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Dessert

Ratafia Blancmange

A custard-like dessert made by mixing cream with crushed ratafias, isinglass, and water, then setting it in a mold.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 4 ingredients
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Ratafia Blancmange

Ingredients

Directions

Make the base

  1. Pour the boiling hot cream or milk over the crushed macaroon ratafias and mix well.

  2. Let it stand, stirring occasionally, until the ratafias are dissolved.

Set the blancmange

  1. Dissolve the isinglass in the lukewarm water and stir it into the mixture.

  2. Pour into a mould and set it to cool.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Cream or rich milk
Provides the liquid base and richness, giving the blancmange its smooth, creamy body.
Macaroon ratafias
Supply almond flavour and sweetness, and thicken the liquid as they dissolve into it.
Isinglass
Sets the mixture as it cools, giving the blancmange its firm, sliceable texture.

The step that matters

Fully dissolve the isinglass. Isinglass is a collagen that sets only when it is properly dispersed and then cools. Undissolved granules leave lumps and weak patches, so stir until it is completely clear before pouring into the mould.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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