Pimm's jelly with cucumber sorbet

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Josh Eggleton's stunning Pimm's jelly recipe certainly packs a punch, thanks to a cheeky shot of gin. Served with a light cucumber sorbet and poached strawberries, this is the definitive summertime dessert. Use regular jelly moulds if you do not have doughnut moulds and serve the cucumber sorbet alongside the jelly instead.

First published in 2015

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Pimm's jelly

Cucumber sorbet

  • 6 cucumbers, peeled
  • 600g of sugar
  • 600ml of water
  • 100g of glucose
  • 1 lemon, juiced

Poached strawberries

To garnish

Equipment

  • Ice cream maker
  • Juicer
  • Doughnut moulds

Method

1
Begin with the cucumber sorbet. In a saucepan, bring the sugar, water and glucose to the boil. Once boiling, add the lemon juice
  • 600g of sugar
  • 600ml of water
  • 100g of glucose
  • 1 lemon
2
Once the sugar has dissolved, remove the saucepan from the heat and leave the syrup to chill in the fridge
3
Juice the cucumbers in a juicer then combine with the chilled sorbet base. Churn in an ice cream maker then store in the freezer until needed
4
To make the Pimm's jelly, bring the sugar and water to the boil. Once boiling, add the lemon juice, lemon peel and grated ginger, remove from the heat and leave to infuse for 5 minutes
5
Pour the contents of the pan into a bowl and store bowl in the fridge until chilled. Once chilled, add the Pimm’s and the gin
6
Pour 200ml of the Pimm’s mixture into a pan and reheat gently over a low-medium heat. Dissolve the soaked gelatine sheets in the liquid and once dissolved, pour back into the bowl containing the rest of the chilled Pimm's mixture
  • 10 gelatine leaves, soaked in cold water
7
Strain the jelly mixture into a large jug, then pour into the doughnut moulds, filling halfway (there will be liquid leftover which will be used in step 8). Leave to set in the fridge
8
Once the jelly has set, remove from the fridge and place 3 raspberries and 3 basil leaves into each mould. Fill to the top with the remaining liquid and leave to set in the fridge
9
For the poached strawberries, bring the water and sugar to the boil. Add the lemon juice, remove from the heat and leave to stand for 2 minutes. Add 4 sprigs of mint and allow the liquid to infuse for 5 minutes
10
Slice the strawberries in half and place in a bowl with the sliced cucumber. Once the poaching liquor has infused, pour over the slices of cucumber and strawberries. Leave to stand for 5 minutes before draining
11
To serve, unmould the set jellies by dipping each of the moulds in just-boiled water for 10 seconds. Invert onto the centre of each plate, giving the mould a firm shake to dislodge the jelly
12
Garnish around the jellies with the poached strawberries and cucumber alongside sprigs of mint and basil. Finish with a scoop of cucumber sorbet in the centre of the jelly
First published in 2015

It can take decades of dedication and dogged effort to win a Michelin star. Josh Eggleton, though, was ‘shocked’ to win his first Michelin star at the age of 27, after only a few years of being a Head Chef.

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