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Summer Berry Sponge Flan with Blackcurrant and Apple Jelly Cubes -- Finish with garden mint | https://theseasonaltable.co.uk/uncategorized/summer-berry-sponge-flan-with-blackcurrant-and-apple-jelly-cubes
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Summer Berry Sponge Flan with Blackcurrant & Apple Jelly Cubes

Servings 6

Ingredients

For the jelly

  • 150 g blackcurrants, fresh or frozen
  • 100 ml apple juice (plus a little extra to top up if needed – see below)
  • 2 gelatine leaves
  • 1 tbsp golden granulated sugar

For the sponge (to fill a 20cm flan tin):

  • 2 medium chicken eggs
  • 50 g unrefined golden caster sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 50 g plain flour
  • A small pinch of sea salt

For the sponge filling

  • 150 ml double cream
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla bean seeds or the seeds from ½ a vanilla pod
  • 1/2 tbsp unrefined icing sugar plus a little more for dusting
  • A couple of handfuls of mixed summer fruits (we used strawberries, raspberries, redcurrants, white currants, and blueberries)
  • A few small, fresh mint leaves

Instructions

  1. Start by making the jelly. Put the blackcurrants (there's no need to top and tail them first) in a small saucepan with the apple juice. Warm to a gentle simmer until the currants break up and release all of their dark purple juices (you can do a bit of squishing with a spoon to help with this if you like).

  2. Meanwhile, soak the gelatine leaves in some cold water for around five minutes until they soften.
  3. Push the blackcurrant mixture through a sieve and sweeten to taste with a little brown sugar; a tablespoon should be sufficient. Top with extra apple juice (as needed) to bring the amount up to 250ml.
  4. Return the juice to the saucepan to warm through again. Squeeze any excess water from the gelatine leaves and add them to the pan, giving them a stir to quickly dissolve them.

  5. Pour the mixture into a silicone ice cube tray and leave to set for around 8 hours (or overnight) in the fridge. We find that a short stint in the freezer after the jelly has set (30 minutes should be plenty) is a good way of firming up the cubes so that they are easier to pop out of the tray and add neatly to the sponge filling without breaking.

  6. To make the sponge: Preheat the oven to 200°C. Crack the eggs into the bowl of a stand mixer, add the sugar and vanilla essence and whisk on a medium-high speed until thick and frothy, and the mixture traces a clear line across the bowl when you lift out the whisk (this should take around 5-7 minutes). Meanwhile, liberally grease your flan tin with butter.
  7. Sift the flour with the salt and very gently fold into the bowl of eggs and sugar.
  8. Pour the sponge batter into the prepared cake tin and pop in the oven for 5-7 minutes until golden (keep a close eye on the sponge as it cooks - it can catch and burn very quickly). Once cooked, leave in the tin for a couple of minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling.
  9. Whip the cream with the icing sugar and vanilla bean seeds until stiff. Then, using a palette knife, spread the cream over the base of the hollow of the sponge (make sure the sponge is completely cool before you do this or the cream will melt).
  10. Gently tumble your mixture of summer berries and currants into the centre of the sponge. Dot a few of the jelly cubes amongst the fruit (any leftovers are delicious served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream) and scatter over the mint leaves.
  11. Finish with a very light dusting of icing sugar just before serving if you wish.
  12. The sponge itself will keep for up to a week in an airtight container but, once filled, it is best eaten the same day (put it in the fridge if you're not planning on serving it immediately). Any leftover jelly will keep happily for a couple of days in the fridge.