easy desserts – My Whisk and I

Millionaire’s Cheat Pots

November 21, 2024November 20, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

10 shortbread biscuits
360g tin caramel treat
100g dark chocolate, chopped
150ml double cream

Place the biscuits in a plastic bag and smash them with a rolling pin until you have crumbs.
Scoop a large heaped dessert spoon of crumbs into 6 ramekins/glasses and give it a shake to level out. Set aside.
Scoop the caramel out of the tin into a mixing bowl. Stir/beat by hand until softened.
Now scoop a spoonful of caramel onto the biscuit crumb and level it out slightly with the back of a teaspoon. Set aside.
Place the chocolate and cream in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan with simmering water.
Stir until the chocolate has melted completely.
Remove the bowl from the heat and set aside for 20 minutes, stirring every now and then.
Beat the cream and chocolate with electric beaters for about 4 minutes – it has to become airy and thick.
Divide the mixture between the ramekins and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Take the cheat pot from the refrigerator about 20 minutes before serving.

This dessert may be prepared two days in advance.

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Passionfruit Cream

April 25, 2024April 22, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

600ml milk
80ml caster sugar
3 eggs, separated
6 passionfruits
45ml gelatine powder

Syrup:
125ml caster sugar
pulp of 4 passionfruit

Pour the milk and caster sugar into a small saucepan and set it over medium-high heat.
Stir until the sugar has dissolved and bring the mixture to just under boiling point.
Remove from the heat and set aside.
Add the egg yolks to a heatproof bowl and whisk together.
Drizzle the hot milk mixture into the yolks while whisking continuously.
Place the bowl over a saucepan with simmering water and stir with a wooden spoon for about 7 minutes or so. The mixture is ready when it very lightly coats the back of the wooden spoon.
Remove the bowl from the heat and set aside for a few minutes.
Set a sieve over a bowl and scoop the passionfruit into it. Press down on the seeds to extract the juice.
Stir the juice into the custard mixture and set aside again.
Pour 100ml HOT water into a small bowl and sprinkle over the gelatine. Stir to dissolve.
Add the gelatine mixture to the custard and stir through. Set aside.
Add the egg whites to a clean mixing bowl and whisk to stiff peaks.
Add the whites to the custard and gently fold through.
Divide the mixture between 6 bowls/glasses and refrigerate for one hour, until set.

Syrup:
Pour 125ml water and the 125ml caster sugar into a small saucepan and place over a low heat.
Stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Increase the heat to medium-high and simmer until syrupy – about 3 minutes or so.
Remove from the heat and stir in the passionfruit pulp.
Allow the syrup to cool and refrigerate until cold.

Pour the syrup on the passionfruit cream and serve.

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Puff Stuffed Pears

March 10, 2024March 9, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

3 pears
100g blue cheese
50g walnuts
1 x 400g roll of puff pastry
egg wash: 1 egg yolk + 15ml water whisked together
60ml mixed fruit jam
45ml boiling water
a handful of basil leaves, chopped

Preheat your oven to 200℃ and line a baking sheet with baking paper.
Wash the pears and dry them.
Cut a slice from the bottom of each pear so that you have a stable, flat surface.
Scoop out the core with a melon baller and set aside.
Cut the blue cheese into small pieces and add it to a bowl with the walnuts.
Mix together until you have a sticky, messy consistency!
Divide the mixture in 3 and stuff it into the pears.
Place the pastry on a work surface and cut 3 rounds, more or less the size of the bottom of the pears.
Place the pastry over the stuffed opening and then place the pears on the prepared baking sheet.
Cut 1cm wide strips from the pastry.
Start at the stalk of the pear and wrap the fruit in the pastry strips.
Brush with egg wash and bake in the oven until golden – about 20 minutes.
Add the fruit jam, boiling water and chopped basil to a small bowl and stir until the jam breaks up into a thin sauce.
Serve the pears warm with the sauce on the side.

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Easter Baskets

March 9, 2024March 8, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

1 x 400g roll puff pastry
egg wash

Cream patisserie:
40g corn flour
50ml + 450ml milk
4 egg yolks
50g + 50g caster sugar
5ml vanilla

speckled eggs
white chocolate, melted

Preheat your oven to 200℃ and line a baking sheet with baking paper.
Place the pastry on a work surface and cut 12 circles with a 7cm diameter biscuit cutter.
Place 6 of the circles on the prepared baking sheet.
Cut out the centres of the other six circles with a 6cm diameter cutter, wet the edges of the pastry and place on top of the pastry circles.
Prick the bottom of the pastry with a fork and brush the elevated edges with egg wash.
Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Cut strips (15cm by 0,5cm) from the remaining pastry and braid three strips together. (You should have 6 of these).
Place the braids on the baking sheet and shape them so that they resemble the arch of a baskets handle.
Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, remove and allow to cool.

