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Let’s face it. Italians cannot survive abroad without ‘their’ Italian food. It’s some sort of lifeline, we cannot function for long periods of time without ‘our’ pasta, pizza and lots of local delicatessen that we grew up with. Memories of flavours, moments, family and friends are usually condensed in the food we ate and we still want to eat.
I have been living in London for many years now, and the good thing about living in a huge city like this is that you can find a lot of Italian products here and there. Nevertheless, there is not a single time when, coming back from Italy, I won’t stuff a suitcase with a ridiculous amount of my favourite goods that I simply cannot find anywhere. Or, to better say, they can be found, but they are not that brand that reminds me of home and I got used to as a kid. I bet UK customs officers got used to Italians “smuggling” food in their luggage by now.
For people like me though, who don’t visit Italy many times a year, the suitcase is not a valid alternative. That is why food delivery services like Vico Food Box come in very handy. A huge selection of local products, delivered at your doorstep to many countries in Europe, including the UK. ‘Those’ local products.
It was while browsing their website that I instantly got the inspiration for this recipe. I saw that Achermes liqueur was available to buy (describing the taste is quite a challenge, sweet but spicy, with its dark and bright red colour, vital ingredient of many dessert recipes) as well as *drum roll* some of the best Italian petit biscuits. Ah, love those. Not any kind of, but ‘those’. As a coincidence, the two also happen to be the key ingredients of one of the most traditional puddings in Italy: zuppa inglese. Or, to better say, of a regional variation of it.
Zuppa inglese translates in English as “English soup” and it is believed that it was created to resemble the English trifle. Soup, or zuppa, comes from “inzuppare”, which means “to soak”, in this case the sponge or biscuits in the alchermes liqueur.
It is a simple but heavenly mix of vanilla and chocolate crema pasticcera (pastry cream), usually layered between sponge or ladyfingers soaked in the alchermes liqueur which, with its bitter and distinctive flavour, balances out the sweetness of the creams. However, it is also quite traditional to swap the sponge or ladyfingers with petit biscuits, and that’s actually the way my mum and all my friends’ mums used to make it when I was a child. I guess it was the most convenient way of whipping up a delicious dessert with just a few ingredients from the cupboard. Most of the times, she would soak the biscuits in some simple syrup (you know, kids), but sometimes, on special occasions, she would go with the traditional alchermes and I remember loving it so much. I still do.
For my version, I went back to that memory and flavours, soaking some of the most well known and beloved Italian breakfast biscuits in an exceptional alchermes liqueur (of course!) and layering the pudding with both vanilla and chocolate pastry cream, then finishing with a touch of whipping cream. Perfectly balanced, perfectly tasty, perfectly simple, perfectly…home.
Makes four 200ml pots
Ingredients
- 500g whole milk
- 125g egg yolks
- 150g caster sugar
- 50g corn flour
- 1 vanilla pod or equivalent of vanilla paste/extract
- 10g good quality cocoa powder
- 100ml alchermes liquor
- 75ml water
- 150g of Petit style biscuits (I used Oro Saiwa)
- 150ml double cream
- Extra cocoa powder for dusting
Method
TO MAKE THE PASTRY CREAMS
- Place two metal trays or bowls in the freezer to get very cold. Pour the milk in a saucepan. Add the vanilla seeds and pod (or the paste/extract) and bring to a boil on a medium heat
- In the meantime, transfer the yolks to a bowl big enough to hold all the cream. Add the sugar (in two times) and incorporate with a small whisk or spatula. Add the corn flour (in two times) and again mix until fully combined and smooth. Do not whip.
- As soon as the milk boils, take it off the heat. Put a strainer over the bowl with the egg mixture and pour half of the milk into it. Whisk gently to mix and prevent the egg to cook, then add the remaining milk and mix to incorporate completely. Pour the whole mix back into the saucepan and start heating back on a medium-low heat, gently whisking.
- When the mix starts to thicken and gets close to 85 ℃ (use a food thermometer if you own one), remove from the heat and continue whisking for about one minute. Take the previously cooled trays out of the freezer. Pour half of the cream onto one tray, whisk vigorously to break any lump and until it becomes shiny and glossy. Keep whisking until the cream temperature drops below 50 ℃. Transfer to a small bowl, cover with cling film on contact and set aside to come to room temperature.
- Take the remaining half of the cream, add the cocoa powder and mix with a whisk to fully dissolve the cocoa. Transfer to the other frozen tray and repeat the process on step 5. Set aside the cocoa pastry cream to come to room temperature. Transfer both creams to the fridge until ready to use.
- Combine the alchermes and the water in a shallow bowl or dish, ready for soaking the biscuits in it. Take the pastry creams out of the fridge, wisk each one vigorously to soften up and bring back to a creamy consistency, and transfer each one to a piping bag. Set aside
- Break or trim the biscuits to fit the shape of the pots you have chosen to use. Start filling each pot with a layer of cream, then very quickly soak a piece of biscuit in the alchermes mix and place it on top of the cream (be fast, petit biscuits soak almost instantly). Alternate vanilla and chocolate creams to a biscuit layer and fill up each pot until just under the rim. If your pots are clear, try to make neat layers for a prettier and more effective look. Cover with cling film and refrigerate until ready to serve
- When ready to serve, whip the double cream up and transfer to a piping bag. Pipe over each pot with your favourite nozzle, add a last light dusting of cocoa powder and maybe decorate with a small fresh strawberry. Serve and wow your friends with the best classic Zuppa Inglese.