How rare and lovely it is to have a real dessert and not a bowl of fruit or the inevitable sorbet. The only way I can describe this ‘Surprise’ is that it is somewhat like the lemon part of a lemon meringue pie or a stiff lemon curd (gelatine is used as a thickener). You do need to pay attention carefully as you cook the egg mixture in a bain marie otherwise you will end up with lemon scrambled eggs. The tart lemon flavor is tempered by the addition of Yuzu juice just enough so that people will notice it. I served it in little coffee cups and it look lovely like that if you have guests over. It takes 2 hours to set properly in the fridge. Maybe a raspberry or two to decorate.
6 oz. caster/fine granulated sugar
Juice of 2 1/2 large lemons
Zest of 1/2 lemon
3 large eggs – whisked with a fork
1 tbsp. yuzu juice (available through the ‘Shop’ page on my website)
1 sachet gelatine
Place the sugar in a mixing bowl, then add the lemon juice, zest and yuzu juice.
Add the whisked eggs slowly to the above mixture while whisking with an electric whisk.
Pour this all into a pan set over a slightly larger pan with boiling water turned down to a simmer in it. The water should just touch the bottom of the pan with the egg mixture in it.
Stir egg mixture slowly and steadily (I used a plastic spatula) until it thickens nicely without any lumps
Remove from heat and set aside while you make the gelatine.
Pour the prepared gelatine liquid into the egg mixture and stir well.
Pour into individual serving dishes and place in the fridge for 2 hours before serving.
Gelatine Preparation
1/4 cup cold water
1 sachet of gelatine
1/4 cup boiling water
Pour cold water into a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatine over it. Wait for a minute , then pour over the boiling water and stir until the gelatine crystals have dissolved
