“A great empire, like a great cake, is most easily diminished at the edges.”
Benjamin Franklin
A Walnut Meringue and Cherry Gateau seemed an unlikely combination. I bravely ventured into unknown territory with my fingers crossed. It turned out to be quite a winner. The meringues baked up prettily. They are delicate creatures and very delicious if you are a nut lover. I love the idea of nutty meringues layered with cream and paired with fruit.
That said, pairing a nutty meringue with pastry cream and fruit is never easy to slice. It doesn’t offer you ‘restaurant’ style neat slices. An ‘Eton Mess’ is closer to what lands up on the platter … but it’s a helluva tasty mess!
This Walnut Meringue and Cherry Gateau was our little ‘celebration’ for Fathers Day. I had some whites left over from the Ginger Lemon Crème Brûlée. I dreamt of revisiting macarons, but it’s been raining cats & dogs the past 2 days. Macarons are fiddly creatures, humidity just adds to their ‘fear factor’.
So I thought of pavlovas, and one thing led to another. I finally settled for a meringue cake, dacquoise type. Eventually what followed was a recipe using anything and everything I had on hand. Walnuts and cherries seemed like strange bedfellows. They proved themselves otherwise!
The recipe was inspired by this Hazelnut Meringue Gateau I found while googling. Often if I’m looking for inspiration, it’s just easier to reach for the ipad or smartphone while working in the kitchen. So when the folk at The Snugg sent me an ipad case, it made me happy! It felt ‘comforting’ to own one!!
Are you part of the growing numbers who use smartphones and tablets to look up recipes and tips whilst cooking? I certainly am. With this in mind, The Snugg has created sturdy, good quality cases to protect expensive devices from the hazards of a busy kitchen! A wipe clean exterior makes it even more perfect for the kitchen!
What did I like about the snugg ipad case? The first thing that struck me was the good quality and the neat design. The fit is fantastic. It’s also compact, like ‘snug compact’, which might explain the name SNUGG! The case has a sturdy feel to it and is very aesthetic. I liked the classic black, though you have a choice of ten colours. Gives your beloved smartphone or ipad a ‘protected’ feeling. A ‘snugg’ feel !!
With the promise of the perfect SNUGG fit, the finest materials and high quality craftsmanship, they are the biggest seller of their kind in the USA. Since the launch of The Snugg, they have been bought by celebrities and big enterprises alike. In fact, custom branded cases have been supplied to Cadillac, GMC and even the CIA!!!! The range is vast - cases for smartphones, ipad, ipad mini, tablets, kindle and accessories too.
Recipe: Walnut Meringue and Cherry Gateau
Summary: A Walnut Meringue and Cherry Gateau seemed an unlikely combination. It turned out to be quite a winner. The meringues baked up prettily. They are delicate creatures and very delicious if you are a nut lover. I love the idea of nutty meringues layered with cream and paired with fruit.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- Walnut Meringues {Makes 2 X 8″ meringues}
- 120g egg whites
- 250 g vanilla sugar, or castor {divide 200 + 50}
- 125g walnuts, roasted
- 1tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp vinegar
- Crème Patissiere {350g}
- 120ml milk
- 100ml low fat cream
- 1/2 vanilla bean, scraped
- 20g cornstarch
- 90g vanilla sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- Whipped cream
- 100ml double cream, chilled
- 10g castor sugar
- Balsamic cherries
- 250g fesh cherries, pitted
- 25ml balsamic vinegar
- 30g brown sugar
Method:
- Walnut Meringues
- Preheat oven to 180C. Line the base and sides of 2 8″ loose bottomed tins with parchment.Place the walnuts and 50g sugar in processor and grind in short pulses till fine meal.
- Reserve in a bowl.
- Grind the vanilla sugar if using
- Beat the egg whites to soft peaks, then add the remianing sugar 1 tbsp at a time and continue to whip to stiff peaks.
- Fold in the vanilla extract,vinegar and ground walnut mixture gently but thoroughly.
- Gently divide batter between the prepared tins,
- Bake at 180C for 40-50 until lightly coloured and firm.
- Gently remove from tins and cool completely on racks.
- Lay the bottom layer on serving platter and top with pastry cream, followed by balsamic cherries in syrup. Top with the whipped cream {or alternatively fold the whipped cream into the crème patissiere}. Reserve some for topping if desired.
- Top the filling with second layer.
- Spread some pastry cream over the top, drizzle some leftover cherry syrup and garnish with fresh cherries.
- Chill for a couple of hours to moisten the meringue slightly to help slicing a little easier. Use a sharp serrated knife to slice.
- Crème Patissiere
- Dissolve cornstarch in ¼ cup of milk. Combine the remaining milk, cream, vanilla bean and cream with the sugar in a saucepan; bring to boil. Remove from heat.
- Beat the eggs into the cornstarch mixture. Pour 1/3 of boiling milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly so that the eggs do not begin to cook.
- Return the remaining milk to boil. Pour in the hot egg mixture in a stream, continuing whisking.
- Continue whisking {this is important – you do not want the eggs to solidify/cook} until the cream thickens and comes to a boil. Remove from heat, pass through a sieve, cover with plastic film and allow to cool. Chill until needed. can be made a day ahead {makes 350g}.
- Balsamic Cherries
- Place ingredients in a non reactive pan and simmer until the cherries release their juices and begin to get soft and hold their shape, about 4-5 minutes. {Don’t overcook or the cherries will break down and lose shape}
- Remove the cherries to a bowl. Place pan with the liquid on medium high heat and reduce to about a third, nice and thick. Cool.
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Whole grain isn’t a punishment. Get used to it gradually and it might be difficult to return to plain flour. It’s a choice you have, and a good one you might make especially if you have young kids with changing palettes. Make a gradual change and you’ll be surprised at how they jump to fresh home made whole grain bread.
The fougasse is as rustic as it gets. You will find a selection of 
