Fraîcheur d’ Agrumes by Clement Goyffon

My idea for this dessert is the feeling of springtime. It’s very light, not very sweet, and has a soft texture with the jelly. The grapefruit brings the bitterness, the strawberry balances the acidity with a taste of sweetness, and the yuzu brings a floral touch. As you take the first bite you experience the acidity of the grapefruit, then you finish with cheesecake mousse and a good crunch from the shortbread. Everything works together to bring symmetry to the pastry. It’s a very fresh dessert, so it’s ideal to eat when the weather is hot.

Yield: 12 servings

Vanilla Shortbread

• 125 g unsalted butter
• 125 g confectioners’ sugar
• 200 g all-purpose flour
• 50 g almond flour
• 5 g salt
• 20 g cornstarch or other starch
• 50 g whole eggs

1. In a stand mixer, mix together the butter and the dry ingredients until crumbly. Add the egg and mix until dough forms. Form into a disc, wrap and let rest in the refrigerator.

2. Roll dough out to 2mm thickness. Cut out rounds to form a base that fits the size of mold. Bake at 300˚F (150˚C) until lightly browned, 12-13 minutes.

Grapefruit-Strawberry Jelly

• 39 g granulated sugar
• 6 g pectin NH
• 198 g grapefruit juice
• 72 g strawberry purée
• 20 g glucose syrup
• 2 vanilla beans, split and scraped
• 13.2 g gelatin mass
• 13.2 g yuzu juice

2. Combine the sugar and the pectin NH; set aside.
3. In a saucepan, heat the grapefruit juice, strawberry purée, glucose and vanilla beans and sprinkle in the sugar-pectin mixture. Cook this mixture for 2 minutes, until it has the consistency of a confit. Add the gelatin mass and mix well to dissolve the gelatin. Add the yuzu juice and blend again. Mix well together and add the yuzu juice. Blend again. Keep in a fridge until ready to use. Blend again before using (15 g for each mold).

Blood Orange Cremeux

• 40 g granulated sugar
• 2 g pectin X58
• 5 g cornstarch
• 175 g blood orange purée
• 50 g grapefruit purée
• 25 g yuzu purée
• 50 g unsalted butter
• 30 g gelatin mass (200 bloom)

1. Mix together the sugar, pectin and cornstarch together; set aside.

2. In a saucepan, warm the purees together then sprinkle in the sugar-pectin mixture. Bring to a boil, whisking, then mix in the butter and gelatin mass. Pour over the Grapefruit-Strawberry Jelly (28 g per mold). Place in the blast freezer.

Cheesecake Mousse

• 250 g cream cheese
• 185 g sour cream
• 40 g egg yolks
• 80 g granulated sugar
• 25 g water
• 2 vanilla beans, split and scraped
• 41 g gelatin mass
• 290 g heavy cream, whipped to the texture of yogurt

1. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the cream cheese and sour cream.

2. Make a pâte à bombe: In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, begin whisking the egg yolks. Cook the sugar and water to 246˚F (119˚C) and pour over the whisking egg yolks. Add the vanilla bean seeds. Continue to whisk until the mixture has cooled to 104˚F (40˚C). Add the gelatin mass, then add to the cream cheese mixture until well blended. Fold into the whipped cream. Pipe over the cremeux layer (50 g per mold).

Pink Glaze

• 150 g water
• 300 g granulated sugar
• 300 g glucose
• 200 g evaporated milk
• 140 g gelatin mass
• 1 g pink food coloring
• Vanilla powder, to taste

1. In a saucepan, heat the water, sugar and glucose to 225˚F (107˚C), then add the evaporated milk and melted gelatin mass and mix well. Add the food coloring and vanilla powder and store in a refrigerator overnight.

2. The following day heat and use at 37˚F (3˚C).

Yuzu Ganache

• 650 g heavy cream
• 180 g Valrhona Ivoire white chocolate
• 30 g gelatin mass (200 bloom), melted
• 175 g yuzu purée

1. Bring cream just to a boil.

2. Pour over the white chocolate and melted gelatin. Burr mix with the yuzu purée. Allow to set in the refrigerator overnight to fully crystallize.

3. When ready to use, whip to soft peaks (be careful when whipping the ganache – dilute it with a little milk at the start and whip the cream at low speed, then finish with a handheld whisk to control the texture).

Assembly

• Silver leaf
• White chocolate sticks

1. Glaze the cake with the Pink Glaze (glaze should be at 86˚F/30˚C), then put on the shortbread base. Pipe the whipped Yuzu Ganache in a decorative pattern on top (see photo – this takes some technique).

2. Pipe small dots of the Pink Glaze on top of the ganache. Garnish with some silver leaf and a white chocolate stick.

(This recipe appeared in the Spring 2023 issue of Pastry Arts Magazine)

About Clement Goyffon

Clement Goyffon, Executive Pastry Chef at ONE65 in San Francisco, CA, is a member of Team USA, the reigning champions of the International Catering Cup 2023. With a background working alongside renowned pastry chefs in France, including Meilleurs Ouvrier de France and Michelin three-star chefs, Clement’s style is characterized by simplicity, modernity, and efficiency. He strives to create cakes with varied textures that evoke powerful emotions in every bite.