Recipe: Frozen Apricot Mousse with Praline Croquant and Pistachio Financier

the appetizer:

Learn how to make professional Frozen Desserts with this cookbook by Francisco J. Migoya and The Culinary Institute of America, including recipes like Frozen Apricot Mousse with Praline Croquant and Pistachio Financier; and Yuzu Sorbet with Cotton Candy and Black Sesame Seeds.

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Frozen Apricot Mousse
with Praline Croquant and Pistachio Financier

Yield 10 Portions

Components

420 g / 14.81 oz. Frozen Apricot Mousse Base
10 slices Pistachio Financier
10 poached Apricot Halves
10 pieces Praline Croquant

Assembly

1. Place three 15-cm / 6-in cake rings on a sheet pan lined with a nonstick rubber mat. Line the inside of the ring with acetate. Line the outside of a 7.S-cm / 3-in ring with acetate and place it inside the larger ring. Make sure that it is centered. Secure the middle ring by taping it to the larger ring on top once it is centered. Freeze.

2. Pour the apricot mousse base into a piping bag. Pipe it between the larger ring and the smaller ring so that it is 1 cm / .4 in thick. Tap the sheet pan down so that the mousse settles into an even layer. Place the mousse in the freezer to harden.

3. Once the mousse has frozen, take the rings and the acetate off. Cut the mousse in quarters using a knife that has been dipped in hot water and dried. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until needed.

4. Place a pistachio financier on the plate.

5. Place 1 apricot mousse quarter inside the groove on the financier, so it sits firmly on the plate and leans on the financier in an upright position.

6. Place a poached apricot half to the left side of the financier.

7. Lean a piece of praline croquant on the mousse.

8. Let the mousse temper for 3 to 4 minutes and serve.

Frozen Mousses

A frozen mousse is composed of two foams: either an egg yolk foam and heavy cream, or an egg yolk foam and an egg white foam, plus a flavor base (fruit purée, chocolate, or infused heavy cream). Typically a frozen mousse will contain equal parts of the combined foams and the flavor base (1:1 ratio), which makes it the densest aerated frozen dessert.

Frozen Apricot Mousse

Yield 5 Kg / 11 Lb .36 oz. Base

Apricot Purée

2 kg / 4lb 6.55 oz. apricots
15 g / .53 oz. lime juice

Mousse Base

1.41 kg / 3lb 1.73 oz. / 28.2% Apricot Purée
1.6 kg / 3 lb 8.43 oz. / 32% heavy cream
450 g / 15.87 oz. / 9% sugar
40 g / 1.41 oz. / .8% gelatin sheets, bloomed in ice-cold water
1.5 kg / 3 lb 4.9 oz. / 30% pâte à bombe

1. For The Apricot Purée: Score the apricots with an X on their top part, then blanch them in boiling water until the skins can be easily removed. Shock the blanched apricots in ice water. Remove their skin and the pits. Purée the flesh with a small amount of lime juice to prevent oxidation. Once puréed, pass through a fine-mesh strainer.

2. Bring the apricot purée to room temperature.

3. Whip the cream to medium-stiff peaks with the sugar, and then refrigerate.

4. Melt the gelatin sheets with a small amount of apricot purée in a saucepan over low heat, then combine with the remaining room-temperature purée (if the purée is cold, the gelatin will set very quickly).

5. Mix the pâte à bombe with the purée-gelatin mix; then fold in the whipped heavy cream in 2 additions.

6. Portion and freeze.

Pistachio Financier

Yield 1 Kg / 2 lb 3.27 oz.

123 g / 4.34 oz. pistachio flour
123 g / 4.34 oz. all-purpose flour
286 g / 10.09 oz. confectioners' sugar
263 g / 9.28 oz. egg whites
205 g / 7.23 oz. brown butter, cooled to room temperature

1. Combine the dry ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Pour in the egg whites in several additions, scraping down the bowl between each addition. Mix until just combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Slowly add the butter until just incorporated.

2. Reserve refrigerated until needed. Not only is it easier to work with when cold, but chilling also extends its shelf life.

3. Preheat a convection oven to 160°C /325°F.

4. Spray a rectangular cake mold 5 cm / 2 in by 38 cm / 15 in by 7.5 cm /3 in with nonstick cooking spray. Pipe the financier batter almost all the way up the mold.

5. Bake until firm to the touch at the center of the financier, about 10 minutes.

6. Remove from the oven and cool in the mold.

7. Once it has cooled, trim the crown off the financier so the top of the cake is even with the cake mold.

8. Take the financier out of the mold and freeze for 1 hour, then cut into slices 2·5 cm /1 in by 7·5 cm / 3 in. Cut a groove (1 cm / .4 in wide by 1.25 cm / .5 in deep) at the right side of each slice.

9. Reserve in an airtight container at room temperature. Discard after service.

Poached Apricots

Yield 10 Apricot Halves

10 dried apricot halves (if they are whole, cut them in halflengthwise)
400 g / 14.1 oz. Moscato d'Asti
400 g / 14.1 oz. simple syrup (50° Brix)

1. Simmer the apricots in the wine and syrup over medium-high heat until tender, about 45 minutes.

2. Reserve in the liquid at room temperature. Discard after 2 days.

Praline Croquant

Yield 310g / 10.93 oz.

250 g / 8.82 oz. isomalt
10 g / .35 oz. water
50 g / 1.76 oz. praline paste

1. Place a nonstick rubber mat on a marble surface.

2. Cook the isomalt and the water to 155°C / 310°F over high heat. Remove from the heat and stir in the praline paste. Pour onto the nonstick rubber mat.

3. Put on 3 pairs of latex gloves and start pulling the sugar when it has cooled down (if it is too hot it won't pull very well). Pull the sugar so that it is very thin, then cut into pieces that are about 7.5 cm /3 in long, using scissors. Keep in mind that thick pieces are unpleasant to eat. It is impossible to get identical shapes, but try to get them as uniform as possible.

4. If the sugar hardens, place the rubber mat on a sheet pan and warm it up in a hot oven for a few seconds. Once the thicker pieces have softened slightly, pull them so they are very thin.

5. Reserve in an airtight container with silica gel packets (to prevent the sugar from absorbing moisture) at room temperature. If they are kept in a very dry environment, they can last indefinitely.