The French created this simple dessert which is the layering of meringue with a fruit filled ice cream. The top is covered with cream and decorated with the fruit of your choice.
Here we have a Raspberry Vacherin which has raspberries mixed into the ice cream, sandwiched between two discs of meringue, covered with cream and decorated with pistachios and fresh raspberries, then drizzled with raspberry coulis.
Ingredients:
- 3 egg whites at room temperature
- 220 g caster sugar
- 600 g vanilla ice cream
- 130 g raspberries for ice cream mix
- 150 g whipping cream
- 3 or 4 tblsp roasted pistachios
- 120 g raspberries for decorating
- Icing sugar to dust before serving
Coulis:
Boil together 250gr raspberries with 2 tblsp sugar and 2 tblsp lemon juice.
Boil for about 7 or 8 minutes and take off stove to cool before pouring.
Meringue:
Preheat oven to 150 degrees. Mark two 20cm circles on a sheet of baking paper and put onto an oven tray. Whisk egg whites and 2 tblsp of the sugar till soft peaks form, then slowly add the remaining sugar till thick and glossy. Divide the mixture between the two circles marked on the baking paper and spread out with a knife to flatten. Bake for 8 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 90 degrees and bake for another hour and a half. Remove from oven and transfer to wire rack, allowing it to cool.
Line a round 20cm spring-form cake tin with baking paper and place one meringue disc ion the bottom. Scoop the ice cream into a large bowl and leave out for 10 minutes to allow to soften a bit. Mix the raspberries into the ice cream and quickly press it into the cake tin. Place the remaining meringue disc on top, cover with plastic wrap and put into the freezer for about 3 hours.
Before serving, put whipped cream over the top meringue disc and decorate with raspberries and pistachio nuts. Dust with icing sugar just before you serve.
You can make this in advance and have an impressive dessert when you need it. After you have made it a few times you will find that it becomes quicker and easier to make, but you will also find that you can use the fruits which are in season to use in this delightful dessert.
