Paradižot
Dalmatian floating islands: clouds of poached meringue on chilled vanilla custard, known as šnenokle inland.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Total
- 45 min
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
- 4 eggs, separated
- 500 ml whole milk
- 1 vanilla pod, or 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 100 g sugar, divided
- 1 tbsp cornstarch (optional, for a firmer custard)
- A pinch of salt
- Grated dark chocolate or caramel, to serve (optional)
Method
- Heat the milk with the vanilla (split pod, seeds scraped in) in a wide shallow pan until steaming but not boiling.
- Whisk the egg whites with the salt to soft peaks. Add 50 g of the sugar a spoonful at a time and whisk to stiff, glossy peaks.
- With two wet spoons, shape egg-sized ovals of meringue and lower them into the hot milk, a few at a time. Poach for 1–2 minutes per side, turning gently, until just set. Lift out with a slotted spoon onto a rack or clean towel.
- Strain the milk and discard the vanilla pod. Whisk the yolks with the remaining 50 g sugar (and cornstarch, if using) until pale, then slowly whisk in the warm milk.
- Return the custard to the pan over low heat and stir constantly for 5–8 minutes until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Do not let it boil or it will scramble.
- Strain into a bowl, cool, then chill for at least 2 hours. Pour into shallow bowls, float the meringues on top and finish with chocolate or caramel.
Keep the milk below a simmer, or the meringues puff up and then collapse. The custard thickens a little more as it chills, so pull it off the heat while it is still pourable. Dalmatians call it paradižot (or paradižet); in the continental part of Croatia it is šnenokle. Best the same day — the meringues weep if kept overnight.