Tonka, Chocolate & Blackberry Dessert

The xanthan gum blend

• Mix the 97 grams of sugar with the xanthan gum and mix this well.
• We do this so the xantham gum dissolves well and no lumps form. I learned this technique from Chris Young, click here for his video.
• Now butter your cups with some softened butter. Do this with a thick brush from the bottom to the top. 
• Add a tablespoon of sugar in the buttered cups and while spinning empty the cups. This insures it’s covered all around. Set them aside for later. 

The soufflé

• Transfer the dark chocolate into a bowl and melt it in the oven, microwave or on a double boiler.
• Meanwhile mix the egg white with the cream of tartar and the sugar. Blend it till smooth and then while blending add 10 grams of the xanthan gum sugar blend we made before.
• Place the bowl on a double boiler (that’s a pan with simmering water) and while mixing heat it up till the temperature is 54 °C (129 °F).
• Then place the bowl on a stand mixer and start beating it. Do be careful! The egg whites overwhip very fast. It’s better to under whip, then overwhip.
• Now add a quarter of the meringue to the melted chocolate and fold everything together. Once it’s an even mixture add the remaining meringue and fold this in as well. This time be more careful, you want to save as much air as possible.
• Then fill the cups till half a centimetre under the rim. Tap the bottom of the cups to level them. Now let them set for 15 to 20 minutes in your fridge.  
• Once set you can turn them around on a tray and keep them in your fridge. You can keep them up to 48 hours before they need to be baked. We do this later when finishing the dessert.

• Transfer the frozen blackberries into a pan and also add the sugar. Cover the pan with a lid and bring it simmer on a low heat. This does take some time, but you don’t really need to keep an eye on it.
• After 2 hours the blackberries should be floating in it’s own juice. Then pour the blackberries on a fine sieve and let it drip for a couple of hours in your fridge. I always leave it overnight. Keep both the solids and liquid.
• After that measure the liquid in a pan and add 1.2 gram of agar for every 100 grams of liquid. I had 250 grams, so I added 3 grams. Normally it’s 1 gram a 100 grams, but I wanted a thicker gel so I added a touch more.
• Mix it well and bring it to a boil for at least 30 seconds. Then pour it into a bowl and let it cool down in your fridge.
• Once cold transfer it into a blender and blend it till smooth.
• Now to bring the gel to the next level I always vacuum it. Do this in a vacuum chamber at a 100% to get a clear more intense gel. Then transfer it into a piping bottle and keep it in your fridge for later. 

• Mix the blackberry solids from before with the cream, the corn starch, the egg yolk and the salt. Blend it till smooth.
• Then pour it into a pan and while stirring heat it up to thicken it. This is the texture we’re looking for. Now turn off the heat and add the dark chocolate. Blend it till smooth once more.
• Then pour it on a fine sieve and press it through with a ladle or spatula. Cover the cremeux and let it set in your fridge.
• Once it has set you need to mix it with a whisk to loosen up the texture. Now transfer it into a piping bag that’s fitted with a nozzle and keep it in your fridge for later. 

• Mix the milk with the cream, the sugar, the skimmed milk powder and the salt. Also grate the tonka bean on a fine grater. Mix it well and bring it to a simmer.
• Meanwhile transfer the egg yolk in a bowl and while stirring slowly add the hot tonka liquid. Begin slow and then you can pour a bit faster. Pour it back into the pan and while stirring heat it up till the temperature is 85 °C (185 °F).
• Then add the dark chocolate with the ice cream stabilizer. Blend it till smooth.
• Once smooth pour it into a bowl, cover it and let it rest and infuse overnight in your fridge.
• The next day you need to blend it for another 15 seconds. Then pass it through a super fine sieve and pour it into an ice cream machine. Turn it into a lovely ice cream.
• Try to serve it as fast as possible, but otherwise keep it in a freezer that’s around -12 °C (10 °F).

• Mix the milk with the cream, the cane sugar, the egg yolk, the corn starch and the empty vanilla pod. Mix it well and while stirring heat it up to thicken it.
• Once thickened remove the vanilla pod and add the dark chocolate. Blend it till smooth.
• Then pass it through a fine sieve to remove any air bubbles and fill a tray that’s lined with a piece of wrap. Freeze it till solid. 
• Once frozen cut it with the desired cutters and keep them frozen for later. I also filled a mold with the cremeux to show in my opinion a more efficient way. The result is also a lot tighter. 
• Keep them in your freezer for later.

• Mix the egg white with the neutral oil, the sugar, the salt, the butter, the flour and the cacao powder. Blend it till smooth.
• Once smooth you can spread it on a tuille mold and level it with a pallet knife. Click here for the one I use.
• Then cover the batter with a thin layer of cacao butter and bake them at 150 °C (302 °F) for about 12 to 15 minutes.
• When still hot directly gently remove them from the mold and keep them dry and covered for later. In total I had 3 different sizes. 

• Mix the cream with the blackberry liquor, the salt and the grated tonka bean. Bring it to a simmer.
• Then turn of the heat and add the dark chocolate. Mix it well till all the chocolate is incorporated.
• Then pass it through a fine sieve and keep it covered in your fridge for later.

• Transfer the blackberries on your cutting board and cut them in four or six pieces. Now transfer them into a bowl and season it with a generous amount of the blackberry gel and a touch of lemon zest. Don’t use to much, because it can overpower quite quickly. Fold everything together and then keep it covered in your fridge for later. 

The soufflé

• Bake it at 185 °C (365 °F) for about 12 to 15 minutes depending on the size of cup you use. I baked mine for 13 minutes. If it starts to crack you directly need to take it out.

The dessert

• Place a chocolate cremeux circle in the middle and pipe a couple big dots of the blackberry cremeux around the circle. Also add some marinaded blackberries.
• Then fill the empty spaces with the blackberry gel and gently place a chocolate crisp on the cremeux. Now place another cremeux on the crisp and repeat this with another crisp, then another cremeux and finish with the final crisp.
• While plating I did gently warm up the tonka and chocolate sauce in a container with hot water.
• Then take the souffle out of the oven and finish it with a beautiful quenelle of the tonka bean ice cream! Try to serve it as fast as possible and on the table you can finish the dessert with the warm chocolate sauce.