Frozen Lemon Creme

Mr. Devilish Dish and I have a new addiction.  It's a show on BBC called MasterChef.  Chefs from allover Europe compete in various stages of competition in hopes of cooking for Michel Roux Jr. He's a two-Michelin starred chef.  Which translates to FANCY PANTS.  Like if I ate in his restaurant there might be more forks on the table than I would know what to do with.  (Picture Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman with the escargot flying across the room...)  Anyway, the chefs competing on this show are very talented.  The best part about this series, is unlike American cooking shows there is no DRAMA.  No one is screaming curse words and insults and no one sabotaging anyone's pea puree.  The result is gorgeous plates of food, unlike anything you've probably seen before.  I'm dying to try to make a spun sugar dome now.  (Hopefully I won't get third degree burns.  My aspirations could lead to a new blog post and possible trip to the E.R.)  The funny thing is when these chefs create a plate that isn't up to the judges standards, it still looks darn good to me.  The judges will remark something like, "The plating looks a bit amateur-ish." (Only picture that in a British accent.) I'm over here yelling at the TV, "Are you kidding?  That looks like a plate I could only ever dream of putting together.  Man I wish I could put that on The Devilish Dish."  So our new obsession has inspired me to step up some of my plating.  Now and then.  Frozen Lemon Crèmes  (Crème instead of Cream so I sound fancy and French like Michel Roux Jr.) are a simple, but luscious dessert.  Instead of scooping in a bowl like ice cream, I pretended I was on MasterChef and served the dessert in a lemon half.  In a glass.  Garnished with a mint sprig.  Look out Britain, I'm coming to compete!

Crème, not cream.  Because I'm fancy...

Only four ingredients for this four star dish!

Zest the outside of a couple of lemons. 
(Not the ones you will be using to serve the crème in.)
You just want to zest the very outside of the lemon.
Get the yellow part only.  That's where the oils and lemon
flavor are.  If you get down to the white part, it's bitter.

Here's the zest. 

Juice a couple of lemons.  (Not the ones you will be using
to serve the crèmes.)  Make sure you don't get any seeds!

Combine the milk, cream, sugar, zest and lemon juice.
Make sure the sugar is well-dissolved.
Freeze for a couple of hours until thick, and just starting to set.

Remove mixture from freezer.  Whip with an electric mixer
until it is about doubled in volume.
Return to freezer and freeze until solid.

Hollow out your lemon halves before serving.
Surprisingly this step was pretty easy.  I went around the edge
with a paring knife, and then used a spoon to scoop out the flesh.

When the crème has frozen solid, scoop into
lemon halves for serving.

Garnish with a mint leaf.
Serve in a margarita glass, martini glass,
or other pretty little dish.

Wow your guests and get ready to compete on MasterChef.

 

Frozen Lemon Crème1 cup whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons lemon zest
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3 large lemons, halved lengthwise
mint for garnish

Combine milk, cream and sugar in a bowl.  Whisk well until sugar dissolves.  Stir in lemon zest and lemon juice.  Mix well.  Pour into a bowl, cover and freeze approximately 2 hours, until mixture is just starting to set up, and very thick and chilled.  Remove from freezer and beat with an electric mixer until mixture has about doubled in volume.  Place mixture in a bowl, cover and return to freezer.  Freeze until solid.  When ready to serve, place a scoop of frozen lemon crème into a lemon half that has been hollowed out.  Garnish with mint.  Accept accolades from your guests!

Prep Time:  Approximately 20 minutes     Cook Time:  0 needs to freeze.