Garnishings for Cold Desserts

These are composed of compoted fruit, small cakes or frequently of cold croutons made with blanc mange, jelly or fruit "pain" preparation. These croutons are sometimes plain and sometimes ribboned. To make them proceed as follows: Prepare some very clear jelly and pour it on a tin sheet in an even layer three-quarters of an inch thick; place this perfectly straight in the ice-box to have the jelly harden: when quite so, dip the sheet into very hot water, and turn the jelly over on a cloth. Triangle-shaped or cube-shaped croutons can be made by first dividing the jelly into long bands, then cutting the croutons into any desired form. Should they be needed round or in crescents, then cut them with a pastry cutter or tin tube. To have them ribboned, pour first a layer of clear or whipped jelly on the sheet, and when hard pour a second one over, either of colored jelly tinted with carmine or a shaded "pain" preparation; as soon as this is set turn it over on a cloth and cut the same as for the above. Pretty croutons can also be made as follows: have twelve No. 2 or 3 mousseline molds (Fig. 138); fill six of them with carmine-tinted jelly, and leave till very cold, then invert them on a cloth and cut perpendicularly in two even parts; lay each of these in one of the twelve molds, and fill the empty space with blanc-mange preparation, and leave to harden. When this is very firm empty out the center of the timbale with a tin tube, and fill the hollow space with chocolate bavaroise (No. 3131); after the timbales become quite cold unmold and cut them perpendicularly in two. When dressing put the rounded side of the timbale turned toward the entremets.