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Natura
Recipe by Reynold Poernomo
Lose yourself in the flavours of Reynold Poernomo's Natura, combining flavours of earl gray with salted vanilla caramel, lemon, chocolate and matcha
- Steps
- Ingredients
Ingredients
Earl Grey Milk Chocolate Whipped Ganache
Bergamot marmalade
Vanilla Caramel
To Assemble the Chocolate Branch
Caramelised Oakwood Gelato
Chocolate Sponge Soil
Matcha Moss
Honey Brown Sugar Leaf
To Assemble
Select All
Steps
- Preheat oven 1 to 180°C fan forced.
- Preheat oven 2 to 165°C fan forced.
- Preheat oven 3 to 160°C fan forced.
- For the Earl Grey Milk Chocolate Whipped Ganache, place gelatine in a small bowl and cover with cold water. Set aside for approximately 5 minutes until pliable. Once pliable, drain the gelatine and squeeze out excess water. Set aside until required.
- Combine cream (A), earl grey tea leaves, softened gelatine and milk chocolate in a saucepan and place over low heat, stirring until the gelatine and chocolate has melted.
- Whisk in the cream (B) then pour into a container and place in the refrigerator until set.
- Once set, transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whisk to stiff peaks.
- Transfer to a piping bag and set aside in the fridge.
- For the Bergamot Marmalade, peel lemon skin and remove all the pith with a small knife. Slice skin finely and chop as fine as possible. Place in a small saucepan.
- Segment the lemons and place in the saucepan with the zest. Squeeze the remaining core of the lemon to extract the juice into the saucepan.
- Add the sugar and place the saucepan over low heat until the sugar begins to caramelise.
- Once caramelised, pour in the bergamot juice to deglaze. Add water and continue to reduce until slightly viscous.
- Remove from the heat, cool mixture down then transfer to a piping bag. Set aside on the bench until required.
- For the Vanilla Caramel, place sugar and glucose (A) in a saucepan, place over high heat and cook until the sugars caramelise and the mixture comes to smoking point.
- In a separate saucepan combine vanilla, glucose (B), cream and milk. Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer.
- Once the sugar mixture has caramelised, whisk in the butter until emulsified then whisk in the warmed cream mixture.
- Simmer the mixture until slightly viscous and emulsified then season with salt.
- Remove mixture from the heat, pass through a sieve and cool on the bench.
- Once cool, transfer to a piping bag and set aside on the bench.
- To Assemble the Chocolate Branch, lay out a sheet of cling film 15cm x 20cm on the bench.
- Pipe 2 x 15cm lengths of earl grey milk chocolate whipped ganache from the long end of the cling film.
- Pipe vanilla caramel in the centre of the ganache cresses to the same length.
- Pipe the bergamot marmalade on top of the caramel to the same length.
- Pipe another layer of earl grey milk chocolate whipped ganache to cover the caramel and marmalade.
- Roll into a sausage gently tightening the ends of the cling wrap, then lay the mousse on a French baguette baking tray, draping over each slot so there is a natural curvature on the centre of the rolled mousse. Place in the blast freezer until solid.
- Meanwhile, to make the chocolate twigs, place 65% dark chocolate in the jug of a Thermomix and blend on speed 10, until the chocolate becomes malleable. Pinch a small piece of dark chocolate and working quickly roll with the palm of your hands into thin twigs, allowing them to shape and set in an organic form. Repeat until you have 5 twigs. Set aside on the bench to set.
- To make the chocolate coat, combine 55% dark chocolate and cocoa butter in a microwave safe bowl. Place in the microwave and heat in 30 second increments until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is combined, stirring often. Set aside on the bench.
- Once the chocolate branch has frozen, cut an inch off each end on an angle and reattach them using whipped ganache to create feet for the branch wearing gloves to smooth the chocolate and cover any exposed filling. Shape as organically as possible to create a broken off branch.
- Place back in the blast freezer to firm up and freeze.
- Once frozen again, brush the chocolate branch with the chocolate coat mixture in even long strokes to resemble the exterior of wood, covering all surfaces of the branch.
- Once all surfaces are covered, brush the branch with dark cocoa powder in a light covering.
- Heat a metal skewer over a flame then pierce holes into the branch and insert the twigs.
- Place the chocolate branch in fridge until required.
- Reserve whipped ganache for assembly.
