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Method

Crème Anglaise

1. Into a medium saucepan, add the milk, cream and beans scraped from a fresh vanilla pod (keep the leftover vanilla pod as we will use this in the caramel sauce). Place this onto a medium low heat, stirring occasionally. 

2. Meanwhile, add the egg yolks and sugar to a medium bowl and whisk for 30 seconds to combine. 

3. Once the cream is hot, slowly pour it over the egg yolk mixture, whisking to combine.

4. Pour the entire mixture back into the saucepan and whisk until it reaches between 82-85C (180-185F) on a digital thermometer.

5. Immediately remove it from the heat and pass it through a sieve into a clean bowl. Whisk through a pinch of salt.

6. Place a sheet of clingfilm on the surface and refrigerate the mixture for at least an hour. Alternatively, place it over a bowl of ice water and that will thicken it quickly.

Caramel Sauce

1. Into a small saucepan, add 100g of water, along with the leftover vanilla pod from above. Place this over a low heat so that it becomes steamy. 

2. Meanwhile, add the remaining 60g of water and sugar into a medium saucepan. Place it on a medium heat, and cook it to 180C/355F on a digital thermometer. This will be a light golden colour.

3. Whisk in the hot vanilla water and cook for a further 30 seconds. Pour it through a sieve, into a clean bowl. Cover the bowl with clingfilm and refrigerate it for at least an hour.  Alternatively, place it over a bowl of ice water and that will thicken it quickly.

Caramel Discs

1. Into a medium saucepan, add the glucose and sugar.

2. Place it over a medium heat and allow the mixture to bubble up and start to caramelise.

3. Once it begins to go a light golden colour you can stir it. 

4. Stir it occasionally until it turns a deep golden colour, then immediately remove it from the heat and pour it onto a silicon mat.

5. Allow it to set at room temperature for 30 minutes. 

Swiss Meringue

1. Take a 13x9x2” baking dish (something deep), and very lightly grease the bottom with butter and place a sheet of parchment along the base. Pre-heat the oven to 160C/320F non-fan assisted. 

2. Into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the egg whites, sugar and vinegar.

3. Place this over a pan of gently simmering water and whisk constantly until it reaches around 60-65C (140-149F) on a digital thermometer.

4. Immediately remove it from the heat and place it onto the stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk for 5 minutes on a medium high speed, until it is thick and glossy and holds a medium stiff peak. Be very careful not to over whisk this as it is a slightly lower amount of sugar, so we don’t want to make the meringue go grainy by mixing it for too long. 

5. Tip the meringue into the lined baking tray and use a palette knife to smooth it so it is flat. 

6. Place it into the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes, until it is a light golden brown colour on top. Remove it from the oven but leave the oven on. 

Assembly

1. While the meringue is cooling, blend the caramel to a fine powder. Take a sieve, and sieve the powder in an even layer onto a baking tray lined with a silicon mat. You may not need all of the caramel powder.

2. Use a 9cm/3.5” cookie cutter to create indents in the powder, gently shimmying it around to create a circular outline. 

3. Place the tray into the oven and bake for 2-4 minutes, or until the caramel powder has just melted and it is a glass like consistency. Remove the tray from the oven and allow it to cool.

4. Pour the chilled creme anglaise into a small saucepan and just gently stir it over a low heat until it is steaming, then transfer it into a serving jug. 

5. Scoop the thickened  caramel sauce into a piping bag and set this to one side.

6. The meringue should have cooled for around 10-15 minutes now.

7. Use the 9cm/3.5” cookie cutter which is slightly warm, to cut 4 discs.

8. The easiest way to remove them is to pull away the excess meringue around the disc, then carefully slide a palette knife underneath the disc, and lift it onto your serving plate. 

9. Use a teaspoon to dig a hole out of the centre of each meringue disc, but do not cut all the way through to the bottom.

10. Pour the warm creme anglaise into the hole, then with a palette knife, slide it underneath a caramel disc and place this on top. 

11. Cut a small hole in the end of the piping bag, and drizzle  this across the caramel disc. 

12. Finally finish with a sprinkle of roasted nuts for texture and serve immediately.