Beeswax Cream with Stone Fruit and Almond
Thomas J. Story
This dessert from Seattle restaurant Tomo is honeyed and ethereal thanks to beeswax steeped in cream that is then aerated into a delicate foam. It’s an excellent topping for a stone-fruit compote on an almond tart base. To make the beeswax cream, you’ll need a whipped cream charger, such as an iSi Gourmet Whip, the go-to brand for chefs.
Tip: At Tomo, Brady Ishiwata Williams and crew use the iSi brand whipped cream canister, but there are numerous more affordable brands. For around $50, you can score a set that comes with nitrous oxide chargers and will allow you to make flavored whipped creams in milliseconds.
This recipe and others like it first appeared in the story "'Brutalist Ryokan Meets Coastal Dive Bar': James Beard Winner Takes Seattle’s Tomo over the Top," from Sunset's 2022 Garden Issue.
How to Make It
1
To make the almond tart:
1. In a stand mixer on medium speed, mix butter, almond paste, and sugar together until light and airy. Reduce speed to low.
2. Add eggs one at a time, making sure they are fully incorporated.
3. Add flour and salt and mix until flour is just incorporated.
4. Pour into a buttered 6-inch tart pan and bake at 325°F until golden, 15-20 minutes. Let cool. Cut into quarters.
2
To make the stone fruit compote:
1. Place peaches, 1⁄2 cup water, sugar, lemon juice, a pinch of salt, and vanilla paste in a large pot set over medium heat. Bring mixture to a gentle boil, stirring frequently.
2. Cook until all liquids have reduced into a thickened sauce and fruit is tender.
3. Adjust seasoning with salt and cool.
3
To make the cream:
1. In a large resealable plastic bag or sous-vide bag, add cream and beeswax. Remove air and seal.
2. Set a sous vide machine to 194°F or bring a large pot of water to 194°F over a low simmer, and cook for 30 minutes. Agitate the bag while the wax is melting.
3. Meanwhile, prepare an ice bath by filling a large bowl with ice and water. After 30 minutes, remove the bag from hot water and place in the ice bath. Once the cream has cooled and wax has solidified, strain cream through a fine mesh strainer into a small saucepan, and reserve wax for another use. Bloom gelatin in a bowl of ice water.
4. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg whites and sugar until homogenous. Place the saucepan containing cream over medium heat, bring cream to just under a simmer, then remove from heat. Whisk in gelatin until dissolved. Very slowly stream the cream-gelatin mixture into egg whites, whisking as you go (don’t do this too fast or you’ll cook the eggs). Strain mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a medium bowl and chill in the refrigerator, about 30 minutes. Season with a pinch of salt. Add to an iSi canister and charge with one charge.
5. To serve, place almond tart pieces in individual serving bowls and add a generous dollop of compote. Cover with beeswax cream. Garnish with bee pollen.
Ingredients
Almond tart
1 stick butter
1 cup almond paste
¼ cup sugar
2 medium eggs
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp kosher salt
Stone fruit compote
6 peaches, pitted and diced
⅓ cup brown sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
kosher salt to taste
1 tsp vanilla paste
Beeswax cream
1 ½ cups heavy cream
1 (3-inch) square of beeswax
1 tsp powdered gelatin
whites of 2 medium eggs
¼ cup granulated sugar
salt to taste
bee pollen for garnish
Directions
1
To make the almond tart:
1. In a stand mixer on medium speed, mix butter, almond paste, and sugar together until light and airy. Reduce speed to low.
2. Add eggs one at a time, making sure they are fully incorporated.
3. Add flour and salt and mix until flour is just incorporated.
4. Pour into a buttered 6-inch tart pan and bake at 325°F until golden, 15-20 minutes. Let cool. Cut into quarters.
2
To make the stone fruit compote:
1. Place peaches, 1⁄2 cup water, sugar, lemon juice, a pinch of salt, and vanilla paste in a large pot set over medium heat. Bring mixture to a gentle boil, stirring frequently.
2. Cook until all liquids have reduced into a thickened sauce and fruit is tender.
3. Adjust seasoning with salt and cool.
3
To make the cream:
1. In a large resealable plastic bag or sous-vide bag, add cream and beeswax. Remove air and seal.
2. Set a sous vide machine to 194°F or bring a large pot of water to 194°F over a low simmer, and cook for 30 minutes. Agitate the bag while the wax is melting.
3. Meanwhile, prepare an ice bath by filling a large bowl with ice and water. After 30 minutes, remove the bag from hot water and place in the ice bath. Once the cream has cooled and wax has solidified, strain cream through a fine mesh strainer into a small saucepan, and reserve wax for another use. Bloom gelatin in a bowl of ice water.
4. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg whites and sugar until homogenous. Place the saucepan containing cream over medium heat, bring cream to just under a simmer, then remove from heat. Whisk in gelatin until dissolved. Very slowly stream the cream-gelatin mixture into egg whites, whisking as you go (don’t do this too fast or you’ll cook the eggs). Strain mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a medium bowl and chill in the refrigerator, about 30 minutes. Season with a pinch of salt. Add to an iSi canister and charge with one charge.
5. To serve, place almond tart pieces in individual serving bowls and add a generous dollop of compote. Cover with beeswax cream. Garnish with bee pollen.
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