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Steven Smith's stunning apricot recipe combines chunky compote with smooth purée, Champagne jelly and cool, velvety ice cream. Contrasting delightfully on the palate, these elements all come together to create an elegant, memorable dessert.
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Begin by making the ice cream base. Beat together the sugar and egg yolks until the sugar has dissolved, then pour in the milk, cream and salt. Seal the mixture in a bag and cook in a water bath for 90 minutes at 68°C, then chill in iced water and then pass through a fine sieve
Meanwhile, prepare the apricot purée. Chop the apricots into small pieces and place in a saucepan with the sugar and water. Cook until the fruit is completely soft then purée until smooth in a blender
Transfer the apricot purée to a thick bottomed pan, add the agar agar and xanthan gum and bring the mixture to the boil, whisking all the time so the apricot doesn't catch. Pour the apricot mixture onto a flat tray and leave to set in the fridge. Once set, transfer to a blender and blitz again until smooth. Pass the apricot purée through a fine sieve, reserving a little of the purée in a piping bag for garnish
3g of agar agar
0.5g of xanthan gum
4
To finish the ice cream mix the ice cream base with the apricot purée until thoroughly combined. Place the ice cream into a pacojet container and transfer to the freezer until frozen solid. Churn in the pacojet just before serving, or alternatively churn in an ice cream maker
5
To make the apricot compote, score the apricots on the bottom and blanch for 2-5 seconds in boiling water, then immediately refresh in iced water for 30 seconds. Remove the apricots from the iced water, pat them dry and then remove the stones
Make a stock syrup from the sugar and water, then add the vanilla pods and seeds and bring to the boil. Allow the syrup mixture to cool and compress with the apricots in a vacuum bag. Remove and roughly chop 4 of the apricots to a compote consistency, reserving the other 8 halves to plate
50g of sugar
50ml of water
1 vanilla pod, seeds scraped
7
For the champagne jelly, heat the champagne very gently with the gelatine until dissolved. Pass the mixture through a fine sieve into a tray and leave in the fridge to set. Once set, chop the jelly into small pieces and transfer to a piping bag
200ml of Champagne
1 gelatine leaf, soaked in cold water
8
To serve, place a spoonful of compote onto the centre of each plate and top with an apricot half. Pipe alternate dots of apricot purée and champagne jelly around the apricot and top the halves with a quenelle of ice cream. Garnish with a dried vanilla pod and serve
Steven Smith may be trend-averse but he is certainly not risk-averse, his cuisine embraces tradition without being consumed by it.
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Apricot ice cream, compote and purée
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