A fake lemon, but lemon-flavored! It plays with the appearance of the fruit, the dessert by social pastry chef Cédric Grolet. Which gives shape to one of the most successful “stand-ins” in contemporary confectionery art.
Cover photo by Pierre Monetta
The dessert
Golden shell, unexpected filling, and the fuse of flair that explodes at the first lunge of a spoon: if we had to describe Cédric Grolet's “Lemon” with a single adjective, we would use the term "pyrotechnic” without hesitation. A social star with 11.5 million followers, elected best pastry chef in the world in 2017 and always ready to churn out irreverent novelties such as the pizza-biscuit, the rebellious genius of French pastry actually remains tied to a few very specific signature desserts, including La vie en rose (a vermilion sculpture with a floral theme), the Rubik's (inspired by the famous cube) and -exactly- the stuffed citrus, with such unusual inserts as lemon caviar and yuzu gel.
The recipe is not one that can be easily replicated, should you have little manual dexterity when it comes to modern creations, but trying your hand at the endeavor could bring a hidden talent for making single-portion rather than maxi cake design cakes into the sunlight . So, no excuses: after the croissant and pain au chocolat, we explain how to make Fake Lemon for the end of the meal. The recipe is taken from the Four Magazine website.
The recipe
The Lemon
Ingredients
For the whipped yuzu ganache
- 150 g ivory-colored topping
- 5 g food gelatin powder
- 45 ml cold water
- 530 ml of cream
- 120 ml yuzu juice
For the poached Meyer lemons
- 250 g Meyer lemons
- 500 g sugar No. 1
- 1000 ml water
- 500 g sugar No. 2
For the yellow lemon compote inserted inside
- 120 ml water
- 180 g of lemon juice
- 30 g sugar
- 5 g agar-agar
- 170 g of crystallized lemon
- 55 g lemon caviar
- 40 g lemon pieces
- 15 g fresh mint
For the lemon yellow topping
- 250 g ivory coating
- 250 g of cocoa butter
- 4 g of PCB yellow dye (fat soluble)
For the airbrush solution
- Kirsch
- Golden powder
Procedure
For the whipped yuzu ganache
Soak the gelatin in cold water for 20 minutes.
Boil half the cream, then add the gelatin.
Pour a little at a time over the chocolate without forgetting the emulsion.
Add the other half of the cream, then top with the yuzu puree.
Mix well until perfectly blended and store in a refrigerator.
For the poached Meyer lemons
Remove the stalks, cut into 8, remove the inside leaving only 3 mm of pulp. Blanch 3 times in (cold) water.
Boil syrup, soak fruit in it and let cool indoors without exceeding 70°C.
Add No. 2 sugar into the syrup several times to concentrate it. When the fruit is tender, strain it and cook the syrup at 103°C.
Let the syrup cool and add the fruit, then store it.
For the yellow lemon compote
Heat the water and lemon juice together. Add the sugar and agar-agar. Boil for 2 minutes, then cool very quickly. When the gel/freeze is cold, whisk it (be careful not to incorporate air into the mixture).
Add fresh mint, lemon caviar and finely chopped crystallized lemons.
Shape into a spherical mold with a diameter of 3.5 cm. Freeze.
For the lemon yellow topping
Heat ivory coating with cocoa butter, then mix with yellow dye. Use the topping at about 25.
Mix together, then pour and fill the airbrush tank.
Dish composition
Whip yuzu ganache with a chilled planetary mixer, make lemons through 2-inch spherical silicone molds. Freeze.
Remove from sphere molds and begin carving the entire sphere (with the little dots). Apply some yuzu ganache to two ends of the sphere and smooth the tips to give the true shape of the lemon.
Once satisfied with the shape, place it in the freezer to chill the lemon. Temper the “lemons” in the yellow icing, then partially glue them on a plate with some almond paste.
“Velvet” them with the same frosting making sure to create a few smooth spots to create an irregular effect. Spread a light warm neutral topping on top.
Give a golden appearance with the airbrush.
* Be careful that no frosting or condensation forms between the wet and velvety layers!
