Total flexibility, no commitment
A world of unique, crafted spirits
Easy, free and reliable delivery
This gin, raspberry and rose-flavoured Charlotte Royale recipe is yummy!
Apr 8, 2021
This is our resident chef Carol Donner’s ginspired twist to the classic French dessert the Charlotte Royale. It’s pretty as a picture with a real ‘wow’ factor, but it is actually super easy to make so don’t be put off by the recipe looking fiddly.
So what is a Charlotte Royale dessert?
A Charlotte is a moulded dessert originally created in celebration of Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the wife of King George III of the United Kingdom and Ireland (b. 1735 - d. 1820) in England.
The original Charlotte was actually a warm dessert that consisted of fruit covered in bread crumbs. It was a French chef named Marie-Antonin Carême who made the first cold Charlotte called a Charlotte Russe in honour of Russian royalty.
The Charlotte Russe differs from the Charlotte Royale in that it uses ladyfinger cakes to line its creamy filling instead of Swiss rolls.
What is used to fill a Charlotte Royale?
A Charlotte Royale is traditionally filled with bavarois or Bavarian cream as it is otherwise known, which is a custard-like cream made by thickening milk with egg yolks and gelatine then adding whipped cream.
Bavarois can be flavoured with anything that can be mixed into the cream; for this recipe, it’s raspberry puree, gin and rose water to give the cream a lovely boozy, floral, berry-licious flavour.
How to make a Gin, Raspberry and Rose Charlotte Royale cake:
What ingredients do you need for this Charlotte Royale recipe?
For the Swiss rolls:
16 x 28cm Swiss roll tin
Butter, to grease tins
2 large eggs
50g caster sugar, plus extra to dust
½ tsp vanilla bean paste
50g self-raising flour, sieved
100g raspberry jam
For the bavarois:
450g raspberries, plus extra for decoration
200ml full-fat milk
25g icing sugar
100g caster sugar
4 free-range egg yolks
8 sheets leaf gelatine, soaked in cold water for 5 minutes, drained
1 tsp rose water
1 tbsp QVT Dry Gin Édition CGC
350ml double cream
How do you make this Charlotte Royale?
First, you need to make the Swiss rolls, this is how you do it:
1. To make the Swiss rolls, preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas mark 4. Grease and line a 16 x 28cm Swiss roll tin with baking parchment.
2. Whisk the eggs, sugar and vanilla together for 5 mins until thick and pale. Gently fold in the flour in two batches using a large metal spoon.
3. Pour the mixture into the tin and spread it into the corners. Bake for 10-12 mins until golden and firm.
4. While the sponge is baking, sprinkle caster sugar over a sheet of baking parchment slightly larger than the Swiss roll tin.
5. Turn the baked sponge onto the sugared paper. Peel off the lining paper and spread the sponge with the raspberry jam, leaving a 2cm border at one of the shorter edges.
6. Roll up from the short edge using the paper to help you then leave to cool while you make the second Swiss roll.
Now it’s time to make the bavarois, this recipe guides you through how to make a stunning Bavarian cream:
- For the bavarois, blitz 375g of the raspberries and icing sugar in a blender or food processor, then sieve to remove the pips.
For the bavarois, blitz 375g of the raspberries and icing sugar in a blender or food processor, then sieve to remove the pips.
2. Heat the milk and half the caster sugar in a pan until just below boiling.
3. Whisk the remaining sugar and egg yolks together until pale and thick. Pour the hot milk onto the egg yolk and sugar mixture, whisking all the time.
4. Return to the pan and cook over a low heat, whisking all the time, until thickened. Remove from the heat, add the soaked gelatine and stir until dissolved.
5. Now add the raspberry purée, rose water and QVT Dry Gin Édition CGC. Allow to cool then chill in the fridge for at least 30 mins.
6. Whisk the cream until soft peaks form, and fold into the chilled raspberry bavarois with the remaining raspberries.
How do you construct a Charlotte Royale? That’s easy!
- Line a greased 2 litre/3 ½ pint glass bowl with cling film. Cut the Swiss rolls into 1cm slices, and use them to line the bowl, making sure you don’t leave any gaps. They should be as compact as you can make them without destroying their spiral shape.
Line a greased 2 litre/3 ½ pint glass bowl with cling film. Cut the Swiss rolls into 1cm slices, and use them to line the bowl, making sure you don’t leave any gaps. They should be as compact as you can make them without destroying their spiral shape.
2. Pour the bavarois into the Swiss roll-lined bowl, cover with cling film and pop into the fridge to set overnight.
To serve, turn the Charlotte Royale out onto a serving plate, remove the cling film and decorate with extra raspberries. Enjoy!
Tagged:
Gin Baking
