Sweet Love: Nougat Glacé On A Warm Fruit Compote



How sweet can the sweetest sweets get for your sweetheart?

Oh boy am I getting into the lurve thang already? It must be because all those wonderful entries I've been getting for the Monthly Mingle are not only making me gain weight by the entry but also making me think you all are a soppy bunch of bloggers.

Is a day like Valentine's a good day to spread a bit of extra love and be a bit more soppy? How about those desserts and sweets? Can I go overboard and create an extravagant dessert whipped up with all my extra love?


Well for me Valentine's day is not just a day to show my romantic feelings towards my partner, but also show my affections for those around me. My son, my dad, my mum, best friend - all get a special Valentine treat from me. A small little something to show that I care.

It's just a day to STOP - take that moment and be happy for the love around me. Soppy? Yes it is! And I love every soppy minute, kiss and word this day can give me. So, c'mon give me all you got!

In return I am sharing a very elegant and incredible delicious dessert with you. Cool, crunchy, fruity, and creamy all wrapped into a single dessert.

I ask again - is this too much to handle?





Ingredients:
Please note: The glacé mixture needs to be stored in the freezer for at least 4 hours (overnight recommended).

For the Nougat Glacé
100g sliced almond slivers
190g sugar
500g cream
20g honey
2 egg whites
100g mixed candied fruit - chopped. I used papaya, melon, pineapple, ginger and orange.

For the Fruit Compote
40g each dried plums, apricots and figs - chopped
Juice from 2 oranges
50g honey
20g butter






Method:

Pre-heat the oven at 160 degrees Celsius. Spread the almond slices on a baking tray and roast for about 4 minutes. Take out and allow to cool.

In a pot add 120 g sugar and gently allow it to caramelize. As soon as the caramel takes on a lovely amber color add the almonds. Constantly stirring, coat the almonds completely in the caramel.

On a piece of baking paper, spread the caramelized almonds evenly. Allow to cool and then with a sharp knife coarsely chop. Place in an airtight container until required.

Whip the cream with a electric whisk until stiff. Place in the refrigerator, where it will remain cool.

Now the next couple of steps need utmost care. We need to prepare a type of an Italian meringue with the egg whites, remaining sugar and honey.

Bring the remaining sugar and honey together with 50 ml water to a boil and allow to cook through for not more than 5-7 minutes, until the mixture starts to get "stringy." This happens when it reaches a temperature of 125 degrees Celsius. You can control this with a sugar thermometer. If you do not have one of these the best way to check this is with the "spoon check" method. Simply dip the spoon into the mixture and then take out. The sugar should drip from the spoon in thread-like strands.

While the sugar-honey mixture is cooking beat the egg whites with an electric whisk
in a separate mixing bowl until they are semi-stiff. Place the bowl in a cold water bath.

Once the sugar-honey mixture is ready pour it all at once into egg whites while constantly beating. Do this with a normal whisk and until the entire mixture has cooled down. Add the chopped candied fruit and the chopped caramelized almonds. Mix this gently into the mixture. Finally, fold in the beaten cream. Line a loaf pan or a terrine form with cling film and pour the mixture into it. Place in the freezer and allow to set for at least four hours.

Now you can prepare the compote. In a pot mix the orange juice, honey, butter and the dried fruit together. Allow it to simmer over a gentle heat for 5-10 minutes until the fruits are soft and viscid. Keep warm.

Are you ready to serve?

Take the terrine form out of the freezer just before you want to serve. Place it for a few seconds in some warm water and then tip the Nougat Glacé. Remove the cling film and cut the glacé into slices. On a plate put some of the fruit compote and place the glacé slice on this. Sprinkle more of the compote over the top and serve to your sweetest darlings.

Kitchen Tip: If you have any glacé leftover, place it back into the terrine form lined with cling film put it into the freezer. This will keep for 1-2 months. If it lasts that long.



Verdict:

Simply irresistible! Every bite is a heavenly experience. Your sweetheart will bow to you in total awe when this is served up. The dessert has it all cool, warm, creamy, crunchy, fruity and nutty. My men were eating out of my fingers and licking their own. The success of the dessert was worth every bit if hard work in the preparation.

This is my own entry for Sweet Love.

As the deadline to the Monthly Mingle draws to the end, I will let you all in on a secret - with 30 entries this is going to be the sweetest round-up you'll ever see. Look forward to it next week - I'll let you guess when ;-)



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25 comments:

  1. Yes Meeta, irresistible awe comes to mind with your photo and recipe. Where do you get your ideas. My poor husband all he'll get are heart shaped biscuits!
    Nougat Glace does look like sweet love for all. Thank You.

