Sorbet, granita, gelatin and in osmosis
Lime namelaka
[g] %
milk 200 21,0
lime zest 4 0,4
glucose 10 1,0
200 Bloom gelatin sheets 9 0,9
Ivoire 35% 330 34,7
cream 400 42,0
Tot. 953 100
Bring the milk and the glucose to the boil. Add the gelatin, previously rehydrated in cold water, and emulsify on the chocolate. Continue to emulsify drizzling in the cold liquid cream. Add the lime zest which has been finely grated to preserve the colour. Leave to crystallize in the refrigerator for 12 hours. Use in a piping bag with a 8 mm tip.
Watermelon cream
[g] %
watermelon juice 200 65,8
inulin 100 32,9
lime zest 4 1,3
Tot. 304 100
Mix together all the ingredients with an immersion blender. Filter and add the finely grated lime zest. Leave to crystallize. Use in a piping bag with a 4 mm tip.
Watermelon sorbet
[g] %
water 296 14,7
glucose syrup 150 7,4
trehalose 450 22,3
stabiliser 4 0,2
watermelon juice 1100 54,5
lemon juice 20 1,0
Tot. 2020 100
Mix together the trehalose and the stabiliser. Heat the water and the glucose to 40°C. Add the powders and cook to 60°C. Allow to cool then add the puree and lemon juice per litre of base. Stir and churn in the machine.
Watermelon in osmosis
[g] %
watermelon juice 100 25,0
fresh watermelon 300 75,0
Tot. 400 100
Mix the juice to the watermelon cut into 1 cm cubes. Vacuum-seal in the proper bags and store in water and ice. I use this technique to intensify the taste of the watermelon.
Chocolate decoration
[g] %
green cocoa butter 200 66,7
Opalys 33% 100 33,3
Tot. 300 100
Temper the cocoa butter and spread onto an acetate sheet using a brush. Leave to crystallize. Temper the white chocolate and cover the coloured acetate sheet with a thin layer. Leave to crystallize, then cut some rings with an outer diameter of 90 mm and an inner diameter of 65 mm. Cut them in half to obtain the “rind” for the watermelon slice.
Watermelon granita
[g] %
watermelon juice 200 98,0
lime zest 4 2,0
Tot. 204 100
Pour the watermelon juice in a siphon. Charge the siphon with two charges and spray into a container with liquid nitrogen to obtain the granita. Grind with a pestle to get a smoother granita. Store in the freezer until use. Grate the zest before serving.
Assembly
Using a 9 cm ring as a guide in a shallow dish, create 8 lime namelaka dots, thus recreating the shape of a half slice of watermelon. To reproduce the seeds, use crunchy chocolate pearls. Finish with the sorbet and the granita.
Fabrizio Fiorani
“Tra l’onirico e il reale”, Chiriotti Editori
Credits Giancarlo Bononi and Luca Marcheselli