Strawberry & baba dessert

We're going on a little foraging trip and when we’re back in the kitchen we use those ingredients to make a lovely strawberry and lilac dessert. It’s a fluffy baba that’s soaked in a lilac syrup with a strawberry compote, a vanilla cream, a yoghurt mousse and some delicious pickled pine blossoms.

It’s was a beautiful day and the lilac flowers where in full bloom! You can find lilac flowers in many colors but I went to pick the purple ones. The lilac flowers are not only beautiful, but they have such a delicious smell and flavor. Apart for the flowers it’s also season to pick pine blossoms. These you want to pick before they start to open up and release the pine pollen. Just give the branch a slight tap to double check this. If the yellowish pollen comes off just leave the branch alone. Just pick the ones that are still closed and packed with flavor!

The lilac syrup & crispy flowers

600 g	water
300 g	sugar
2 g	citric acid
90 g	cleaned lilac flowers

First we need to pick the flowers from the stems. This is going to take some time, but it’s so worth it! After making the syrup we use the flowers to make a crispy garnish, that’s why you want it a 100% clean. Now mix the water with the sugar and the citric acid. Bring this to a simmer to dissolve the sugar. Then turn off the heat and let it cool down completely. Meanwhile measure 90 grams of the cleaned lilac in a bowl. Now once the syrup has cooled down add the lilac and give it a gentle mix to submerge all the flowers. Let this marinade in your fridge for 3 days or leave it out of the fridge overnight. After that gently heat up the syrup with the flowers till it’s 40 degrees Celsius. Do this on a low heat. Once it’s 40 degrees Celsius take the pan off the heat and drain it. Let it drip for at least 30 minutes so you don’t waste single drop. The syrup you can keep in your fridge for later. Then spread the flowers on an oven tray and let them dry at 45 degrees Celsius. Give it a little mix every now and then to prevent them from sticking to each other. The drying process will take a couple of hours. I always leave them for at least 10 hours to insure all the moisture is gone. Once they’re dried I covered them with a strawberry powder. Now keep them dry and airtight for later.

The pickled pine blossoms

	Pine blossoms
400 g	white wine vinegar
200 g	water
200 g	sugar

Fill up a preserving jar with the pine blossoms and then pour the white wine vinegar into a pan. Also add the water with the sugar. Bring this to a boil. Once it’s boiling turn off the heat and then directly pour it on the blossoms. Insure everything is submerged. Then close the jar with a sealing ring and turn it around. Let it cool down out of the fridge. After that you can keep it closed in your fridge for many months and once opened for a couple of weeks. Just before serving I slice them in half.

The baba’s

15 g	milk
10 g	cane sugar
3 g	dry yeast
120 g	flour
2 g	salt
90 g	whole egg
30 g	butter

Mix the milk with the cane sugar and the dry yeast. Mix it well and then heat it up till it’s 30 degrees Celsius. After that mix the flour with the salt and the egg. Start mixing it on a medium low speed and then also add the yeast mixture. Continue kneading the dough for 10 minutes on a low speed, so a lot of gluten can form. After that add the butter and knead it till all the butter is incorporated. Now transfer the dough into a bowl, cover it with a damp cloth and let it rest for at least 8 hours in your fridge. Once it’s well rested dust some flour on your worktop and use a rolling pin to roll out the dough till it’s a centimeter thick. Then cut it with a big cutter and cut the center with a small cutter. Now spray a thin layer of baking spray in a couple small savarin tins. Place the dough in the tins and gently press it down to insure they proof evenly. Then cover it with another tray and let it proof till doubled in size. I do this at 25 degrees Celsius. Once doubled in size bake them at 180 degrees Celsius for around 8 to 9 minutes till golden brown. After that take them out of the oven and let them cool down before taking the baba’s out of the baking tins.

250 g	lilac syrup
50 g	rum

Now mix the lilac syrup with the rum and place your baba’s in there. Let them soak for 15 seconds before soaking the other side for 15 seconds as well. Then take them out and keep them in your fridge for later. As you can see you’ll end up with a beautiful moist baba, so good!

