. When done, the meringues should not have any browning, and they should be dark pink in color.
• Turn off the oven and allow meringues to remain in the oven for at least two hours to finish drying, or you can leave them in the oven overnight.
• Meringues can be stored in an airtight container for 5 days, or they can be frozen for up to one month. If frozen, allow to thaw to room temp before serving.