Rosemary gelee

[BryanZ]

I'm looking to create a rosemary-flavored gelee to be served with a savory lamb dish.

Powdered gelatin is the gelling agent of choice for now because, well, that's all I've got at present.

How can I extract the rosemary flavor cleanly and easily? I'm thinking I want it be just a little bit sweet, kind of like a play on mint jelly but more subtle in flavor and texture.

How can I give it some color, too?

Any ideas?

Thanks.

[Tonyy13]

Bryan,

Looks like we think alike, as I have seemingly followed you from the Alginate thread over here. Anyway, my first try would be infusion into a water based liquid through warm steeping like a tea. The only problem would be oxidation of the liquid (like your blanching water for green vegetables, and how it will also oxidize after continued heating). So, if that fails, I have been drawing up plans to do a funky distillation process to create a series of "waters" that are only flavored with nothing but the main flavor ingredient, and nothing else. Did you ever have the fruit water that was completely unsweetened and clear despite the wide variety of flavors (no longer available)? I would be willing to bet they just distilled fruit juice, the vapors that were distilled were clear, but they still had the flavor of the fruit. My idea is to take and do a vegetable gellee tasting, but using all clear gellee! You shouldn't have a problem with the gelatin cloudying the liquid (1 oz. of powdered = 10 sheets, and I find that 7-8 sheets per 32 oz. of liquid is just right for gellee).

Let us know how it turns out!

TA

[Qwerty]

I agree with the steeping idea, though I tend to think that the resulting water won't be a flatering color. You might also try infusing a tea with the rosemary, some complimentary/delicate flavor that will still be present even with the rosemary. I don't drink tea much but it might be a little more interesting than gelatinized rosemary water.

You could also steep it in a light simple syrup. Just adjust based on the amount of sweetness you want.

Color? You could add some other herbs to the liquid, get it green. Though it would probably just turn it murky and gross. How about (gasp), food coloring. Harmless, tasteless--just be sure to find a good one and don't make it too neon. If you wnat natural color I don't know any other way to do it besides other herbs and plants that would alter the flavor. You may also try extracting chlorphyll a la Thomas Keller in TFL cookbook. I assume you own a copy

Another word of advice. Powdered gelatin is, IMO, gross. It has a distinct flavor that the sheet gelatin doesn't have. That might interfere with the flavor profile you are trying to develop. Sheet gelatin in far superior. I would limit powdered to nothing except for classical chaud froid displays and aspics. Just a thought.

Though, it is my understanding that you are a college student, and I do know that sheet gelatin is a bit more expensive than the powder.

I'm interested to see what you come up with--keep us posted.

Edited February 12, 2007 by Qwerty (log)

[ermintrude]

Try to adapt this recipie

http://www.ukthermomix.com/recshow.php?rec_id=33

Uk can proberly do it with a thermometer and blender. Worked great for me when I wanted to get a basil extract for basil sorbet.

[rmillman]

You can get rosemary oil from many of the nutrition supply stores.

If you want to change some of the flavor profiles if you steep some yourself try roasting (either dry pan or open flame) it before steeping: this will get rid of some of the unwanted "green" taste.

I have been playing with a wide range of the now available colloids for both gelee and harder gels. Gelatin is always fine but I have been enjoying the self-life and strong trexture support of an agar-agar based gelee (see will goldfarbs site for his myer lemon recipe as a basis).

I did a mint gelee this way and stirred in small sized rosemary caviar to serve with a lamb roast. I used rosemary and mint oil that I got from a nutrition store. I was not fully happy with the flavor profile of my mint base so I augmented it with a couple of mint tick-tacks: the sugar was likely what was needed to enhance the flavor but it came out good.

[BryanZ]

Yeah, I used up all my agar on stupid experiments and messing around. I was planning on roasting to create a deeper flavor and hopefully extracting some chlorophyll out of spinach will help the color. The tic-tacs idea is an interesting one.

I'm also playing with the idea of a rosemary infused honey to serve with the dish instead. We shall see what plays out.

