This dish is in honour of the Prince of Wales, and his love and wife; The Duchess of Cornwall.
There is nothing more perfectly English than the combination of strawberries and cream. And ‘classic English’ is exactly what you need when you’re talking about the Heir Apparent to the throne.
There are a few stages to this dish. It’s not one to be made in a hurry. Like the Prince and the Duchess it will take a little bit of time to end up married happily together.
To start you must make the lemon curd. With all its exuberant zest it can come off as startling; and at first introduction it may even leave a slightly sour taste in your mouth. But over time it will soften to a sauce that is lively, sweet and joyous.
Then it’s just about folding the lemon curd through a creamy parfait and giving them some quiet time together in a cold climate.
It’s only fitting considering Prince Charles’ role as champion for the cause that the majority of produce used should be organic.
It’s up to you whether you want to skip a step and use lemon curd from The Prince’s Duchy Originals. It’s also up to you to acknowledge the Duchess’ penchant for fabulous hats by decorating each portion a fan of strawberries.
But when it comes to the intertwined curves of candied lemon peel- they’re non negotiable. These are two C’s that belong together.
Iced lemon curd parfait
Serves 8
(NB, will need to be made at least 12 hours before to freeze properly. You could also cheat completely and just mix the lemon curd through good quality vanilla ice cream and re freeze in a loaf tin.)
Equipment
One hand mixer. One heat proof bowl. One larger bowl quarter filled with ice and cold water. Spatula. One loaf tin, lined with clingwrap.
Shopping/foraging
1 cup of lemon curd* (recipe below)
Candied peel of one lemon** (recipe below)
1/2 cup of lemon syrup***(recipe below)
300 grams (10.5 ounces) caster sugar
3 large egg whites (nb, you will use 4 egg yolks if you make the lemon curd yourself)
300 ml (1 ¼ cups) double cream
120 ml (half a cup) of water
Here’s how we roll
1. Line a loaf tin with two layers of plastic wrap.
2. Place sugar and water in a saucepan. Heat slowly until sugar dissolved and cook until reaches 120 C on a sugar thermometer. To test without a thermometer wait until you have a very sticky looking syrup and then dip a teaspoon into the syrup and quickly into cold water. You should be able to roll the cooling syrup into a ball between your fingers. When you can do this, it’s ready.
3. Beat the egg whites in a large heat proof bowl with an electric beater. Beat for 30 seconds. Add the sugar syrup to the egg whites.
4. Place the bowl with the egg whites and syrup in the bowl of ice and water. Continue beating the egg whites and sugar until the meringue has cooled.
5. Mix in the cream.
6. Pour into the lined loaf tin and gently ripple the lemon curd through the pan.
7. Cover the top of the loaf pan with the overlapping sections of cling film.
8. Freeze for at least 12 hours.
9. To serve scoop, scoop out portions onto cold plates. You want to do this quickly.
10. Decorate with sliced strawberries, two ‘C’s’ of candied lemon peel and a drizzle of lemon syrup.
*Lemon curd
Makes 1 cup of thick lemon curd
Shopping/foraging
4 egg yolks
2/3 cup of caster sugar
60 grams of butter (2.1 ounces)
100 ml lemon juice (3.5 fluid ounces)
2 tablespoons of zest (zest of 2 medium lemons)
Here’s how we roll
1. Beat the egg yolks and the sugar together until pale and fluffy.
2. Transfer the egg yolk and sugar mixture into a non stick fry pan, with the butter, lemon juice and the zest.
3. Heat gently and stir constantly until the butter is melted and the elements combined.
4. Continue to stir and heat gently until it has thickened into a sauce the consistency of thick mayonnaise.
**Candied lemon peel and lemon syrup
Shopping/foraging
1 lemon
1 cup water
1 cups white sugar
Here’s how we roll
1. Cut lemons into quarters, and remove the inner pulp. Scrape off as much of the white pith as possible with a butter knife.
2. Bring the water to the boil and add the lemon peel. Boil for 5 minutes.
3. Remove peels from the water and add the sugar. Return to the heat and boil until transparent.
4. Remove lemon peel. If it is too sticky and candied soak them briefly in a bowl with a small bit of water.
5. Add the juice of the lemon and half a cup of water to the syrup and gently heat until you have the consistency of a syrup.
Other items in the Royal Wedding Feast:
Her Majesty’s Cucumber Chicken Crowns
Prince William Pork Wellington
Prince Harry Spiced Ginger Relish
Catherine Middleton Hazelnut Hearts
