Red fruit soup | Raymond Blanc Recipe

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I originally created this fruit dessert for my first ever restaurant - Les Quat’Saisons - but it’s simple enough that anyone can make it at home. It’s so refreshing, with the red fruits combined with mint, pepper and citrus flavours. It also has a wonderful moment of theatre which will delight any dinner party guest when you pour over the bubbling champagne. Because it is so simple, the quality of the ingredients you use is crucial. I grow an alpine wild strawberry in my garden at Le Manoir, which has an extraordinary flavour and perfume. For the raspberries, I find the later season varieties have more flavour, such as Autumn Bliss and Scottish Glen Doll.

Ingredients Required

For macerating the fruit

230g: raspberries, washed

160g: strawberries, stemmed, halved and quartered

handful: alpine wild strawberries

100g: blackberries

20g: caster sugar

12 leaves: spearmint leaves

6 leaves: basil, fresh

6 leaves: Vietnamese coriander or lemon verbena

½: Charentais melon, scooped into 12 balls

For the wine

250ml: Monbazillac or dessert wine

90ml: red wine, Cabernet Sauvignon

40g: caster sugar

4 turns: ground black pepper

1 tsp: vanilla purée (see basic recipe)

100g: cold water

For the spun sugar with zests and herbs

100ml: cold water

200g: caster sugar

½: lemon, zested

½: lime, zested

½: orange, zested

3: sprigs mint,

3: basil leaves

3: lemon verbena leaves, finely sliced

6: raspberries, sliced 2mm thick

4: strawberries, sliced 2mm thick

To serve

100ml: chilled pink champagne (the remainder of the bottle will be much appreciated by your guests!)

4: mint leaves

Cooking Method

Step 1

In a large bowl or deep tray, mix all the ingredients except the melon. Leave to macerate for 30 minutes. In a small saucepan, mix the Monbazillac wine, the Cabernet Sauvignon, sugar, pepper and vanilla purée. Bring to the boil for 1 minute to remove some of the alcohol, take off the heat and add the cold water. Cooldown to approx 40°C. This temperature is important as it facilitates the exchange of flavours. Any hotter, and it would cook the fruit.

Step 2

Add the warm wine mixture to the macerated fruit, add the melon and cover. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours or up to 1 day to cool it and to allow even more flavour to develop.

Step 3

For the spun sugar with zests and herbs Preheat the oven to 80ºC. Lay the finely-sliced raspberries and strawberries on a tray lined with greaseproof paper and dry them in the oven for 2 ½ hours. Chop finely and reserve in an airtight container. (You can add a packet of silica gel crystals to keep them crisp and dry.) Pour the water into a small saucepan, add the sugar and let it absorb the water. You can make the caramel without water, but the sugar is more likely to crystallize.

Step 4

Over a medium heat, bring the sugar and water to a boil. Cook until it reaches a pale gold. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the caramel to cool and thicken a little. This will make it easier to thread. Using a fork, thread the caramel onto a sheet of greaseproof paper, using a back and forth motion. Sprinkle the citrus zest, herbs and dried fruits evenly over the threads, so they are trapped. Thread over to create a lattice.

Step 5

To serve: Ladle the soup and the fruit into a large glass serving bowl or 4 individual glass bowls. Add a sprig of mint and a lattice of spun sugar. Finally, ceremoniously pour a quarter of a glass of pink champagne into each bowl and serve to your guests.

Step 6

Variations: Many other fruits can be used in this dish, such as redcurrants, blackcurrants, and loganberries. Add 6 leaves of 2g gelatine to the macerated fruit to create a terrine. Alternatively, freeze the jus and grate it to create a granita.

Chef's Tips

"Because it is so simple, the quality of the ingredients you use is crucial."

Voila!

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THIS RECIPE IS ADAPTED FROM THE BOOK LE MANOIR AUX QUAT'SAISONS: THE STORY OF A MODERN CLASSIC

A personal tour of Raymond's legendary restaurant-hotel through the four seasons, including 120 recipes from his celebrated kitchens. With spectacular photography of the signature dishes, luxurious rooms and ravishing gardens, and beautiful and witty illustrations throughout, the fairy tale of Le Manoir is brought charmingly to life.