Diane Moua has been busy making the Twin Cities a sweeter place. She’s the ace pastry chef behind the exquisite dessert menus at acclaimed eateries Bellecour and Spoon and Stable, where she complements chef and restaurateur Gavin Kaysen’s talent and zeal. Both were named James Beard Award nominees this year; her for Outstanding Pastry Chef and him for Best Chef: Midwest. Raised in Junction City, Wisconsin, and trained locally at Le Cordon Bleu, Moua made a name for herself at such Twin Cities institutions as Aquavit, Solera and La Belle Vie. When we tapped her for a summer-ready recipe, she offered up this home-chef-friendly take on her mouthwatering frozen meyer lemon parfait.
Photography by Libby Anderson
Diane Moua’s Frozen Meyer Lemon Parfait
Makes four servings
Meyer Lemon Curd
½ cup sugar
½ cup meyer lemon juice
½ cup butter
1 egg
4 egg yolks
1. Bring sugar, lemon juice and butter to a boil. Set aside.
2. Whisk together egg and egg yolks. Slowly temper into lemon juice mixture.
3. Cook over a double boiler until super thick.
4. Strain through a chinois then chill over an ice bath.
Pistachio Brittle
½ cup sugar
¼ cup chopped pistachios
pinch salt
1. Cook together sugar and ⅛ cup water until a dark caramel color. Turn off heat.
2. Stir in pistachios and salt.
3. Pour mixture out onto parchment and let cool.
4. Once cooled, break into small pieces. Using a food processor, pulse into a small crumble. Store in a dry container.
Parfait
2 cups cream
9 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
4 gelatin sheets
½ cup meyer lemon curd
1 meyer lemon, zested
½ vanilla bean, scraped on one side
⅛ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. citric acid
Pistachio brittle
Mandarin orange segment
Lemon sherbet
1. Whip cream to medium stiff and set aside.
2. Whip egg yolks on high.
3. Bring sugar and ⅓ cup water to a dark caramel. Dilute with ¼ cup water.
4. Pour hot caramel into thick whipped egg yolks.
5. Wring out gelatin sheets and add to hot egg yolks. Whip until cool.
6. Fold in lemon curd, lemon zest, vanilla bean, salt and citric acid.
7. Fold mixture into cream and taste.
8. Pour mixture onto half sheet pan with double parchment. Freeze for 24 hours then cut to desired size.
9. To serve, position semifreddo on a cold plate and top with pistachio brittle and a spoonful of orange segments. Serve with lemon sherbet.
