When I think about translating Mon Guerlain Eau de Toilette into a dessert, I imagine something that is fresh, light and sophisticated. The first thing that comes to mind is a mousse. Its airy texture reminds me of the fresh and delicately smooth personality of the perfume. Then we have the ingredients. Both lavender and mandarin are the stars of the show and I knew I wanted to include them in some way or another. That’s how I came up with this Lavender Mousse & Mandarin Granita dessert recipe.
As always, I try to make these dessert recipes as healthy and tasty as possible. Whilst doing some research on the types of mousses out there, I noticed that more often than not they’re made with double cream, sour cream or whipped cream. There’s nothing wrong with that (I do love some double cream from Gruyère with meringue from time to time), but I opted for Greek yogurt to go on the lighter side. The Greek yogurt yielded a beautiful texture – one that is firm on the outside and soft and airy on the inside. The addition of lavender also provided a subtle floral touch and brought a certain elegance to this mousse. I got mine from my parents’ garden! To add a little element of surprise I decided to pair this lavender mousse with a refreshing mandarin granita. It’s a great dessert for this time of year and simply melts in your mouth!
Lavender Mousse with Mandarin Granita
Serves 2
Ingredients
Lavender Mousse
• 1 cup Greek yogurt
• 3 tbsp lavender-infused water (1 tbsp dried lavender + 1/3 cup boiling water)
• 1 tsp food colouring
• 4 egg whites
• 3 tbsp stevia
• 2 gelatin leaves
• pinch of salt
Mandarin Granita
• 1 tbsp stevia
• 100ml water
• 200ml freshly squeezed mandarin juice
Instructions
1. Place dried lavender into a small bowl and add boiling water. Set aside and let flavours infuse for 15-20 minutes.
2. Add greek yogurt into a bowl with lavender infused water and food colouring.
3. In another bowl, separate egg whites from yolk. Add stevia and salt and mix thoroughly.
4. Place bowl with the egg whites into a double boiler and mix continuously.
5. After 4-5 minutes remove from heat and add gelatin. Mix thoroughly until it’s all dissolved.
6. Use an electric whisk to beat the egg whites until they are almost stiff.
7. Incorporate the greek yogurt mixture into the egg whites and continue to whisk for 1 minute.
8. Pour into glass cups and set in fridge for 1 hour.
9. For the mandarin granita, add water and stevia into a small saucepan. Over medium heat, mix continuously until the stevia is completely dissolved.
10. Add stevia syrup and freshly squeezed mandarin juice in a shallow dish.
11. Place in freezer for 1.5 hours. Using a fork, scrape the surface of the granita to get crystals. Place the dish back into the freezer for another 1 hour.
12. Serve with chilled lavender mousse.
Bon appétit!
Disclaimer
All images are my own.