Luke Mangan

Presented in 1997

Liquorice parfait with lime syrup

Serves 6

50 g (1¾ oz) liquorice

240 ml (8 fl oz) cream

2 eggs

1 egg yolk

12 g (¼ oz) liquid glucose

42 g (1½ oz) caster (superfine) sugar

Pernod, to taste

lime segments, to serve

Lime syrup

1 lime

50 g (1¾ oz) sugar

50 ml (1¾ fl oz) water

Place the liquorice and cream into a small saucepan over low heat and heat gently without boiling until the liquorice is soft. Place the mixture in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve, cool, then refrigerate until cold.

In a stainless steel bowl, over a large saucepan of gently simmering water, make a sabayon. This is done by whisking together the eggs, egg yolk, glucose, sugar and Pernod, until the mixture turns pale and fluffy. Remove from the heat and continue whisking until it cools a little.

Fold half of the sabayon into the liquorice mixture. Once combined, fold in the remaining sabayon. Pour into five 125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) capacity moulds and freeze.

Meanwhile, to make the lime syrup, using a vegetable peeler, remove the zest in long strips, then juice the lime. Use a small sharp knife to remove any bitter white pith from the zest, then cut into a fine julienne. Place the zest in a small saucepan, cover with water and bring to the boil. Drain and repeat two times.

Place the sugar and the 50 ml of water in a small saucepan and stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves, then bring to the boil. Add the lime juice to taste, then stir in the zest and set aside to cool.

To serve, dip the base of the moulds in hot water for a few seconds, then invert the parfaits onto plates. Scatter a few lime segments around each plate, then drizzle with a little syrup and some of the zest.