The strawberry gel & compote

500 g	cleaned strawberries
50 g	lilac syrup
	agar powder
1	lime

First we need to clean enough strawberries for 500 grams. You can also use frozen strawberries, but right now the quality is amazing and the price is actually cheaper then frozen. Then slice the 500 grams of cleaned strawberries in four and transfer them into a pan. Also add the lilac syrup. Now cover the pan with a lid and heat it up on a low heat for about an hour. You’ll end up with a beautiful broth and soft strawberries floating in there. After that pass the broth through a sieve that’s lined with some kitchen paper and let it drip for at least 30 minutes so you don’t waste a single drop. Then you can season the soft drained strawberries with a touch of lime zest. The texture is great and it’s a lot like a strawberry compote. Give it a good mix and then keep it in your fridge for later. Now pour the strawberry broth into a pan and add a gram of agar powder for every 100 grams of broth. I had 300 grams, so I added 3 grams of agar powder. Give it a good mix and then bring it to a boil for at least 30 seconds. After that pour it into a bowl and let it cool down in your fridge. Then transfer it into a blender and blend it till smooth. Once you have a smooth gel you can pour it into a bowl and vacuum the gel a 100% to remove any air bubbles. This will result in a clear gel with a more intense flavor. Then transfer it into a piping bottle and keep it in your fridge for later.

The vanilla cream

250 g	milk
250 g	cream
100 g	sugar
0.5	vanilla pod
100 g	egg yolk
40 g	cornstarch

Mix the milk with the cream and the sugar. Then cut the vanilla pod in half and scrape out the seeds. Add both the empty pod and seeds to the pan and then bring this to a simmer on a medium heat. Meanwhile mix the egg yolk with the cornstarch . Give it a good mix till it’s a smooth mixture. Then slowly while stirring add the hot vanilla liquid to the yolks. As you can see I put a kitchen towel underneath to bowl to prevent it from spinning around. Now pour it back into the pan and while stirring cook it till the cream has thickened. This is the consistency we’re looking for. Then pour it into a bowl, cover it with some wrap and let it cool down in your fridge. Once it has cooled down you can remove the empty vanilla pod and give it a final mix to create a lovely smooth and thick cream. Now transfer it into a piping bag and keep it in your fridge for later.

The yoghurt mousse

2 leaves or 3.3 g	gelatin
160 g	cream
40 g	sugar
60 g	Greek yoghurt
0.5	vanilla pod
150 g	Greek yoghurt
10	strawberries

First lay a piece of plastic foil on a tray and flatten it. Now soak the gelatin in cold water. Then mix the cream with the sugar and start beating it with a whisk. The consistency needs to be a bit thinner than normal yoghurt. Now transfer the 60 grams of Greek yoghurt into a pan. Then cut the vanilla pod in half and scrape out the seeds. Add the seeds to the pan and slowly heat this up till steam starts to form. Once that’s the case turn off the heat and dissolve the gelatin. Now add the 150 grams of Greek yoghurt to the pan and mix it well. The second quantity of yoghurt will cool everything down and your gelatin will start to work instantly. So directly while mixing add it to the whipped cream and fold everything together to create a light airy mousse. Then transfer the mousse into the tray that’s lined with plastic foil and level it using a pallet knife. Now tap the tray a couple of times and then let it set in your fridge for at least 30 minutes. Meanwhile clean around 10 strawberries and slice them in thin slices. Once the mousse has set gently place the strawberry slices slightly overlapping on the mousse. This will give you such a beautiful effect. Then gently press the strawberries down and let it all freeze for about an hour. It should not be a 100% solid. Now take the mousse out of the freezer and cut it with a big round cutter. If the mousse is already too hard let it defrost for a couple of minutes. Then place the mousse on a tray and keep them covered in your freezer for later.

How to finish the dessert

First place the baba in a bowl or glass and drizzle some of the baba syrup on top. As you can see I’ve cut of the top so the baba would fit my glass. Now fill the middle with the strawberry compote and pipe the vanilla cream on top. Then drizzle the strawberry gel on there. Now place the yoghurt mousse on top and let it defrost for around 15 minutes. Once it’s defrosted pipe some of the gel on there and decorate it with the pickled pine blossoms, some fresh lilac flowers and the crispy lilac flowers.