Heaven In Your Spoon

Sabayon—thick frothy custard, France’s version of zabaglione (just yolks, sugar, and spirits)—chilled and lightened with whipped cream, oh my! This is the confection my friend Julia brought to enjoy with champagne on the occasion of my mother’s 99th birthday. I was fascinated because I’ve only tasted sabayon that was rushed from stove to table. Whipped cream not only tempers the sweetness but lightens the already ethereal texture. Could not wait to make it.
I was in the mountains when I got the chance, back in my beloved Idyllwild where Gene and I lived for twenty years. Old friends got together for supper and I brought along the cold sabayon. It took a sturdy whisking arm, but was easy enough to make even in the kitchen of a small mountain cabin. An advantage was that custard and cream had to chill so I could prepare both in advance and go for a long walk with Cakes. It was an ideal dessert to carry to a party.
The recipe I used for the custard was in an old “Joy of Cooking.” I looked up others on the Net just now and found one of Julia Child’s/Jacques Pepin’s…Nigella Lawson’s…Tyler Florence’s…and several magazine sources. Some use prosecco in place of marsala or sherry and everyone’s proportions are different. I discovered cold sabayon is fashionable served with large strawberries for dipping. I would think that would put the focus on the berries when I think the sabayon’s the thing. It occurred to me that, were I to add one element, it would be shavings of dark chocolate on top—Nigella Lawson suggests this—but it’s awfully close to gilding the lily. At any rate, so many versions are proof that this is a foolproof mixture—you can use more or fewer yolks, more or less sugar and marsala (or sherry or prosecco) in the custard and fold in as much or as little whipped cream as you like and it will work. More sugar and it will be sweeter. More spirits and it will be thinner—but have more flavor. I opt for flavor. I seem to have used more whipping cream than most, but, hey, the lighter and creamier the better by me.
More than proportions of ingredients, it is the gentle cooking of the custard—to insure the yolks won’t curdle or be grainy—and the whisking—to insure all will be billowy—that creates the heavenly texture. I wondered why one can’t use an egg beater, but recipes uniformly want a whisk, so who am I to question authority? Some recipes call for testing at the end with an instant-read thermometer, and the required temps vary from 140 to 170—funny. I didn’t have such a thermometer in my kit bag, just used the good old coating-the-back-of-a-wooden-spoon trick.
A few steps will insure success: use a double boiler (no cheating)…be sure the water beneath barely simmers and that the bottom does not touch the water…cool the thickened custard rapidly (whisk over ice water and the bottom SHOULD touch the water)…have not just the cream but the bowl and beaters chilled before whipping…fold the whipped cream into the custard no more than a couple of hours before serving—whipped cream thins out and would start to thin out the custard.
However. The custard can be prepared a day in advance, the surface covered with plastic film and refrigerated. Whipped cream will hold for several hours if you place it in a sieve lined with a damp cloth, set it over a drip-catching dish, cover with film, and refrigerate.
This is the way I made the sabayon…um, with one exception. I packed a bottle of sweet marsala by mistake. The sabayon was delectable but the flavor would have been nuttier, more complex, with dryer wine.
Cold Sabayon (6 to 8 servings)
In the large top of a double boiler or a big stainless steel bowl, whisk together 8 large egg yolks and ½ cup granulated sugar. Whisk vigorously until light. Whisk constantly while drizzling in 1 cup dry marsala or sherry. Set over barely simmering water and whisk constantly, vigorously, reaching every part of the mixture, until the custard has increased many times in volume and coats a wooden spoon so that it makes a track when you run a finger through it. Allow 10 to 15 minutes (enough time to compose a limerick or haiku). Place the pan or bowl over a big bowl of ice water and continue whisking till cool. Lay plastic film on top and refrigerate.
Whip 2 cups best quality heavy whipping cream until soft peaks hold. If more than 2 hours before using, chill as described above. Up to 2 hours before serving, fold the whipped cream into the cold custard and smooth into a chilled 6-cup serving bowl. Cover with film and keep cold until serving in small bowls in beautiful billowy dollops.