Catherine Celebrates Valentine's airs RTE One on Monday 8th February at 7.30pm
Ingredients
Makes: 3, size depending (3 x 180 ml jars)
For the custard pots
- 200ml double cream
- 100ml milk
- 2 egg yolks
- 3 tbsp caster sugar
- 1 vanilla pod, seeds extracted
- 100g white chocolate, melted
For the strawberry compote
- 170g strawberries, hulled & quartered
- 50g caster sugar
- Juice and zest of ½ lemon
- 1 star anise
- 3 tbsp cold water
To serve:
- Lemon whipped cream, to pipe on top
- 100ml double cream
- ¼ lemon, zest
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp icing sugar
To decorate:
- Strawberries, to decorate
- 1 tsp hazelnuts, roughly chopped & toasted hazelnuts
- Mint or sweet geranium leaves, to garnish
Method
- Preheat the oven to 170°C/fan 150°C / gas 3.
- To make the custard pots, pour the cream and milk into a saucepan and heat gently.
- Add the egg yolks, sugar and vanilla seeds into a bowl and whisk well until light and fluffy.
- Pour the hot cream over the egg yolks, whisking very well, a little at a time so that the yolks will cook. Fold in the melted chocolate.
- Transfer the mixture into pretty cups, ramekins or glass jars and place them into a bain marie (This is an oven tray. Half fill the tray with boiling water once in the oven)
- Bake for 30 minutes or until just set. Take them out of the bain marie and leave to cool before placing in the fridge.
- To prepare the strawberry compote, place the berries, sugar, star anise, lemon zest and juice and water a saucepan and bring to the boil, reduce the heat to a simmer for 6 to 8 minutes until a syrupy compote forms.
- Leave to cool completely. Remove the star anise
- For the lemon whipped cream, whip together the double cream, lemon zest and juice and icing sugar. Taste and adjust to your liking.
- When ready to serve, spoon the berry compote over the cream custards and pipe a swirl of the lemon cream on top. Scatter over the toasted hazelnuts and finish with some mint or sweet geranium leaves.
