rites of spring

upon returning from france i set a goal on myself to incorporate into new desserts as many recipes from the Valrhona class as possible.  i thought to myself  how much of a shame it would be to go all that way and not utilize anything that was shown to me and the other chef's.  though the finished dishes were nothing like what i would do, the beauty of it all is that the finished product is only part of the process.  it's the journey that takes you there; the techniques, the inspiration, that i sometimes find more rewarding.

one of the recipes was of a sponge scented with lemon verbena.  basically a firm gelee set with gelatin and whipped in a mixer.  there is a lot of gelatin in it but when it becomes aerated, chilled, and cut, the sponge just dissolves on your tongue like a memory. 

it's not a new technique, but one i seemed to have passed up on using in lieu of others.  this one is made of lime juice and infused with lime thyme from my garden.

we are in full swing with spring and there are finally berries at the market.  not quite the best yet but some of the stands have a few winners.

compressed strawberries, lime sponge, strawberry sorbet, white chocolate namelaka, strawberry gel, strawberry croquant, fennel and cilantro

more on the white chocolate namelaka later.....