Ice cream and chilled desserts
Bird’s milk is a Soviet dessert named after a Russian expression for something impossible to obtain. A milk foam set with agar is chilled in a mold, then coated in dark chocolate. The soufflé is made by streaming agar syrup boiled to 110°C / 230°F into beaten egg whites, then folding in a rich cream of butter and sweetened condensed milk. Unlike gelatin, agar can withstand boiling, which gives this dessert its signature texture.
Sprinkle the agar powder over 160 ml cold water, stir, and leave it to bloom. The bloomed agar will slightly thicken the water.
Line a 20 × 20 cm pan with parchment paper. Beat the room-temperature butter with a mixer until pale and fluffy. Add the sweetened condensed milk a spoonful at a time, continuing to beat until smooth and creamy. Do not refrigerate the cream; cold butter will form lumps when mixed into the warm foam.
Bring the soaked agar to a boil in a saucepan, stirring, and dissolve it completely so no granules remain. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Then stop stirring and boil the syrup to 110°C / 230°F; without a thermometer, a drop between your fingers should form a thin thread. Remove the syrup from the heat and let it cool to 80°C / 175°F, but do not let it cool further.
While the syrup cools, beat the pasteurized egg whites with the lemon juice and vanillin until stiff peaks form. With the mixer running on high, slowly stream the syrup down the side of the bowl and continue beating until the foam increases in volume and turns glossy. Syrup at this temperature is not hot enough to cook the egg whites; using pasteurized whites is what keeps the recipe from containing raw egg.
Set the mixer to its lowest speed. Add the butter cream a spoonful at a time and mix only until combined. The agar foam begins setting as it cools, so work quickly: immediately pour the soufflé into the mold, smooth the top with a spatula, and refrigerate.
Once the soufflé is set enough that the surface does not stick to a finger, melt the dark chocolate and butter using a double boiler, with the bowl above but not touching the simmering water. Stir the mixture until warm; hot chocolate will melt the surface of the soufflé.
Pour the warm chocolate over the soufflé and tilt the pan or use a spatula to spread it into a thin, even layer. Once the chocolate hardens, lift the dessert out of the pan using the parchment at the edges. Dip a sharp knife in hot water, wipe it dry, and cut the dessert into 12 squares, wiping the knife between cuts.
Do not boil the agar until it has soaked in water for an hour; undissolved agar granules will keep the soufflé from setting. Before pouring on the chocolate, chill the soufflé until the surface is firm enough not to stick to a finger.
Agar şurubunu 110 dereceye getirmek termometre istiyor. Göz kararı denedim, düşük kaldı ve köpük donmadı, kâseye döküldüğü gibi aktı. İkinci sefer termometreyle yaptım, kesildiğinde köşeleri keskin duran bir tatlı çıktı.
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