Best Dried Cherry Nougat Glace Recipes

HOLIDAY DIVINITY

Steps:

• Spray a 9 1/2‐by‐12 1/2‐inch rimmed baking sheet (also called quarter‐sheet pan) with cooking spray. Line with parchment; spray parchment.
• In a saucepan, combine sugar, corn syrup, and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil, stirring, just until sugar has dissolved, then cook until syrup reaches 250°F (firm ball stage) on a candy thermometer.
• Meanwhile, in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, starting on low speed and gradually increasing to high, beat egg whites with salt until stiff peaks form. If peaks form before syrup reaches 250°F, reduce speed and keep mixer running on low.
• Reduce speed to medium and add syrup in a slow, steady stream (taking care not to hit whisk or side of bowl). Add vanilla. Increase speed to high and continue to beat until mixture is very thick and begins to lose its gloss, 10 to 20 minutes. Fold in pecans and candied fruit. Scrape mixture into prepared pan, using hands sprayed with cooking spray to press in evenly.
• Let stand until fully set and dry on top, at least 8 hours. Transfer to a cutting board; cut into 3/4‐by‐3‐inch pieces. Store in a single layer on parchment‐lined baking sheets, wrapped in plastic, at room temperature up to 1 week.

BUCHE DE NOEL GLACE

Steps:

• Form the sheet of frozen yogurt: Line the bottom and sides of one of the pans with aluminum foil. If the frozen yogurt is rock hard, refrigerate it briefly until softened slightly; it must be scoopable but still very firm. (Note that frozen yogurt melts much more quickly than ice cream, so it must be very firm when you begin to work with it.) Distribute scoops of yogurt all over the pan. Working quickly and leaving about 4 inches at one end of the pan uncovered, spread the yogurt evenly in the pan by mashing the scoops with the back of a large spoon and pushing them together. Cover with foil and freeze at least several hours or until needed.
• Make the cocoa souffle sheet: Position the rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of the second pan with a piece of parchment or wax paper.
• In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks with vanilla and 1/2 cup of the sugar until pale and thick. Set aside.
• In a separate mixing bowl, with clean dry beater, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually sprinkle in the remaining sugar, continue to beat at high speed until stiff but not dry. Mix a quarter of the egg whites into the yolk mixture to lighten it. Scrape the remaining whites into the bowl and sift the cocoa over them. Fold until completely incorporated.
• Spread the batter evenly in the pan and bake until the pastry springs back when gently pressed with fingertips, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool completely, in the pan on a wire rack.
• Sprinkle a large sheet of foil with cocoa. Run a small knife or metal spatula around the edges of the cocoa pastry to detach it from the pan. Invert the cocoa pastry onto the foil sheet. Remove the pan and peel the paper pan liner from the cocoa pastry.
• Assemble the roll: Remove the sheet of frozen yogurt from the freezer and remove the foil covering. Center and invert the yogurt sheet on top of the cocoa souffle sheet. Remove the pan and the foil. The long edges should be lined up and but there should be 2 inches of cocoa souffle exposed at each end.
• Fold the exposed pastry over the yogurt at one end of the sheet. Continue to roll the pastry and yogurt up together, using the foil underneath as an aid as necessary. Do not worry if there is some initial cracking as you roll, however, if the yogurt is much too stiff to roll, wait a few minutes until it is pliable. Wrap the roll in foil and return to the freezer overnight or until hard.
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Make the meringue topping: Bring 1-inch of water to a simmer in a large saucepan. Combine the water, cream of tartar and sugar in a 6 to 8 cup stainless bowl. Whisk in the egg whites. Place thermometer near stove in a mug of very hot tap water. Set bowl in saucepan. Stir mixture briskly and constantly with a rubber spatula, scraping the sides and bottom often to avoid scrambling the egg white. After 1 1/2 minutes, remove the bowl from the skillet. Quickly insert thermometer, tilting bowl to cover stem by at least 2 inches. If less than 160 degrees F, rinse thermometer in simmering skillet water and return it to mug. Replace the bowl in skillet. Stir as before until temperature reaches 160 degrees F when bowl is removed. Beat on high speed until cool and stiff. Set aside.
• Remove the frozen roll from the freezer and unwrap it. Place the roll on the foil wrapped cardboard. Use a metal spatula to cover the roll completely with a thick coating of meringue topping. Leave no cake exposed and be sure that the meringue touches the foiled cardboard all along the base of the roll. Use a fork to texture the meringue to resemble tree bark. Transfer the buche on its foiled base to a baking sheet. Sieve powdered sugar over the buche. Bake just until golden, 4 to 6 minutes, watching carefully. Slide a wide spatula or pancake turner under the foiled cardboard and transfer the buche to a serving platter. Serve immediately with Bittersweet Chocolate Sauce, if desired.
• Combine the sugar and cocoa in a heavy bottomed medium saucepan. Whisk in just enough buttermilk to form a smooth paste. Whisk in the remaining buttermilk. Cook over medium heat until the mixture simmers and begins to boil, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, scraping the sides and bottom of the pan. Boil gently for 3 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Cool. Serve at room temperature or slightly warm. Sauce may be stored in the refrigerator up to one week.

