Blancmange (French: blanc – white, manger – to eat) is a delicate French dessert made from almond or cow's milk. I decided to combine the two — using both almonds and milk, or rather, to make it even more delicious, not milk at all but heavy cream. Traditionally, blancmange was thickened with starch or rice flour, but nowadays you can use gelatin to help the dessert hold its shape and be served in individual portions. I absolutely loved the result — rich, nutty, with a wonderful texture, complemented by a tangy-sweet thick cherry sauce. I used frozen cherries (they should be pitted); if you like, you can make the sauce with other berries, preferably ones that aren't too sweet on their own, which will nicely bring out the sweetness of the creamy almond gelatin. This recipe made 4 servings of dessert, as shown in the photo, and about 300 ml of cherry sauce.
Ingredients:
- 400 ml heavy cream (10–20% fat)
- 70 g sugar
- 50 g almonds
- 1 tsp vanilla sugar
- 1 packet gelatin (10 g)
- Sauce:
- 200 g cherries (frozen or fresh)
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp starch (potato), leveled
How to cook almond blancmange with cherry sauce
Cover the almonds with boiling water and let soak for 5–7 minutes, then peel off the skins. If the skins don't come off easily, pour boiling water over them again — after that, even the stubbornest almonds will slip right out of their skins.
Place the almonds in a blender, pour in half of the heavy cream, and blend very thoroughly. The nuts should be ground extremely fine — no large pieces should remain.
Combine the gelatin with 100 ml of water and let it bloom for 10 minutes (or according to the package directions).
Pour the remaining heavy cream into a small saucepan and add the sugar and vanilla sugar. Heat over low heat until hot, stirring until the sugar dissolves — do not let it come to a boil.
Remove from heat, add the bloomed gelatin, and stir until completely dissolved. Then add the cream blended with the almonds and stir to combine.
Pour the mixture into silicone molds (you can also use any other molds — metal or ceramic work fine). Refrigerate until fully set, about 4–5 hours.
Make the sauce. Place the cherries in a small saucepan without thawing. Add the sugar and 150 ml of water, bring to a boil, and cook for 2–3 minutes.
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