[dockhl]

Yeah, I used up all my agar on stupid experiments and messing around.  I was planning on roasting to create a deeper flavor and hopefully extracting some chlorophyll out of spinach will help the color.  The tic-tacs idea is an interesting one.

I'm also playing with the idea of a rosemary infused honey to serve with the dish instead.  We shall see what plays out.

←

In the Short Ribs Braised in Porter Ale with Maple-Rosemary Glaze (Molly Stevens), the rosemary is steeped in warm maple syrup for an hour and then discarded. Then mixed with horseradish SO good. Perhaps you could mix rosemary/maple syrup or honey/ chicken or beef stock............then gelatinize?

[KendallCollege]

This is my favorite subject. The "Gelee". I think that I've got a decent idea. Pair the Rosemary (in a "french-press" method) with dried (I know, a sin, but hear me out) Marjoram, and a couple of Juniper berries. Take your dry ingredients and put them into a bowl. Bring some water to a rolling boil, add a bid of muscovado (or turbinado) sugar to the water after its rolling, and let it dissolve.

After you've got it incorporated, pour the water over the dry-ingredients.

Let them "get to know each other" until you can smell everything. Using a fork, molest the day-lights out of the ingredients in the bowl.

Let the liquor cool to room-temperature.

Strain it until the liquor is clear of any sediment.

Soak some gelatin sheets to soften.

Put the liquor back on the fire until it is "letting out some steam". Remove the pot, incorporate some chlorophyll, and work it until its green (spinach would work, but thats an annoying process...yet it is, none-the-less, effective.).

pull those sheets out of the water, squeeze 'em, and place them in a fresh bowl.

once the liquid satisfies your "green" desire...pour it over the sheets while "swirling" the bowl until everybody is incorporated.

strain one last time.

pour liquor into your desired vessel...and shape accordingly.

does that help?

cheers.

trev.

[Vadouvan]

COLD INFUSION Bryan.

Rosemary oxidises quickly and it's flavor and essence is a bit more of a fleeting vapor.

Subjecting it to too much heat just makes it disappear.

There is this trick I use but it depends on getting your hands on some super-fresh rosemary, preferably from a rosemary plant that is still growing if possible.

I assume you want said Gelee to be green ?

Part 1.

Make a green herb "Water" by blanching, refreshing, pureeing with bottled still water ( evian) and straining the green water out through cotton without any sediment.

The water should be iced water from the refrigerator.

Although not neccessary, I also use a bar blender with a metal vessel which I leave in the freezer for several hours so no heat is generated during the blending.

You get this ridiculously green liquid.

In terms of neutrality of flavor, I use watercress,tarragon,parsley and chive.

Strangely they seem to cancel each other out.

PM me if you want actual ratios.

Now to transfer the rosemary flavor to the green "Water".

Part 2.

Find a small plastic container with a lid that cannot be ruptured by "Ice expansion".

half fill it with very high quality rosemary.

Fill it to the top with your green water.

Carefully put the lid on and screw it on tight.

Freeze it solid.

Defrost that container, shake well and pour out your green water.

Smell it.

Dont ever heat it up.

If you decide to gelatinize it, add the cooled but not gelled gelatin base to it.

Seriously, good rosemary.

Edited February 13, 2007 by Vadouvan (log)

[Joisey]

Are you chopping that rosemary at all to release the oils? Never thought to freeze rather than heat, that's a good idea.

[Vadouvan]

Are you chopping that rosemary at all to release the oils? Never thought to freeze rather than heat, that's a good idea.

No chopping involved.

The Ice formation will crush the rosemary and release the oils.

That's why the rosemary needs to be "alive" and the container should be strong enought to withstand the expansion.

[Nina C.]

I know you probably want to make it yourself, but Beth's Farm Kitchen at the Union Square Farmers market makes a Garlic Rosemary Jelly that is SO good - impossibly good.

Beth's Farm Scroll down, on the left side.

Edited to use non-html coding

Edited February 13, 2007 by Nina C. (log)

[Nina C.]

(It won't let me edit the above post again) Duh! Of course you are in NC right now, not NYC area, so hoping over to Union Square probably won't work so well.

There's also this recipe from Gourmet http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/14415