Raspberry and Vanilla Miss Gla Gla

One of the best frozen desserts I tasted in Paris was Miss Gla Gla – an ice cream sandwich made by Pierre Herme. It is made of 2 large macaron cookies with ice cream inside, and is simply heaven.

After trying the original dessert, I’ve decided to make my own version at home. Instead of homemade ice cream I decided to make a frozen raspberry panna cotta which is a lot easier and so yummy.

Raspberry and Vanilla Miss Gla Gla

7-8 ice cream sandwiches about 5*5 cm

For square macaron shells:
100 grams sugar powder
62 grams almond meal
50 grams egg whites
Pinch of salt
20 grams sugar
Red food coloring

For frozen raspberry panna cotta:
8 grams gelatin powder
40 ml. water
500 ml. heavy cream
100 grams sugar
Pinch of salt
25 grams raspberry puree

You will need:
5*5 cm cookie cutter
18 cm square pan

25 g raspberry puree

Preparation:

Macarons:

1. In a food processor with a steel blade grind sugar powder and almond meal to a thin powder.
2. Sift the powder into a large bowl. It is important to sift carefully and do not leave large chunks in the mixture.
3. Put the egg whites and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer with a whisking hook and beat on high speed until meringue begins to form and the mixture starts to whiten.
4. Add sugar and continue beating until a glossy and stable meringue forms. Add food coloring and beat until it is absorbed into the meringue.
5. Add almond powder to the meringue and fold carefully with a spatula. At first, stir slightly aggressive, and then go through a gentle fold until the mixture is uniform, stable but not liquid.
6. Transfer the mixture to a pastry bag fitted with a 1 cm round piping tip and pipe 5*5 cm square macarons on an oven tray lined with silicon mat.
7. Leave the macarons for about an hour at room temperature before baking to dry and create a thin membrane on top.
8. Preheat the oven to 150c degrees.
9. Bake the macarons for about 10-13 minutes or until set.
10. Cool completely at room temperature. Only when macarons are completely cold it can be separated from the pan. Arrange the macarons in pairs.

Raspberry panna cotta:

1. In a small bowl mix gelatin and water and set aside for 10 minutes at room temperature until the gelatin absorbs all the liquid.
2. In a medium saucepan put cream, sugar and salt and heat to simmering point.
3. Reduce the heat and cook for another 3-4 minutes until the cream thickens slightly.
4. Remove from heat and add in the gelatin. Stir the mixture until it melts. Strain the mixture.
5. Line the bottom of the pan with plastic wrap and pour over about 3/4 of the panna cotta mixture.
6. Add the raspberry puree to the remaining batter and mix well.
7. Pour the raspberry mixture in small dots over the panna cotta and “scramble” it using a toothpick or skewer forming marble shape.
8. Freeze completely and cut out 5*5 cm squares.
9. Create sandwiches between two macaron shells and store in the freezer until serving.

Notes:

• Nondairy version: use coconut cream (at least 17% fat) instead of heavy cream.
• Keep in a sealed box in the freezer for up to two weeks.
• Instead of raspberry puree you can use strawberry, cherry or blueberry puree.