Biancomangiare

Hailing from Medieval times, this recipe derives its name from the colour of its main ingredients which are white, or bianco in Italian. The colour was thought to be a symbol of purity and asceticism.

Fluffy, creamy, silky - it won't take you long to work out why this lush dessert is an Italian classic. Credit: Alan Benson

• serves

  4

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  5 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 150 g blanched almonds, plus extra chopped to serve
• 250 ml (1 cup) water
• 2 titanium (10 g) gelatine sheets
• 250 ml pure cream
• 150 g caster sugar
• 1 tbsp orange blossom water

The following recipe has been tested and edited by SBS Food and may differ slightly from the podcast.

Chilling time 4 hours

Instructions

Blend the almonds with ⅓ cup (80 ml) of the water until coarsely ground. Add the rest of the water until it becomes a thick liquid (it'll look a bit like vanilla milkshake). Soak the gelatine in a bowl of cold water for a few minutes or until softened.  

Strain and squeeze the almond mixture in a clean, dry cloth over a bowl to separate the almond milk from the almond meal. Discard the almond meal left in the cloth. Place the almond milk in a saucepan together with the cream, sugar and orange blossom water.

Drain the gelatine and add to the pan. Bring the mixture very carefully to the boil – and only simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and pour into 4 x 160 ml lightly oiled ramekins. When they have cooled, refrigerate for 4 hours, until set.

To serve, briefly dip the outside of the ramekins in hot water (or pass a cloth dampened in hot water around the outside) for a minute to warm the ramekin slightly from the outside, which should separate the puddings from the sides. Tip them upside down onto serving dishes and sprinkle with some chopped almonds.

Photography by Alan Benson. Styling by Michelle Noerianto. Food preparation by Nick Banbury and Cynthia Black.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.