So, I felt like having some rooibos tea this afternoon.. And instead I came up with this! I’m sure we all enjoy our cuppa with lemon and honey, so I allowed those flavours to inspire me with the flavours used in this light dessert. Fragrant, creamy, sweet yet light – this is perfect for a fancy high tea or to serve after a hefty main.
INGREDIENTS
500ml milk
250ml rooibos espresso
3/4 cup castor sugar
3tspn orange blossom honey (but any type is welcome)
1tspn grated ginger
Zest of 1 orange
4 eggs, separated
Decoration:
2 tbspns castor sugar
1 orange
Edible flowers of your choice (optional)
METHOD
1. In a large pot, heat milk, rooibos espresso, ginger, honey and orange zest until just before boiling point.
2. In a separate bowl, mix egg yolks with sugar until well combined. Pour about a third of the heated milk mixture into eggs and beat vigourously. This is called tempering: it ensures that the eggs don’t curdle (turn to scramble eggs) by bringing it up to temperature.
3. Add the egg mix to the rest of the milk mixture in the pot over a low heat. Stir continuously until thick enough to coat a spoon and hold a line through it. If still not thick enough, cheat with a little custard powder.
4. Put this mixture in a bowl and place cling wrap direcly on its surface so that a skin does not form. Let cool.
5. In a clean bowl, whisk egg whites until light and fluffy. Once the rooibos mixture has cooled, gently fold into egg whites.
6. Pour into a serving glass and put into fridge to set.
7. To decorate, make a caramel by putting castor sugar into a pan. Dont fiddle too much with it, until sugar is melted and of a caramel colour and consistency. Dip orange rind into this. You can also make spun sugar by dipping a spoon into mix and pulling threads from it.
8. Serve with some shortbread, or not – but make sure to enjoy!
vanillaandvodka 