Chocolate, Coconut and Pineapple by Mina Pizarro

(This article appeared in the Summer 2019 issue of Pastry Arts Magazine)      

Change of seasons always plays a major role in energy and inspiration. This piece is inspired with the warmth creeping out of the cold. All things bright and fresh. Visually, it depicts budding trees and flowers in bloom. Emotionally, it represents lightness.

Yield: 10 to 12 servings

Chocolate Lavender Ganache

• 500 g heavy cream
• 2 g lavender buds
• 350 g Jivara chocolate
• 75 g trimoline
• 120 g granulated sugar
• 440 g lavender cream
• 4 g salt

1. Bring heavy cream to a simmer in pot and stir in lavender buds. Allow to steep overnight.
2. Prepare pint lid containers: Coat with non-stick spray and chill lids in refrigerator.
3. Melt chocolate in a medium bowl. Strain lavender cream and measure out correct amount. In a saucepan, combine lavender cream and trimoline and bring to a slow simmer. Remove from heat and reserve.
4. Cook sugar to an amber caramel and deglaze with lavender cream. Stir to combine well. Strain over melted chocolate and mix with a rubber spatula until smooth. Portion 27 g of the ganache into each lid and freeze.
   

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Coconut Milk Ice Cream

• 250 g coconut milk
• 250 g milk
• 160 g condensed milk
• 45 g glucose syrup
• 6 g trimoline
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp xanthan gum

1. Heat all ingredients except xanthan gum together, mixing until well combined. Add xanthan gum and emulsify with an immersion blender. Mature mixture overnight.
2. Process in machine and transfer ice cream to a pastry bag until ready to use.
   

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Chocolate Coconut Lid

• 450 g coconut milk
• 120 g confectioners’ sugar (10X)
• 6 g maltodextrin
• 160 g salt
• 240 g coconut oil
• 61% bittersweet chocolate, tempered

1. Bring coconut milk to a boil. Lower to a simmer and heat until coconut milk separates. Whisk constantly until coconut solids are toasted. Strain and reserve coconut oil.
2. In a large bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients. Stream in cooled coconut oil and stir to combine. Transfer mixture onto a sheet pan lined with a baking mat. Slide sheet pan back and forth repeatedly until mixture resembles small pebbles. Chill coconut pebbles.
3. Portion a layer of coconut pebbles onto clean pint lid containers. To finish, put tempered chocolate into a parchment piping bag and cut a very fine tip. Carefully pipe thin spirals of chocolate onto the surface of the coconut pebbles to weave them together into round lid. Reserve in refrigerator.
   

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Coconut Foam

• 3 g gelatin sheets (silver)
• 256 g milk
• 64 g granulated sugar
• 425 g coconut milk
• ¼ tsp xanthan gum

1. Bloom the gelatin and reserve.
2. In a saucepan, heat the milk and sugar until sugar is dissolved. Strain milk mixture into coconut milk. Using immersion blender, blend xanthan gum into mixture. Transfer to an iSi container. Charge with two N2O cream chargers. Shake canister well and reserve.
   

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Pineapple Gel

• 750 g pineapple
• 185 g granulated sugar
• 1 g salt
• Pinch of citric acid

1. Cut pineapple and blend in Vitaprep until smooth. Transfer pineapple into a pot with the sugar. Cook until reduced and thickened. Cool. Stir in salt and citric acid.
2. Pass mixture through a tamis and transfer to a squeeze bottle with a fine tip.
   

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Plating

Rainbow sorrel petals

1. Lift the Chocolate Coconut Lid out of the pint lids. Dot it with Pineapple Gel and reserve.
2. Place Chocolate Lavender Ganache disc onto a plate.
3. Pipe concentric circles of ice cream on the outer ring of the ganache. Pipe Coconut Foam in the hollow center. Gently place Chocolate Coconut Lid on top. Finish with rainbow sorrel petals on dots of Pineapple Gel.
   

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   Photo Credit: Emma Kenny Photography