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Teen Seeks Recipe for Success, Scholarship

Meghan Jensen's entry in the recipe contest pays tribute to the Mystic Seaport area in her native Connecticut.
Meghan Jensen's entry in the recipe contest pays tribute to the Mystic Seaport area in her native Connecticut.

Meghan Jensen of Mystic, Conn., is among 20 high school students competing in the National High School Recipe Contest in Denver, Colo.

The students are vying for full scholarships to Johnson & Wales University. Jensen is competing in the dessert category. Her recipe is "Mystical Orange Berry Delight," a dessert in the shape of a sailboat and inspired by the Mystic Seaport area.

Mystical Orange Berry Dessert

(4 servings)

Vanilla Tuile Batter

Ingredients:

1/2 cup 6X sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/2 cup egg whites

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons whey protein

1/2 cup unbleached flour

Method of preparation:

1. Cream butter and sugar together until smooth. Add half of the egg whites.

2. Mix to incorporate into butter. Scrape bowl, mix again until incorporated.

3. Add second half of egg whites. Mix to incorporate. Scrape bowl and mix again until incorporated.

4. Add vanilla. Mix the flour and whey protein together. Add to bowl and mix just until smooth. Don’t over mix. Store in refrigerator until needed.

Chocolate Tuile Batter

Ingredients:

1/2 cup 6X sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/2 cup egg whites

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

6 tablespoons unbleached flour

2 tablespoons whey protein

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

Method of preparation:

1. Cream sugar and butter together until smooth.

2. Add half of the egg whites. Mix to incorporate into butter. Scrape bowl, mix again until incorporated.

3. Add second half of egg whites. Mix to incorporate. Scrape bowl and mix again until incorporated.

4. Add vanilla. Mix the flour, whey protein, and cocoa powder.

5. Add to bowl and mix just until smooth. Don’t over mix. Store in refrigerator until needed.

To make tuile sail, place sail-shaped stencil on silpat. Spread bottom of stencil with chocolate batter. Spread top with vanilla batter. Let them run into each other. Remove stencil. Bake in 400 degree oven for about 4 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool for 30 seconds. Slide spatula under tuile to loosen from silpat. Put pastry ring on tuile and roll up bottom to curve tuile. Hold until tuile is set. Reverse for assembly.

To make tuile cup, spread tuile batter on silpat to form a 2x8 inch strip. Bake in 400 degree oven for about 4 minutes. Let cool for 30 seconds, and roll around rolling pin. Let cool to set. When hard, slide off pin.

Carmel for kumquats and ramekins

Ingredients:

2 cups sugar

1/4 cup water

1 lemon, juiced

1 cup water (to wash sides)

Non-stick spray

Method of preparation:

1. In small copper saucepan, mix sugar, 1/4 cup of water and lemon juice.

2. Wash down sides of pot with water.

3. Cook over high heat until nice caramel color.

4. Pour sugar into 3 and 1/2-inch ceramic ramekins to just coat the bottom.

5. When sugar is hard, spray inside of ramekins with non-stick spray. Put pan into cold water bath to stop cooking process. Use remaining caramel to dip kumquats.

Sugar-Dipped Kumquat Spikes

Ingredients:

4 kumquats, firm

Caramelized sugar from above recipe

Method of preparation:

1. Pierce bottom of each kumquat with a 6-inch bamboo skewer.

2. One at a time, dip kumquats into sugar and pull out of sugar slowly to stretch a long sugar spike.

3. Cut sugar at desired length and hold skewer so spike is pointed towards floor.

4. Skewer on table with kumquat hanging over edge to let sugar harden. Reverse for assembly stage.

Low-Fat Orange Crème Caramel

Ingredients:

2 cups skim milk

1/2 vanilla bean

1/2 cup sugar

4 eggs, large

1 tablespoon orange compound

Method of preparation:

1. In a saucepan, bring milk with vanilla bean to simmer. Shut off heat.

2. Remove from heat and let cool 5 minutes at room temperature.

3. In a stainless steel bowl, mix sugar with eggs and compound. Remove vanilla bean from milk, scrape bean into milk. Discard shell.

4. Pour half of the milk into the sugar-egg mix. Stir, and then add the second half. Stir to incorporate.

5. Strain into a 1 quart measuring cup.

6. Pour into prepared ramekin dishes.

7. Bake in water bath at 325 degrees for approximately 30 minutes or until set.

Orange Curd

Ingredients:

3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

1 cup butter

3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar

6 egg yolks

1 sheet gelatin

Method of preparation:

1. Heat orange juice, butter, and sugar, bring to boil.

2. Put yolks in a stainless steel bowl.

3. When butter is melted, pour half of liquid into yolks, whisking constantly to temper.

4. Pour egg mix back into remaining juice and butter mix. Cook over medium heat until thick. Remove from heat.

5. Soften gel sheet in cold water. When soft add to thickened mixture. Mix well.

6. Pour mixture into 1/6th hotel pan and cover with plastic wrap.

Blackberry Puree

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh blackberries

1 tablespoon 6X sugar

Method of preparation:

1. Remove 12 of the best berries and reserve for garnish.

2. Take remaining berries and sugar, put into small paper cup. Puree using a hand wand. Reserve.

Plating:

Place crème caramel ramekin upside-down on dinner plate. Turn out crème caramel. Let dissolve sugar flow on plate. Place tuile sail around crème. Set tuile on plate. Fill with curd. Stick point of skewer through tuile. Put 4 drops of puree around caramel. Place a blackberry to the side of each drop of puree.

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