Chef's Recipes

Coconut, spiced cherries and dark chocolate

Australian Gourmet Traveller recipe for coconut, spiced cherries and dark chocolate by Terre restaurant.

Jan 04, 2015 1:00pm
  • 1 hr preparation
  • 45 mins cooking plus infusing, cooling and freezing
  • Serves 6
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Coconut, spiced cherries and dark chocolate
"I love Terre's spiced cherries and creamy coconut combo. Would you please publish the recipe?"
Michelle West, Albert Park, Vic
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Ingredients

  • To serve: toasted coconut flakes
Coconut sorbet
  • 400 ml coconut milk
  • 155 gm caster sugar
  • 120 ml pouring cream
  • 65 gm liquid glucose
  • ¾ gold-strength gelatine leaf, softened in cold water for 5 minutes
Chocolate ganache
  • 175 gm caster sugar
  • 125 ml (½ cup) pouring cream
  • 55 gm Dutch-process cocoa powder, sieved
  • 3 gold-strength gelatine leaves, softened in cold water for 5 minutes
  • 40 gm dark chocolate (60-66% cocoa solids), finely chopped
  • 40 ml crème de cacao
Spiced cherries
  • 150 gm caster sugar
  • 150 ml pinot noir
  • 1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
  • Finely grated rind of 1 orange
  • 2 cinnamon quills
  • 8 cloves
  • 500 gm pitted cherries (or 600gm unpitted)
Coconut cake
  • 200 gm butter, softened
  • 250 gm caster sugar
  • 150 gm almond meal
  • 100 gm desiccated coconut
  • 6 eggs
  • 35 gm (¼ cup) plain flour, sieved, plus extra for dusting

Method

Main
  • 1
    For sorbet, bring coconut milk, sugar, cream, glucose and 290ml water to the boil in a saucepan, stir to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat, squeeze excess water from gelatine and whisk into cream mixture until dissolved, then refrigerate overnight. Churn in an ice-cream machine, then freeze until required. Makes 750ml.
  • 2
    For chocolate ganache, bring sugar and 150ml water to the boil in a small saucepan over high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat and whisk in cream and cocoa, bring back to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer until glossy (4-6 minutes). Remove from heat, squeeze excess water from gelatine, then add to cream mixture and whisk until dissolved. Whisk in chocolate and crème de cacao to combine, strain through a fine sieve and refrigerate to chill completely. Ganache will keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.
  • 3
    For spiced cherries, bring ingredients, except cherries, to the boil in a saucepan. Remove from heat, cover with plastic wrap and infuse for 10 minutes. Strain, add cherries and simmer
    over low-medium heat until a thick syrup forms (10-15 minutes). Refrigerate until chilled.
  • 4
    For coconut cake, preheat oven to 170C. Grease and line the base of a 15cm x 30cm cake tin and dust lightly with flour. Beat butter and sugar in an electric mixer until pale (5-7 minutes), add almond meal and coconut and beat well. Add eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition and scraping down sides of bowl, then fold in flour. Pour mixture into tin and bake until golden and a skewer inserted withdraws clean (25-30 minutes). Cool in tin for 10 minutes then cool on a wire rack. Cut into 1.5cm squares and store in airtight container. Coconut cake is best eaten on the day of making.
  • 5
    To serve, spread ganache onto plates and layer with coconut cake, cherries and syrup, coconut sorbet and toasted coconut.

Notes

Note Begin this recipe a day ahead to make the sorbet.

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