For the cream patisserie:
Add the corn flour to a large mixing bowl and stir in the 50ml milk.
Add the egg yolks and 50g of sugar and whisk together. Set aside.
Pour the 450ml milk into a small saucepan and add the other 50g caster sugar to it.
Place the saucepan over medium heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Take it from the heat as tiny bubbles start to appear around the edges.
Drizzle the warm milk mixture onto the egg mixture while whisking vigorously.
Now pour the mixture back into the saucepan and place it on medium-low heat.
Stir continuously until thick.
Allow to cook for 30 seconds before removing from the heat.
Add the vanilla and stir through.
Pour the mixture on a dinner plate and then place plastic wrap directly on its surface.
Allow to cool completely.

Pipe or spoon the cream patisserie into the pastry baskets and place a few speckled eggs on top.
Now dip the handles into the white chocolate and position it on the baskets so that it resembles a handle.
Allow to dry/cool before serving.

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Mascarpone Cream Puff

March 7, 2024March 6, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

1 x 400g roll of puff pastry

Royal Icing:
1 egg white
500g icing sugar, sifted

edible flowers

250ml whipping cream
60ml caster sugar
250g mascarpone, room temperature
5ml vanilla
250g fresh raspberries

Preheat your oven to 200℃ and line a baking sheet with baking paper. Cut an extra piece of baking paper of the same size and keep aside.
Lay the pastry on a work surface and cut 7cm diameter circles from it with a biscuit cutter.
Place the pastry circles on the baking sheet, cover with the extra sheet of baking paper and place another baking sheet on top.
Bake for 15 minutes, remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

For the royal icing:
Add the egg white to a mixing bowl and whisk to a froth.
Add the sifted icing sugar one spoonful at a time, stirring really well to incorporate. Keep going: add one spoonful of icing, stir for at least 30 seconds, add another spoonful, etc., until all the icing is incorporated or until you have a very stiff mixture.
Spoon the royal icing into a piping bag fitted with a 4mm nozzle and pipe a border on each of the pastry discs.
Set aside to dry and set.
Add a few drops of water to the royal icing – literally two drops at a time -and stir to thin it down to a very thick but spreadable consistency.
Drop a teaspoonful into each icing border and spread it out with the back of a teaspoon.
Decorate the discs with edible flowers/petals before it sets.
Put aside to dry completely.

Add the whipping cream and caster sugar to a large mixing bowl and whisk until it forms soft peaks.
Add the mascarpone and vanilla and whisk until thick – BE CAREFUL NOT TO OVER-WHIP as the mixture will split.
Add the raspberries to the mascarpone cream and mix through with a wooden spoon, crushing some of the berries to release the juices.

Spoon the mascarpone cream onto a serving plate and place a pastry disc on top to serve.

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Sicilian Milk Pudding/Biancomangiare

January 11, 2024January 11, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

Yields 4 small portions.

60ml cornstarch
125ml + 375ml milk
125ml sugar
1 lemon
ground cinnamon
crushed biscuit, to serve

Add the cornstarch to a small saucepan.
Pour in the 125ml milk and whisk the mixture until there are no lumps and it is completely smooth.
Now add the sugar and whisk again.
Add the 375ml milk once you are sure there are no lumps.
Cut two or three strips of zest from the lemon and add it to the mixture.
Place the saucepan over medium heat and stir continuously for 3-4 minutes until it thickens.
Stir and cook the mixture for another 2 minutes after the first bubbles appear.
Turn off the heat and remove the lemon zest.
Wet your moulds under running water and shake out any excess water.
Pour the not milk mixture into the moulds and refrigerate for 4-6 hours.
Unmould the puddings onto serving plates.
Sprinkle a pinch of ground cinnamon on the crushed biscuit and spoon over each pudding to serve.

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Limoncello Tiramisu

December 15, 2023August 12, 2023by Karen Claassen1 Comment

Lemon syrup:
125ml water
125ml sugar
1 lemon, peeled and juice
60ml limoncello

500ml whipping cream
60ml lemon juice
finely grated zest of 2 lemons
125ml + 60ml + 125ml lemon curd
190ml sugar
440g mascarpone cheese
2 packets ladyfingers (Boudoir biscuits)

For the lemon syrup:
Add the water and sugar to a small saucepan set over medium-high heat.
Stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Now simmer the mixture for 1 minute without stirring or fiddling with it.
Add the lemon peel and juice and simmer for 3 minutes.
Remove from the heat, strain through a sieve and set aside to cool.

