Honey Mousse and Grapefruit Jelly with Tomato Jam - SHF#8

20 May 2005

I didn’t think I could make it this time, but it’s always worth trying to make something new for this event – especially since the theme that Alice of My Adventures in the Breadbox chose for this month was citrus and I didn’t want to miss it!

I found the recipe in this Japanese book – it’s written by seven popular Japanese patissiers and each one has a few recipes, details of how they got into pastry making and some advice for patissier acolytes. Although I’ve never intended to be a patissier, it was really interesting to read through.

It may not sound very convincing when it comes to a combination of desserts and vegetables – I wasn’t so sure about this recipe either, but when I saw the ingredients for the tomato jam, it somehow intrigued me. This cake consists of honey mousse wrapped in tomato jam-layered sponge with grapefruit jelly on top. Making the sponge was good fun – bake a thin biscuit joconde first, spread the tomato jam, pile up in layers and freeze it for a while – and then cut very thinly to fit a mould. For the tomato jam, cook tinned tomatoes with honey, sugar and lemon juice – I thought it actually tasted like strawberries and it made sense because you add some strawberry puree into the honey mousse too! For the grapefruit jelly, the recipe suggests using Kuzu flour, which is often used to make Japanese jelly type desserts – but I didn’t have any at hand so used gelatine instead.

I must say that I was quite excited when I tasted the tomato jam and looked forward to tasting the finished cake. I really liked the subtleness of it as a whole, none of the component parts stood out too much. The tang of the grapefruit flesh and jelly work so well with the honey mousse and when you have the tomato jam with them, you can taste the fruitiness of the tomatoes – I’m sure you wouldn’t notice it’s got tomatoes in there unless someone told you! I put lemongrass on top purely for decoration, but it smelled really lovely too. I’m quite happy with the result, because I often find that my mousse desserts are lacking complexity and this one has interesting texture as well as flavour.
 

Food - Sweet        42 comments    Permalink

  • Hi I think this must be my first time leaving a comment here. I love all your pics!!! And this particular SHF entry looks absolutely stunning. It makes me wonder whether if you are a pastry chef with a super good photography skill! I bet you are :p

    Posted by pinkcocoa | 21 May 2005 #

  • Amazing again! I would really like to see the recipe!

    Posted by chronicler | 21 May 2005 #

  • I am terribly disappointed to find that this is just another food _photo_ blog instead of a real food blog that shares recipes and teaches us how to make fancy, tasty dishes.

    Posted by bye | 21 May 2005 #

  • hello keiko! beautiful, per usual, but i’m wondering if there would be a marked difference in taste if the tomato jam was omitted altogether.

    Posted by santos. | 21 May 2005 #

  • oh keiko, how do you do it? it would be one thing if it were only your photos that were stunningly beautiful, but your food creations themselves defy description. i honestly think you should publish a cookbook that contains all your styling and photography secrets. it would sell like hotcakes.

    Posted by Melissa | 21 May 2005 #

  • hi keiko! i’m actually an apprentice chef and i have a real interest in photography, i was wondering if you could tell me what model camera you use?
    i don’t know if you’d be able to find it in london but if you see an australian cookbook called ’coast’ edited by kendall hill you should definitely get it. the recipes and the photographs are absolutely stunning. the entire book revolves around our coastal produce and has recipes like smoked cod salmon scallop and potato soup, scarlet trout, confit of ocean trout, naked ravioli with sage butter and basil infused tuna. i thought you might be interested because you seem to have a genuine appreciation for seafood. keep up the great work!

    Posted by cathy | 21 May 2005 #

  • Hi Keiko, as usual your creations are so beautiful. As the dessert contains gelatin it would also be a good post for IMBB#15 Has my blog jelled? :-)

    Posted by Dagmar | 21 May 2005 #

  • Very nice!

    What’s the name of the Japanese cookbook and is there an english translation?

    Thanks

    Posted by J.T. | 21 May 2005 #

  • hello

    i love ur food pics

    stunning!!

    Posted by jen | 22 May 2005 #

  • Hi there,

    Pinkcocoa - thank you for your kind note. I hope I’ll be taking better pictures in the future, but as for cooking, I just enjoy making/eating in my kitchen :)

    Chronicler - thanks, I’ll try to post the recipe when I can.

    Bye - I’m sorry if I disappointed you, but I consider my blog as a food photo blog :) The reason I started this blog is to improve my photography skills and although I don’t know the definition of a *real* food blog, I personally feel that anyone should be able to enjoy blogging in their own way.

    Santos - yes, definitely. Not just that the tomato jam gives another dimension to the whole cake, you really can taste the fruitiness of it. I’m actually looking forward to trying another vegetable for desserts!

    Melissa - thank you for your compliment, but I’ve got loads stuff to learn...

    Cathy - thanks for visiting, although I’ve mentioned this quite a few times before ;) I use Minolta A2. I’ve looked at Coast at a bookshop and I agree the photographs were gorgeous (and you made me hungry). Seafood is definitely one of the things I miss since I came to the UK - to make things worse, my husband can’t eat any seafood so it doesn’t help either!

