Skewered, marinated exotic fruits, served on a bed of iced rice pudding glazed with a sabayon

INGREDIENTS

20 green peppercorns
2 tamarillos
1 small mango (250 g (9 oz))
200 g (7 oz) slice of pineapple, cut from the centre
4 guavas
2 figs
1/4 banana 2 passion fruit
400 ml (14 fl oz ) cold Sorbet syrup
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Iced rice pudding
50 g (2 oz) pudding rice
25 g (l oz) caster sugar
300 ml (1/2 pt) milk
150 ml (5 fl oz) whipping cream
1/2 vanilla pod, split lengthways
1 teaspoon unsalted butter

Sabayon 2 egg yolks
150 ml (5 fl oz) syrup from the marinade
100 ml (3 1/4 fl oz) whipping cream
1 tablespoon Malibu liqueur
green peppercorns from the marinade
icing sugar for dredging

SERVES: 4
DIFFICULTY: **
TOTAL RECIPE TIME: 2 1/2 hours, plus 12-14 hours marinating
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT: four 20 cm (8 in) wooden or steel skewers, electric mixer

PLANNING AHEAD
Order the fruits well in advance. They must be top quality and perfectly ripe for their flavour to come through.
Marinate the fruit at least 12 hours in advance.
The rice pudding can be made 24 hours in advance and kept covered in the fridge.
The sabayon can be made 1 hour before the meal.

METHOD

1) Preparing the fruit and peppercorns and marinating (15 minutes, plus at least 12 hours marinating)
In a large mixing bowl, combine the sorbet syrup and lemon juice.
Green peppercorns: Wash in a sieve under cold running water for 20 minutes to remove excess fieriness.
Tamarillos: Peel and quarter.
Mango: Peel, slice either side of the stone and dice the flesh into 1.5 cm (1/2 in) cubes. Pineapple: Slice off the skin, remove the core and cut the flesh into triangles.
Guavas: Peel, halve, deseed with a teaspoon and quarter.
Figs: Wash, trim the stalk and quarter.
Banana: Halve lengthways and cut into small segments.
Place all the prepared fruit in the syrup mixture.
Passion fruit: Halve with a serrated knife and spoon the seeds and pulp into the syrup.
Drain the peppercorns and add them to the syrup.
Cover the bowl with clingfilm and leave to marinate in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours.

2) Preparing and cooking the rice pudding (1 1/2 hours, plus cooling)
Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F/ gas 2.
In a medium thick-bottomed saucepan, combine the milk, cream, sugar and split vanilla pod, bring to the boil and immediately draw off the heat.
Wash and drain the pudding rice then add it to the milk, cover the pan with buttered foil and cook in the preheated oven for about 1 1/4 hours.
Leave to cool, still covered. Remove the vanilla pod, then turn the pudding into a bowl, seal with clingfilm and refrigerate.

3) Skewering the marinated fruit (15 minutes)
Drain the syrup into a saucepan and place the fruit on a small tray, separating each variety. Thread them alternately onto the skewers and set aside. Put the green peppercorns into a small bowl and set aside.

4) Making the sabayon (15 minutes)
In an electric mixer, beat the egg yolks at high speed with 50 ml (2 fl oz) of the marinade for about 5 minutes until it has become almost 5 times its original volume.
Meanwhile, bring to the boil 150 ml (5 fl oz) of the marinade.
With the mixer on its lowest speed, gradually add the hot syrup to the beaten egg yolks, pouring it in between the sides of the bowl and the whisk. Increase to high speed and continue beating for about 5 minutes, until the mixture has cooled. Add the Malibu liqueur.
Beat the cream to a light peak, then carefully fold it into the sabayon base. Add the peppercorns, transfer to a china bowl and refrigerate until needed.

5) Assembling the dish, glazing and serving (10 minutes)
Turn the grill full on. Chill 4 large serving plates.
Spoon out the iced rice pudding in a rectangular band 2 cm (3/4 in) deep, 3 cm (l 1/4 in) wide and the same length as the skewered fruits. Lightly embed the fruits in the rice pudding and pull out the skewers. Mask with sabayon, dust with icing sugar and glaze under the hot grill for a few seconds until lightly browned. Serve at once.

VARIATIONS
If you prefer, simply moisten the skewered fruits with the remaining syrup and warm them in the oven.
Serve the sabayon cold, or serve a Passion fruit coulis.
In the height of summer, the fruits can be replaced by cherries, strawberries, raspberries, peaches and apricots.
For a simple dessert, serve the fruits as an exotic fruit salad.

WINE
A sweet, intense, deep golden Montbazillac from Bergerac will match this dish perfectly.

CHEF'S NOTES
Glazing the fruits: This process is not designed to cook the fruits but to warm them and glaze the sabayon

 

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Awards
Private Dining, Wedding Celebrations
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