Lemon Snow-esque

I'm usually in charge of dessert for our family get togethers, and with my massive sweet tooth, I suppose I'm a natural selection. There are, however, challenges associated with this responsibility. Up first is the daunting task of pleasing so many people. While I think it is safe to say that we all enjoy desserts, the majority of us don't like our sweets to be too sweet. The next hurdle is several of my family members do not enjoy cakes - in any form - not even cupcakes (gasp :) )!! And the final challenge is we have one member that intensely dislikes eggs. Needless to say, I am always happy to try new recipes that fit these requirements. So when one of my brothers indicated that they loved a dessert called Lemon Snow, I had to give it a try! 

The extended family member was kind enough to share their recipe with me and since it was my little brother's first weekend back from his job; I thought I would surprise him with this dessert.  The recipe provided was not really detailed and, having never seen this dessert before, I had to supplement with some research on the net.  I'm really not sure of the origins of this dessert (some sources say European, others Canadian), but there are several different versions and very few pictures available on the web!  I felt like I was flying a little blind on this one.

Since this dessert requires chilling time, I decided to get started early in the day.  The first step is the gelatin mixture.  Admittedly I do not often work with gelatin, but I have and I certainly understand the various steps involved.  What I wasn't counting on was how quickly the mixture set.  I allowed the gelatin to bloom added the sugar, salt and hot water and mixed until the sugar and gelatin was dissolved, and then stirred in the lemon rind and lemon juice. 

At this point you need to chill the mixture.  I thought it would take at least an hour for the mixture to begin to set, never mind reach the "drop by spoonful" kind of texture the recipe called for.  So off I went to do some yoga, before returning to a solid brick of lemony gelatin!

The partially set gelatin gets mixed with the whipped egg whites to ultimately create a mousse / cloud like texture.  Therefore, in order to properly incorporate the whipped egg whites into the gelatin mixture, you need the gelatin to not be completely set.  Since I didn't have another pouch of gelatin on me, I ended up heating the set mixture over a bain marie (hot water bath) until it started to loosen up and then whipped in the stiff peaks egg whites until smooth.  Seeing as how this was my first attempt, I'm not really sure whether this additional step negatively impacted the end result, but it ultimately looked and tasted yummy!

Having run into my gelatin problems, and having ducked out to run a whole slew of errands (wine bottling being one of them!), I was seriously short on chilling time for the recommended custard that accompanies the official Lemon Snow recipe provided.  As such, I decided to use a little of the extra raspberries and Chantilly cream I had prepared to go with the Raspberry Shortcakes I was also making (my back-up in case my Lemon Snow didn't turn out).  And thus emerged my Lemon Snow-esque version!

Using two piping bags, I essentially layered the Lemon Snow mixture with fresh raspberries and Chantilly cream.  Not only was the presentation pretty eye catching, the taste was really yummy and light!  Great dessert to serve in the summer.

Enjoy!

Lemon Snow-esque

Preparation Time – 15 Minutes

Chilling Time – 1 ½ to 2 Hours

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp. unflavoured gelatin
• ¼ cup cold water
• ¼ cup sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1 cup hot water
• 1 Tsp. lemon rind (rind from one lemon)
• ¼ cup lemon juice (approximately juice from one lemon)
• 2 egg whites
• 1/3 cup sugar

Preparation

1. In a medium bowl, add a ¼ cup of cold water and sprinkle the 2 tablespoons of gelatin over the water.  Set aside to bloom, approximately 5 minutes. 
2. Meanwhile, grate the lemon zest, juice the lemon, measure the sugar and heat 1 cup of hot water.
3. Once the gelatin has bloomed, add the sugar, salt and hot water and mix with a hand mixer until the sugar and gelatin have completely dissolved.  Stir in the lemon rind and lemon juice.  Chill until the mixture drops by spoonful, approximately 20 to 30 minutes.  Be sure to keep an eye on it, as you don’t want it to completely set.
4. Using a hand mixer, whip the egg whites until soft peaks form, then slowly add the 1/3 cup of sugar and continue mixing until stiff peaks form.
5. Top the gelatin mixture with the firm egg whites and mix using a hand mixer until thoroughly combined and smooth.  Return this mixture to the fridge to chill until almost completely set, about an hour.
6. Using piping bags, alternate layers of lemon snow, raspberries and Chantilly cream, ending with a raspberry on top.
7. Chill until completely set.
8. Serve cold.