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  2. it looks delectable. question, do you own a food scale? is that how you measure your food. i was thinking of getting one but i'm not sure how useful it'll be.

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  3. Hi, I came over from BuddingCook's blog. As I am not much of a baker, I have a silly question here: What kind of cream did you use? Is it heavy whipping cream?

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  4. WOW! It looks quite tantalizing !!Beautiful photograph too.
    Hey, Thanks for letting me in at MM even though it was a last minute submission :)
    Shn

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  5. Incredible.
    I'm so irritated with myself because I missed the deadline. I need to start writing these things on my calendar!!

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  6. Oh, Meeta! That is so beautiful! I shall have my entry to you very soon!

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  7. That looks sooo good! Actually, I might not be able to handle that. It sounds WAY sweet.

    I wanted to have an entry but I ran out of time :( I can't wait to see the roundup.

    By the way, Tag! You're it . . .

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  8. I was eagerly waiting to see your entry..... and I knew it would be a boomer!!!!!
    It surely is :)
    Lovely dessert and awesome pic :)

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  9. Amazing! I can't find words to describe how heavenly your dessert sounds! Loads of preparation but worth all the efforts I guess! Awesome picture too!

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  10. Nougat Galce is one of my all time favorites! Beautiful photo, warm and inviting...lovely!

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  11. I am feeling hungry now!!Thats yummylicious!!Great blog, would love to come back for more!!

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  12. Meeta - this is truly irresistable! What a beautiful creation with lovely pictures. Happy Valentine's Day.

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  13. Beautiful, as always! I love frozen things, I've been making way too much ice cream lately...

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  14. Absolutely luscious, Meeta! It sounds like the perfect dessert for your loved ones!

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  15. wow. could have a bite. that looks so decadent, i envy tom!

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  16. WOW !!! what a delicious mouthwatering dessert...
    and a beautiful picture...
    Simply loved it
    -Sushma

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  17. What a lovely dessert to give a loved one! It looks so beautiful!

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  18. Also Meeta! The Glace is sitting in the freezer since half an hour. I am excited to see that my guests' reaction tomorrow after lunch! will let you know!

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  19. opps the comment I posted for the p
    Pasta was meant for the Nougat post...see what your love dish has done to me...~grin~...thanks for sharing

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  20. terrific! thanks for the recipe. Ony next time i will use more carm. almonds and fewer candied fruits - personal taste. was a hit with my guests!also while preparing there were no glitches nothing....

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  21. I just had a feeling you would like this one! Thank you so much for all your comments.
    Buddingcook Yes, I do own a food scale. I do not think I could bake or make such desserts without it. Cooking yes, baking NO! It's just an ordinary digital scale nothing fancy and it really helps me out in the kitchen.
    Simcooks Welcome to my blog. I used normal whipping cream for this one. Hope to see you around more often.
    Kristen A calendar is a great idea. There are so many interesting events that it is impossible to remember all the dates.
    Rachel! A Meme ... Thank you!

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  22. What a stunning dessert...a true labor of love. Did you come up with the recipe yourself? Or it is from a cookbook?

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  23. Meeta, that was one incredible recipe, I am stumped at the amazing amount of work and the beautiful end product! I have one request though...is it possible that you can post a selection of photos of step by step preparation? something as awesome as this recipe,as much mouthwatering it looks, if I want to try and make it I do feel a bit apprehensive simply bcos it reads complicated. A step by step guide would be awesome help.
    Sorry for this longish comment. Keep up the good work and keep 'em coming. Have a lovely Valentine's day!

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  24. Nupur Thanks. Actually I have a basic glacé recipe and I just added a few fruit and the caramelized nuts. It reminded me of Turkish Nougat so I called it that! As for the warm compote to be honest I had a whole bunch of dried fruit that needed to be used up. Voila!

    S Thank you so much for your kind comment. However, I do not have any step by step photos for this recipe. Actually I do not do step by step photos for any of my recipes - mainly because of the time factor. I normally prepare these as meals and save a bit for the photos. Which I then take time to prep and light and set up. If you would like to make this recipe and have any questions just drop me an email and I will try and help you where I can.

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  25. Well i had a query.How do u whip cream.I chill it well and then do it but it doesn't come out well.It turns out creamish and lumpy.It is not frothy like in case of pastries.

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Thank you for visiting What's For Lunch, Honey? and taking time to browse through my recipes, listen to my ramblings and enjoy my photographs. I appreciate all your comments, feedback and input. I will answer your questions to my best knowledge and respond to your comments as soon as possible.

In the meantime I hope you enjoy your stay here and that I was able to make this an experience for your senses.

Hugs
Meeta