Ballerina Mousse & Meringue Tarts
A pillowy raspberry mousse and ethereal meringue, cupped in a crisp orange and almond pâte sablée shell. How you choose to assemble the elements is up to you. The directions I’ve given you in the recipe are the easiest way, but here I’ve piped the meringue in a ring and torched it first, then filled the centre with the raspberry mousse.
MAKES ABOUT 10 SMALL TARTS
INGREDIENTS
Plain (all-purpose) flour, for dusting
1 quantity Almond Pâte Sablée
1 quantity Italian meringue
1 heaped tablespoon dried shredded coconut, toasted (optional)
RASPBERRY MOUSSE
150 ml (5 fl oz) milk
3 g (1/8 oz) gelatine sheets
3 egg yolks
85 g (3 oz) caster (superfine) sugar
125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) raspberry purée
175 ml (5½ fl oz) thickened (whipping) cream
RASPBERRY COULIS (OPTIONAL)
60 g (2¼ oz/¼ cup) fresh or frozen raspberries
2 tablespoons caster (superfine) sugar
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) fan-forced.
On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry until 3 mm (1/8 inch) thick. Cut 8 cm (3¼ inch) circles with a pastry cutter, and use them to line 5–6 cm (2–2¼ inch) (base diameter) tartlet tins with removable bases. You will end up with about 10 tart shells. If the pastry cracks, don’t worry. Squish it back together, and it will bake out. Pierce the base of each one a few times with a fork. Bake for 15–20 minutes until golden. If there are any bubbles when the pastry comes out of the oven, press down gently with a clean oven mitt to flatten.
To make the raspberry mousse, microwave the milk in a heatproof bowl for about 1 minute on the highest setting. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, soak the gelatine sheets in cool water. Next, whisk the egg yolks and caster sugar in a medium mixing bowl until pale and thick, then add the raspberry purée and whisk to combine. Pour the raspberry mixture into the hot milk, and whisk to combine. Microwave for 2 minutes, and whisk again. The custard will be getting thicker. If not, microwave for 1 minute at a time, whisking well in between, until it easily coats the back of a wooden spoon. Squeeze the water out of the gelatine sheets, then whisk into the custard mixture until dissolved and combined. Press plastic wrap directly onto the surface, and refrigerate for about 45 minutes until cooled and beginning to set. Whisk the cream to soft peaks, and fold through the half-set mixture. Refrigerate until needed.
To make the raspberry coulis, combine the raspberries and sugar in a small saucepan. Stir and bring to the boil, then purée in a blender. Cool completely, before transferring to a piping bag with a 3 mm (1/8 inch) hole snipped off the tip.
To assemble the tarts, transfer the raspberry mousse to a piping bag. If it’s a little stiff, whisk very briefly to loosen first. Pipe enough of a blob to fill each tart shell almost to the brim. Pipe a squiggle of the raspberry coulis over this, then sprinkle some toasted coconut on top (if you like). Transfer the Italian meringue to another piping bag fitted with a 1.5–2 cm (5/8–¾ inch) star nozzle. Pipe a swirl to cover the mousse, then torch the meringue well. You want that lovely toasty flavour for contrast against the sweet meringue.