    Dagmar - thank you. Like you said, I originally planned to post this cake for IMBB, but when I tasted it I thought it was more citrus-oriented!

    J.T. - thanks, the book is called ’Seven Patissiers’ and I don’t think there is an English edition. It has some interesting recipes so I’ll try to post some more. One of the things I like about Japanese books is that they’ve got lots of detailed pictures and are easy to follow - because I’ve never learnt pastry making, having good books (and useful sites like yours) really helps me out!

    Jen - thank you for dropping by, I think your photos are really gorgeous, I love them!

    Posted by keiko | 22 May 2005 #

  • Keiko - Even if you’re just getting under the wire, you manage to produce amazing, amazing dishes. Gorgeous photograph. The honey mousse must have been delightful!

    Posted by Nic | 22 May 2005 #

  • What an awesome idea! I never would have thought to put those flavors together. As usual, your photo is stunning! Thanks for participating.

    Posted by Alice | 22 May 2005 #

  • Brilliant, Keiko!

    Posted by Moira | 23 May 2005 #

  • Amazing! This is such a creative citrus dessert. I am always learning something new from you...thanks Keiko. As usual, your picture is beautiful. This is one of my favorites.

    Posted by Kelli | 23 May 2005 #

  • Hi Keiko,

    I’ve been reading your posts for while now and I must say that you have a very impressive website here. Beautiful pictures, and I really love how this looks and sounds. Keep up the good work! =)

    Posted by Reid | 23 May 2005 #

  • Keiko, will you just open up your own restaurant already?? You are just torturing me! Keep up the super fantastic posts! =-)

    Posted by rowena | 23 May 2005 #

  • Hi Keiko, amazing recipe and beautiful photo as usual! Have you noticed that the Observer Food Monthly is running a food photography competition (http://www.observer.guardian.co.uk/seedsofchange)? Worth a try, perhaps...

    Posted by Jenni | 23 May 2005 #

  • Hi keiko,

    As usual, your photography is stunning, but I’m even more impressed by how beautiful your dessert has turned out. This is a very interesting and creative confection, indeed. Looking forward to the recipe, keiko! :)

    Posted by Julia | 23 May 2005 #

  • OMG Keiko, I think this is one of your more stunning pictures!
    Keep up the good work and blog to your heart’s content whether you post just the pictures and/or the recipe it doesn’t matter as long as you give me the creme brulee recipe. Hahaha! ;)

    Posted by celiaK | 23 May 2005 #

  • Hi Keiko,
    This is another dessert that took my breath away. When I first read about the tomato jam, I was sceptical about how the dessert would be like, but your descriptions made me drool at the end. ^-^ The photography is also amazing (as usual)! The grapefruit and jelly look like their glowing on top of the sponge cake. I can’t wait for the recipe! ^_^

    Posted by Tea | 24 May 2005 #

  • Hi Keiko, A work of art, as usual. This made me remember a recipe from some years ago for strawberries stuffed with cinnamon-tomato jam. I will try to post it sometime.

    Posted by Chefdoc | 24 May 2005 #

  • What can I say? I’m speechless! You never considered becoming a patissier? Maybe you should, with your skills both in the kitchen and behind the camera, it’ll be a success I’m sure.

    Incidentally, have you ever been to this French patisserie in Tokyo called Qu,il fait bon? There’s one in Daikanyama, and one in Aoyama. One of their summer tarts feature whole cherry tomatoes in custard cream, and is one of my favorites.

    Posted by Lynn | 25 May 2005 #

  • :: picks jaw up off of floor ::

    Wow. Just, wow.

    Posted by Mrs. D | 25 May 2005 #

  • Your exacting detail never ceases to amaze. Brava.

    Posted by tara | 25 May 2005 #

  • OMG ... this is beautiful!!!
    ::mopping off drools on the floor::

    Posted by slurp | 25 May 2005 #

  • Hi the cake looks so stunning and it looks like a master piece of a professional pastry chef, and all your other photos are very beautiful too. Aside from that, I think that your photography skill is really good, coz the photos look similar with those on the cookbooks.The flavor of the cake is really interesting and it reminds me of a cake by Pierre Herme which uses tomatoes too! I hope you can post the recipe soon. Thanks

    Posted by Cathy | 25 May 2005 #

  • The photo is just breathtaking! Awesome work, as usual. I wish I could take a bite... :)

    Posted by obachan | 27 May 2005 #

  • I really enjoy your blog! Of course your photos are incredible, but I think you have chosen some unusual shots as well uncommon recipes which are exciting and just want to make you try them out RIGHT NOW!

    i tried the B Caraibe, and surprisingly it worked out really well (when I say ’surprisingly’ I don’t mean hidemi, who is a real pro in hhis own right, but for someone like me, a mere layperson). Thanks again for the inspiration and ideas and enthusiasm - the photos are stunning!!

    Posted by Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!! | 2 June 2005 #

  • the finished product is beautiful as always!

