Henry the 8th may have been a bit of a cad when it came to prenuptials and when it came to matters of the heart, it’s hard to picture the same man who ordered the execution of two of his wives, supposedly penning the fraught lyrics of ‘Greensleeves’.
As the Tudor King continued wooing his young lover, Ann Boleyn, academic and naturalist William Turner was busy discovering the wonders of the British hedgerow in shades of purplish red, blues, pale greens and straw yellows, classifying the humble European gooseberry in his late 16th century publication, Herball.
These small, bristly berries which pepper the thickets of ruins around the countryside, are often picked, topped and tailed, boiled in their own juices, sour faces are sweetened as they bubble away, their flavour bursting into flamingo pink syrup which engulfs them.
With that in mind, I have created my own take on the classic, using flavours from the orient to complement the sharp tang of the gooseberries. Do make sure you taste the fruit puree as it reduces to ensure you don’t strip anyone’s palate!
These small, bristly berries which pepper the thickets of ruins around the countryside, are often picked, topped and tailed, boiled in their own juices, sour faces are sweetened as they bubble away, their flavour bursting into flamingo pink syrup which engulfs them.
With that in mind, I have created my own take on the classic, using flavours from the orient to complement the sharp tang of the gooseberries. Do make sure you taste the fruit puree as it reduces to ensure you don’t strip anyone’s palate!
Love Fool- a tribute to Ann Boleyn
2. Place them into a pan with the caster sugar and star anise. Bring this gently to the boil and then simmer gently until soft and pulpy. Set aside to cool.
3. In the meantime, make the custard. Place the yolks, sugar, 50ml of double cream and vanilla in a saucepan over a medium heat, whisking the thick mixture to keep it smooth.
4. Add the milk gradually as the custard starts bubbling. Remove from the heat when the mix is thick and creamy.
5. Whip the remaining cream with the icing sugar and orange blossom water until it reaches stiff peaks.
6. Once the gooseberries are cool, separate the crushed fruit from the juices (keep this in somewhere safe!).
7. Gently fold the cream and custard together, adding the fruit a little at a time.
8. Taste the mixture for tartness. Add some of the reserved, pink gooseberry juice to add more zing, or more sieved icing sugar if the mixture is too tart.
9. Place the muddled mixture into a large serving dish and sprinkle with cinnamon. Drizzle a little more of the fantastic gooseberry ‘essence’over the top just before serving.
Serves 6
Ingredients:
225g Dessert Gooseberries
225g Red Gooseberries
50g Caster Sugar
2x Star Anise
2x Egg yolks
200ml Double Cream
150ml Whole Milk
50g Caster Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
3 tbsp Icing Sugar (sieved)
1 tsp Orange Blossom Water
1 tsp Ground Cinnamon (to decorate)
1. Top and tail the gooseberries, rinsing away any debris under the tap. 225g Dessert Gooseberries
225g Red Gooseberries
50g Caster Sugar
2x Star Anise
2x Egg yolks
200ml Double Cream
150ml Whole Milk
50g Caster Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
3 tbsp Icing Sugar (sieved)
1 tsp Orange Blossom Water
1 tsp Ground Cinnamon (to decorate)
2. Place them into a pan with the caster sugar and star anise. Bring this gently to the boil and then simmer gently until soft and pulpy. Set aside to cool.
3. In the meantime, make the custard. Place the yolks, sugar, 50ml of double cream and vanilla in a saucepan over a medium heat, whisking the thick mixture to keep it smooth.
4. Add the milk gradually as the custard starts bubbling. Remove from the heat when the mix is thick and creamy.
5. Whip the remaining cream with the icing sugar and orange blossom water until it reaches stiff peaks.
6. Once the gooseberries are cool, separate the crushed fruit from the juices (keep this in somewhere safe!).
7. Gently fold the cream and custard together, adding the fruit a little at a time.
8. Taste the mixture for tartness. Add some of the reserved, pink gooseberry juice to add more zing, or more sieved icing sugar if the mixture is too tart.
9. Place the muddled mixture into a large serving dish and sprinkle with cinnamon. Drizzle a little more of the fantastic gooseberry ‘essence’over the top just before serving.
Serves 6
Posts
Gooseberries