Valentin Neraudeau

It’s the basis for everything, as are eggs. It is used a great deal.

In ganaches, boiled whipping cream brings fluidity, an elasticity that gives the sensation of creaminess; in a crémeux, it’s a base for custard. I mix it half-and-half with milk, then add chocolate or a fruit puree. This is my basic recipe for ice creams and mousses. Heavy cream is for specific espumas. Work it in a mixing bowl with a fruit puree, a syrup or citrus juice at a proportion of 1/3rd cream, 2/3rds flavouring. I like the acidity that it brings and that isn’t found in whipping cream. I add very little sugar and shape it in a siphon, which really adds value to the espuma, and it keeps very well chilled for up to 48 hours. In my banoffe (a British pastry based on fresh bananas, caramel with salted butter deglazed with cream, mascarpone and amaretto cream mousse, all placed on a sablé base), the cream, together with a quenelle of mascarpone (added over the course of the process) and whipped with a whisk. It’s poured over the top generously. I love the exaggerated style! This way, I obtain a creamy dessert that has flavour, style and firmness. It’s much nicer than a sheet of gelatine! It’s visual. Chantilly, which is rich and firm, is reserved for sweets. I add little sugar, sometimes fructose or honey, in a modest manner because I’m an indulgent type but take care of myself. I also add a little cream to my lemon tart. Without it, the tart wouldn’t be as soft, it would be firmer.

Cream provides texture. For example, when assembling desserts, you stack a biscuit, a creamy element, a mousse. It can be used at this time as different forms, with different levels of expansion. These are the codes that I observe so that the cake doesn’t fall apart when it’s being eaten. Honestly, I can’t imagine a dessert without cream.

Madly!

The banoffee. A desert that’s been forgotten. It was created in 1974 in the outskirts of London, and I reinterpret it in my own way. I love the generosity and the cream.