Wednesday 11 January 2012

Iced berries with white chocolate sauce to challenge your resolve

Personally, I haven't made any New Year's Resolutions. I have some objectives for this year (get job, lose weight, get drivers licence) but no actual resolutions because I feel that they are just a way to start the year disappointed in yourself.

So here, even though it is a Wednesday in early January, is a lovely and not diet-focused dessert.

I'd heard about "Scandinavian Berries", the speciality of the Caprice Holdings group (Le Caprice, the Ivy, J. Sheekey etc etc etc in several countries) - frozen berries served with a warm white chocolate sauce - but I'd never tried them. Then in November I was lucky enough to get free tickets to the Ideal Home Show from Fleur de Guerre and David Smith. To be honest, Home Shows are not really my bag. One of the things I really don't like about them is the suffocating crush around fast food stalls to buy ridiculously overpriced grey, mystery-meat burgers, so I made an executive decision. I saw that Gizzi Erskine was doing a pop-up restaurant with a pre-booked table, pie, mash & veg and a dessert for a very reasonable price, so I booked it.

This was a good decision.

In the overheated press of people, we were able to sit in a wide open space, where it was quiet enough to hear each other talk, and enjoy a bottle of wine, a really excellent pie and veg and a rather good dessert. My dessert was indeed the iced berries with a white chocolate and cointreau sauce. Due to the pressures of mass catering, the sauce was served cold, but it gave me enough of a taste for the dish to be very keen to make it myself.

It doesn't need a recipe. You put some frozen, mixed berries in a bowl. You melt some white chocolate over a double boiler with some double cream and add a splash of cointeau (actually, over Christmas you can buy lovely thick Channel Islands cream already spiked with cointreau, and this is what I used) and when it is warm and smooth, you pour it over the frozen berries and serve without delay.


14 comments:

leaf (the indolent cook) said...

Very simple indeed! I might have to try this myself sometime...

Shu Han said...

well I dont believe in setting diet resolutions for the new year's. as long as you eat what's whole and real, your body will love you for it! and healthy food shouldn't be a chore to eat! I would say, look at those berries instead, packed full of antioxidants, and what's a bit of white chocolate to make it all an even greater pleasure to eat (:

purabi naha said...

Wow, this looks so tempting, Foodycat!! I really need this right now! Cointreau will definitely make this more delish!

tori said...

Fantastic thing to have tucked in the repertoire. Only thing I like better than white chocolate and tart berries is a splash of passionfruit pulp with white chocolate.

Alicia Foodycat said...

Leafy - it's a good one, regardless of the weather.

Shu-Han - that is a good way to look at it.

Purabi naha - please try it!

Tori - if I could get some decent passionfruit here, I would agree!

mscrankypants said...

How civilised that someone makes cream with Cointreau already mixed.

My Christmas day dessert of fruit salad swimming in brandy custard looked like that dish :-).

Joanne said...

Even though I'm trying to lose weight, I let myself eat a real dessert twice a week just so I don't go crazy. This sounds like perfect for one of my treats! I'm such a sucker for white chocolate.

Mary Bergfeld said...

That sounds really interesting and I love how simple it is to do. It looks delicious. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary

Alicia Foodycat said...

Cranky - you can get one with brandy too.

Joanne - you could probably use reduced fat creme fraiche instead of heavy cream too, just to reduce the calories a little! And more fruit, less topping.

Mary - it is delicious, I hope you try it!

Choclette said...

What a fabulous recipe, I like warm over ice and the chocolate sauce sounds divine. So glad you're not on the Jan diet fad. Are you without a job at the moment? I hadn't realised. Good Luck.

Caroline said...

Ah, it is at times like these I am glad I have no resolve to break!!! I've seen this recipe/idea floating around before and am glad to hear that it's so successful.

Best of luck with your objectives.

grace said...

easy doesn't even begin to describe this! i'm a huge fan of white chocolate and this is a classy way to feast upon it. :)

Alicia Foodycat said...

Choclette - yes, on the very boring job hunt!

C - you should try it!

Grace - I think this is going to be a go-to party dish.

Beth (jamandcream) said...

I've seen Ina Garten do something similar. I need to try it

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