- For the Caramelised Oakwood Gelato, sift the oakwood chips of any fine particles then place on a baking tray. Sprinkle the oakwood chips with brown sugar the place in the oven at 180°C for approximately 10 – 15 minutes or until caramelised and fragrant.
- Meanwhile, combine milk, cream, sugar, milk powder, dextrose and base50 in the jug of a Thermomix. Blend for 1 minute on speed 5 then transfer into a saucepan. Add the caramelised oak chips, place over medium heat and cook to 85°C.
- Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl placed over a bowl of ice. Stir occasionally until cool then transfer to a pacojet canister and freeze until solid.
- Once solid, churn in the pacojet and store in the freezer until required.
- For the Chocolate Sponge Soil, combine egg yolks and sugar (A) in a bowl and whisk until fluffy. Set aside.
- Combine egg whites and sugar (B) in a separate bowl and whisk until stiff peaks.
- Whisk the cocoa powder and flour into the yolk mixture then fold in the whisked egg whites.
- Transfer mixture into a lined 20cm x 30cm baking tray and bake at 165°C for approximately 6 – 8 minutes or until cooked through.
- Once cooked, remove from the tray and place on a wire rack to cool.
- Once cool, half fill a deep baking tray with liquid nitrogen then break the chocolate sponge into the liquid. Using a slotted spoon, remove the frozen sponge and place in a food processor. Blend to a soil like texture then place in a container and set aside in the fridge until required.
- For the Matcha Moss, combine flour, sugar, almond meal, rice flour, matcha and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low to medium speed until the mixture is soil like in texture.
- Add the egg and continue to mix until a dough is formed.
- Place chunks of 40g dough onto a lined baking tray and bake at 165°C for 18 minutes.
- Once cooked, allow to cool down and then transfer into a food processor and blend until crumbly.
- Transfer to a container and set aside on the bench until required.
- For the Leaves and Butterflies, combine maltose and glucose in a saucepan, place over medium to high heat and cook to 110°C.
- Add the isomalt, stirring to combine and continue to cook until 170°C.
- Transfer hot caramel onto a silicon mat lined baking tray and set aside on the bench to cool down until solidified.
- Once solidified, break into smaller pieces then transfer to the jug of a Thermomix. Blend on speed 10 until a fine powder is achieved.
- Divide the mixture into two batches.
- Place one half of the mixture into the jug of a Thermomix, add the freeze-dried blackberry powder and blend for 10 seconds on speed 8 to combine. Transfer to a container and set aside.
- Place the other half of the mixture into a clean jug of a Thermomix, add the freeze-dried raspberry powder and blend for 10 seconds on speed 8 to combine. Transfer to a container and set aside.
- Line a baking tray with a silicon mat then sift blackberry mixture onto a leaf stencil until you have 5 leaves then onto a butterfly stencil until you have 1 butterfly.
- Line a separate baking tray with a silicon mat then sift raspberry mixture onto a leaf stencil until you have 5 leaves then onto a butterfly stencil until you have 1 butterfly.
- Bake at 160°C for 5 minutes then allow to cool on the tray.
- Once cool, use a heat gun and silicone leaf press to shape the leave and gently heat the butterflies with a heat gun to create a V shape with the wings facing up.
- Store the leave and butterflies in an airtight container until required.
- For the Honey Brown Sugar Leaf, place all ingredients in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix until a loose dough is formed.
- Line a baking tray with a silicon mat then spread mixture onto the leaf stencil until you have 5 leaves.
- Bake in the oven at 165°C for 8 minutes then allow to cool on the tray.
- Once cool, use a heat gun and a silicone leaf press to shape the leaves.
- Store in an airtight container until required.
- To Assemble, pipe earl grey milk chocolate whipped ganache along the top of the chocolate branch from one end to the other.
- Cover the ganache with the chocolate sponge soil and matcha moss.
- Transfer the chocolate branch onto a wooden serving plate.
- Pipe small dots of whipped ganache onto the back of the leaves to attach onto the branch and twigs, placing roughly 4 – 5 leaves of each flavour.
- Pipe small dots of whipped ganache onto the back of the butterflies to attach onto the branch and twigs, placing 1 of each flavour.
- Garnish with mint and shiso sticking out of the soil on top of the branch.
- Place a small spoonful of chocolate sponge soil on the wooden serving plate to the side of the branch then place a rocher of sorbet on top.
- Serve immediately.
