Crème Bavaroise
Crème anglaise set with gelatin and lightened with cream
Crème anglaise set with gelatin and folded with whipped cream, then moulded. The classical cold dessert, and the base of half the entremets in a French pastry book.
The timing matters more than anything else: fold the cream in when the custard is on the point of setting, not before and not after.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups Crème Anglaise (see Crème Anglaise), warm
- 1 tablespoon powdered gelatin
- 3 tablespoons cold water
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream, cold
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
Instructions
- Bloom the gelatin in the cold water for 5 minutes.
- Stir the bloomed gelatin into the warm crème anglaise until completely dissolved. Strain.
- Set the bowl over an ice bath and stir until the custard cools and just begins to thicken — it should coat the spoon heavily and show the first sign of setting at the edges.
- Whip the cream with the powdered sugar to soft peaks.
- Fold a third of the cream in to slacken, then fold in the rest quickly and lightly.
- Pour into an oiled mould or ramekins and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
- To unmould, dip the mould in warm water for 5 seconds and invert onto a plate.
Notes
- Too warm when you fold and the cream melts; too cold and it sets in lumps. Watch the edges of the bowl.
- Purée fruit into the custard before setting for a fruit bavarois — reduce the milk accordingly.