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French Charlotte Russe
Add to Vanilla Charlotte Russe No. 1 one dozen marshmallows finely chopped, one dozen almonds blanched and chopped, six walnuts chopped, two tablespoons candied cherries finely chopped, and one tablespoon brandy.
This is a variation, not a standalone recipe: it assumes you have the book's Vanilla Charlotte Russe No. 1 in front of you, which is a gelatin-set sweetened whipped cream turned into a mold lined with ladyfingers or sponge. Everything below concerns the additions.
- You need the base recipeNothing here sets or holds together on its own. Make the vanilla charlotte russe first and treat the solid additions as a fold-in, added after the cream is whipped and, if the base recipe is gelatin-set, once the gelatin is on the point of thickening.
- Fold late, chill fastThis is the hinge. Heavy chopped fruit and nuts sink through soft cream, so wait until the gelatin has begun to set to a loose syrup before folding, then get the mold into the refrigerator immediately. Four hours minimum, overnight is better.
- "One dozen marshmallows"Marshmallows of this period were commonly gelatin-based and tended to be denser than today's extruded confections, though size varied by maker. A dozen modern standard marshmallows is about 3 ounces. Snip them with oiled scissors or chop with a wet knife; frozen marshmallows chop more cleanly than room-temperature ones.
- "Six walnuts"Ambiguous in the original. Read as six shelled nutmeats, that is twelve halves, roughly 1/4 cup chopped. The proportion matters less than keeping the pieces small enough not to tear the cream.
- Blanching almondsCover with boiling water for a minute, drain, and the skins slip off between finger and thumb. Dry them well before chopping or they will weep into the cream.
- Candied cherriesBlot them, chop fine, and toss with a little of the sugar so the pieces stay separate.
- The brandyOne tablespoon in a mold this size is for aroma, not strength. Add it with the vanilla rather than to the whipped cream, where extra liquid can slacken the foam.
- YieldThe recipe gives no mold size; built in a quart mold a charlotte serves roughly six to eight. Unmold by dipping the base in warm water for a few seconds and inverting onto a chilled plate.
Charlotte russe is generally traced to the pastry cook Antonin Careme, who is said to have adapted the older baked apple charlotte into a cold cream dessert set in a wall of ladyfingers, naming it for the Russian court he briefly served; that naming story is traditional rather than documented. By the time Lowney's Cook Book appeared in the early twentieth century the dish had become thoroughly American and thoroughly domestic. What makes this particular entry a period piece is the word "French," which in American cookbooks of the era often signalled little more than an enriched, studded, dressed-up version of a dish. Marshmallows, candied cherries, walnuts and a spoonful of brandy suggest the vocabulary of the commercial soda fountain and the ice cream parlor, and a cook reaching for a dozen marshmallows as casually as a dozen almonds suggests how far factory-made confectionery had entered the home pantry.