NOUGAT

Steps:

• Line the sides and base of a 4 by 6-inch baking pan with rice paper. Whisk the egg white in a heatproof bowl until stiff.
• Combine the sugar, glucose, honey and water in a small saucepan. Stir over very low heat until the mixture reaches the small crack stage, or 275 degrees F on a candy thermometer, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. While whisking, drizzle the syrup into the egg white and continue whisking until glossy and beginning to stiffen.
• Stir in the almonds, and spread the mixture over the rice paper in the prepared pan, pressing it down well. Cover with another layer of rice paper, and place a light weight evenly over the top. Leave nougat until cold, and then cut into squares, wrap in waxed paper, and store in an airtight container.

BISCUIT GLACE OF RASPBERRIES (A MA FACON)

Steps:

• Make the biscuit: Whip egg yolks in an electric mixer with the water and half the sugar until doubled in volume. Whip egg whites in an electric mixer until soft peaks form, then slowly add the remaining sugar and whip until stiff peaks form. Fold yolks and whites together. Sift flour over the egg mixture and fold in. Do not overmix. Line a 9 by 9-inch baking pan with greaseproof paper, then grease the sides and the paper. Pour batter into the pan and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove cake from oven. Allow to cool slightly and turn cake out onto a cooling rack. Cool completely. Cut the cake using a 3 1/2-inch cookie cutter into 4 circles. Place them in the empty 9 by 9-inch pan until the syrup and vanilla custard are ready.
• Make the custard: Combine the vanilla bean and milk in a saucepan. Bring to a boil. In a stainless steel bowl, whisk egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy. Pour boiling milk over egg yolks. Whisk together. Return to the sauce pan and simmer until thickened. Be careful not to overcook the mixture. While custard is still warm, pour over the biscuit circles.
• Make the syrup: Bring sugar and water to the boil. Add kirsch. Pour half over the biscuit circles. Reserve the other half.
• Make the meringue: Prepare a medium saucepan with water and the milk. Bring to the boil then reduce to a simmer. Whip egg whites in an electric mixer to soft peaks. Slowly add the sugar and continue whipping until stiff peaks are formed. Take two tablespoons and form spoonfuls of meringue into balls. Drop into the simmering liquid and poach the meringue for 4 minutes. Do not let mixture boil. Allow to cool on a paper towel. Make a total of 12 meringue balls.
• Make raspberry sauce: Puree the raspberries, sugar and liqueur. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons reserved sugar syrup if necessary to correct consistency. Strain sauce.
• Assemble dessert: Place soaked biscuit in the center of a serving plate. Arrange beautifully the raspberries into a pyramid-like shape. Arrange 3 pieces poached meringue on the top of the raspberries. Drizzle the raspberries around the edge of the plate. Optional: bake biscuit in 4 individual savarin molds and fill with ice cream or sorbet and build raspberries around the outside.