Pour the cream into a mixing bowl and add the lemon juice, zest, 125ml lemon curd and sugar.
Whisk together with electric beaters until soft peaks form.
Add the mascarpone and mix on low speed until the mixture is fully incorporated and smooth. Set aside.
Pour the cooled lemon syrup and limoncello into a shallow dish.
Dip the ladyfingers in the mixture and lay them side-by-side in a 28cm x 22cm ceramic dish to form a compact layer.
Spoon half the mascarpone mixture on the biscuits and smooth it out.
Now spoon 60ml lemon curd on top and spread it out evenly.
Repeat the biscuit and mascarpone layers.
Spread the last 125ml lemon curd evenly over the top of the tiramisu.
Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

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Old Fashioned Blanc Mange with Berry Coulis

December 9, 2023August 29, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

75ml cornstarch
100ml sugar
50ml cold water
250ml boiling water
1 lemon, finely grated zest and juice
2 egg whites

Berry Coulis:
500g frozen berries
30ml lemon juice
60ml caster sugar

Line a small 1 litre capacity loaf tin (or a Tupperware container) with plastic wrap, leaving an overhang on the sides. Set aside.
Add the cornstarch, sugar and cold water to a small saucepan and mix together.
Pour in the boiling water and stir the mixture over a medium-low heat until thick and smooth.
Remove the saucepan from the heat.
Add the lemon zest and juice and stir to combine. Set aside.
Add the egg whites to a mixing bowl and whisk to stiff peaks.
Spoon the whipped whites into the cornstarch mixture and fold through with a spatula.
Pour the mixture into the prepared container and refrigerate for 3-4 hours or until completely set.

For the coulis:
Add the berries, lemon juice and sugar to a small saucepan set over medium heat.
Stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Simmer the sauce for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove from the heat and blitz with an immersion blender until thick and smooth.
Set aside to cool completely.

Take the blanc mange from the refrigerator and invert onto a serving plate.
Carefully peel off the plastic wrap.
Pour some of the berry coulis over to serve or serve as is with the sauce on the side.

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Cassata

December 2, 2023August 29, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

6 egg whites
62ml + 62ml caster sugar
500ml cream
250ml chopped mixed nuts
125g mixed dried fruit
125g red and green glacé cherries

Line a baking tin with a 1 litre capacity (or a Tupperware container) with plastic wrap or baking paper.
Add the egg whites to a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric whisk until it forms soft peaks.
Add a teaspoonful of the 62ml caster sugar while whisking. Wait for the sugar to be incorporated (about 30 seconds) before adding the next teaspoonful. Keep going until all of the sugar has been incorporated. Set aside.
Pour the cream into another mixing bowl and add the other 62ml caster sugar all at once.
Beat the cream until it forms stiff peaks.
Spoon about a third of the cream mixture into the egg white mixture and fold through with a large metal spoon.
Add the rest of the cream and fold it in until incorporated.
Sprinkle the chopped nuts, dried fruit and half of the cherries over and fold it in to the mixture.
Arrange the other half of the cherries on the bottom of your prepared container.
Spoon the mixture into the container and lightly level it out.
Place the cassata in the freezer until frozen.
Serve in slices with or without a sauce.

To store leftover, cover the cassata with plastic wrap and place back in the freezer as you would with ice cream.

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Turkish Delight Ice-Cream Terrine

July 29, 2023June 27, 2023by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

800g fresh ricotta cheese
165g caster sugar
300ml whipping cream
125g pistachio nuts
200g Turkish delight, cut into 1cm cubes
30ml rose water

Line a small 1 litre loaf pan with plastic wrap, leaving an overhang on the sides.
Add the ricotta and caster sugar to a large mixing bowl and beat together with an electric whisk until smooth. Set aside.
Spoon the cream into a bowl and whisk to soft peaks.
Spoon the cream into the ricotta mixture and fold through.
Scatter the pistachio, Turkish delight and rosewater over and fold through until evenly distributed.
Spoon the mixture into the lined loaf tin and cover with the overhanging plastic wrap.
Freeze the terrine for 7-8 hours.
Unwrap the top of the terrine and invert it on to a serving plate.
Slice to serve.