DESSERTS FOR LOVE

GROGGY GRAPES WITH BERRY SAUCE 

Grapes marinated in Grand Marnier syrup can be prepared the day before Make the Berry Sauce a day or two before we used raspberries for the brightest color but any berry fresh or frozen can be used 5

• 00g white seedless grapes 
• ½ cup sugar tablespoons 
• water 
• tablespoon Grand Marnier vanilla ice cream 

BERRY SAUCE 

• 250g frozen m raspberries 
• 2 tablespoons icing sugar 
• 1 tablespoon Grand Marnier

Remove stems from grapes. peel grapes and place in basin Add sugar to water in pan, stir over heat until sugar is dissolved, and bring to boil remove from heat add Grand Marnier, pour grapes Cover, and refrigerate several hours or overnight Divide between four glasses, top with ice cream and warm Berry Sauce just before serving Berry Sauce: Thaw berries blend or process with sugar until smooth, push through sieve, discard seeds, add Grand Marnier Warm before serving Serves 

 FROZEN APRICOT CREAM

• 250g glace apricots
• 125g glace ginger 
• 125g toasted slivered almonds 
• ½ cup brandy 
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup icing sugar 
• 3 x 300ml jars thickened cream 

Chop apricots and ginger about the same size as the almonds, and combine them with brandy. Beat eggs until thick and creamy, add sifted sugar, and beat until thick. Beat cream until thick. Combine fruit almonds and egg mixture. the mixture, fold into the cream. Spread evenly into a basin or mold of 6 cup capacity, cover with aluminum foil, and freeze overnight. To serve, dip the basin into hot Sub water for a second or two, turn the pudding onto a serving plate, refrigerate for 30 minutes then stand at room temperature for up to 30 minutes ( depending on the weather ) before cutting. 

Note: Spread almonds on a flat tray. bake in a moderate oven for 5 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned, cool. The cream used in this recipe must be beaten as thickly as possible to be firm enough to suspend the fruit.

Serves 8.

 GRAND MARNIER POTS de CREME

•  ½ cup sugar 
• 300ml jars of thickened cream 
• 1/4 cup milk 
• 2 teaspoons grated orange rind 
• 4 egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons Grand Marnier 

GLAZED ORANGE STRIPS 

• 1 orange 
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/2  cup sugar 

Heat sugar, cream, and milk in a pan until just below boiling point, add orange rind Whisk cream mixture into egg yolks with Grand Marnier. Pour into four small heatproof dishes, stand in a baking dish with hot water to come halfway up sides of dishes Cover loosely with aluminum foil, and bake in a moderate oven for 40 to 45 minutes Remove from water, cool, and refrigerate Serve topped with whipped cream and Glazed Orange Strips 

Glazed Orange Strips: Peel the rind from the orange with a vegetable peeler. Bring water to boil, add rind, boil 5 minutes drain Cut into thin strips Place water and sugar in pan, stir over heat until sugar is dissolved, bring to boil, add find and cook until transparent ( approximately 4 minutes ) Remove rind from pan, place on foil to cool 

Serves 4 

 RASPBERRY FREEZER CAKE 

The freezer case can be made up to 3 months in advance it cute superbly and favors a fresh and summery 

• 150g unsalted butter cup castor sugar
•  4 eggs, separated 
• cup plain flour 
• 1/2 cup self-raising flour 

RASPBERRY SYRUP 

• 450g can raspberries 
• 2 tablespoons icing sugar 
• 2 tablespoons Kirsch 

BUTTERCREAM 

• 185g unsalted butter 
• 1/4 cup icing sugar 
• 2 tablespoons kirsch 3x 
• 210g roll packaged marzipan

Cream soft butter and cup sugar for 5 minutes or until light and creamy at a time, beating Add egg yolks one well after each addition Beat egg whites to soft peaks, add remaining cup sugar gradually, and beat until dissolved Fold sifted flour into creamed butter mature, then fold I egg white batches Spread into mature in two well greased lost tin ( base measures 12 cm x 22 cm ), bake in moderate oven 35 to 40 minutes Turn onto rack to cool When cold, split into three even layers Place bottom layer on oven tray, brush with third of the Raspberry Syrup ( pierce the cake with a skewer to allow syrup to soak into the cake ). Cream 

Spread with a third of the Butter and top with half the reserved mashed raspberries. Top with another layer of cake Brush with another third of Raspberry Syrup Cover with another third of the Butter Cream, then roll marzipan, spread a thin layer of Butter Cream over the marzipan 

Brush the cut side of the last layer of cake with the remaining syrup, place crust side up on top of the marzipan layer Push down on the cake with a board or other firm object to flatten slightly, and spread the remaining Butter Cream on top of the cake Cover carefully with alu minium fol, freeze overnight or until required 

To serve: Trim sides of cake and slice while still frozen Cake will thaw enough to serve in about 5 minutes 

Raspberry Syrup: Drain raspberries. Reserve measure syrup, reserve haf for Butter Cream. To the remaining half of the syrup add icing sugar and kirsch, str to dissolve

Butter Cream: Cream soft butter with an electric mixer for five minutes. Push half the reserved raspberries and remaining syrup through a sieve, and discard the seeds. Gradually add the raspberry mixture to the butter while creaming. Gradually beat in sifted icing sugar and kirsch. Roll marzipan between 2 sheets of plastic food wrap to the same size as a cake layer.

Also Read: flan with rum sauce