    Posted by j. | 3 June 2005 #

  • Hi Keiko
    Although this is the first time I’ve actually posted a comment, I am a huge fan of your blog - as countless others have said before, it is beautifully designed, the photography is awesome, and your subjects totally inspiring.
    Please pardon my nosiness, but I’ve been curious for quite some while now as to why the Scandinavian word Nordljus - although it makes it all the more intriguing...
    Cheers, Joycelyn

    Posted by Joycelyn | 4 June 2005 #

  • Hi there, sorry again for being late getting back...

    Nic - thank you for your kind words, I really liked the honey mousse and am thinking of trying it with something else...

    Alice - thank you for choosing a great theme, I really enjoyed making it.

    Moira - thanks!

    Kelli - Such praise from you really keeps me going! I’m always learning something new from you too.

    Reid - thank you for stopping by, I’ve been enjoying your blog even though I haven’t left any comments yet!

    Rowena - your gorgeous photos torture me too every time I visit! :)

    Jenni - thank you for your kind note. I had a look at the Observer site, but it seemed *really* professional and I’m afraid that I’m not good enough at all...

    Julia - thank you, I really enjoyed the cake (the recipe is on its way...)

    Celia - I appreciate your kind thought. I’ve finally put the crème brulee recipe up...

    Tea - thanks for your kind words as always. I was suspicious about the tomato jam too, but it worked really well.

    Chefdoc - I’m glad someone mentioned another tomato jam recipe... Sounds lovely, I’m looking forward to your post.

    Lynn - thank you, when I first saw the name of the patisserie, I didn’t get what it was, but it is キルフェボン isn’t it? I’ve never been there but heard so much about it. I shall look forward to your report...

    Mrs. D - thank you for dropping by, I’ve been enjoying your blog too!

    Tara - thank you, I’m hoping I’ll make more posts this month...

    Slurp - thank you, I’m always busy mopping up drools too :)

    Cathy - thank you for your compliment. I don’t think I’ve had any cakes made with tomato at Herme’s. What was it like? Did you like it? I bet you did :)

    Obachan - thank you, I’d love to try this again with Kuzu-ko like the recipe suggests, I’m guessing it would have a more interesting texture.

    Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!! (did I type the right number of ’m’s?) - thank you for your kind notes and I’m glad you enjoyed the B Caraibe. Do you live in Japan or do you have his book?? I’ve never had his cakes before, so if you have please let me know!

    J - I’ve missed your posts! I hope your move went well...

    Joycelyn - thank you for your kind notes, I’m thrilled! As for the site name, well, I didn’t think *too much* about it (!) but I love Scandinavia and liked the sound of the word...

    Posted by keiko | 5 June 2005 #

  • Wow, that looks delicious! Your food shots are superb.

    Posted by Smoove D | 13 June 2005 #

  • Hi Smoove D - thanks again for your kind comment!

    Posted by keiko | 16 June 2005 #

  • The colors remind me of a sunset! Don’t you think the wedge of grapefruit resembles a fluffy golden cloud? Very fun, Keiko.

    I definitely agree with you that a person can do whatever they like on their blog. You shouldn’t feel obliged to share recipes, simply because you are a food blog. Frankly, I consider you a terrific food blog!

    Posted by Rachel | 17 June 2005 #

  • Rachel - thank you so much for your kind words. I wouldn’t be so stressed out if I posted in Japanese (I’ve actually got a Japanese version), but as you can tell it’s still hard for me to write in English and when I use Japanese recipes, it gets even harder to translate all the processes etc!

    Posted by keiko | 20 June 2005 #

  • Keiko, you mustn’t feel stressed out. Your writing is lovely, and I would never have guessed, from reading your blog, that you struggle with the translation to English.

    I didn’t realize you have a Japanese blog. Oh, now I have to make sure to visit both, so that I don’t miss anything!

    Posted by Rachel | 12 September 2005 #

  • Oh! I see it’s the same blog but translated into Japanese (or is it vice versa?). Now I’m in awe of Nordljus, the bilingual blog! I shall be sure to tell my Japanese friends to check it out.

    Posted by Rachel | 12 September 2005 #

  • Hi Rachel - thanks very much for your notes, you are always so kind. I normally use the same photos for the J blog but I don’t translate it exactly and it’s less food oriented...

    Posted by keiko | 15 September 2005 #

  • Keiko!!

    You know that 20.05 it’s my birthday??:-)

    Thank’4 this delicious cake!!

    Bye..

    ..

    .

    Wonderful pic...

    Posted by Sandra | 19 February 2006 #

  • Hi Sandra - thank you for your note, I’ve put your birthday in my diary ;)

    Posted by keiko | 22 March 2006 #

  • Keiko - this looks gorgeous. Thank you for sharing.

    Posted by mandira | 20 November 2006 #

  • Hi Keiko, i know maybe you are sick of hearing this by now. but…WHAT A BEAUTIFUL DESSERT you’ve got there!
    btw, is there any chance you can translate the jap recipe as i dont know how to read jap…
    cheers. Fe

    Posted by fefeee | 23 April 2010 #

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