I have been creating desserts for many decades, and have never come up with a more delectable, eye-catching or easier one than this. The combination of blackberries, lemon and lavender is irresistible, and it literally takes nothing more than heavy cream and a little sugar to turn them into a highly memorable dessert. Amazingly, these custard-like treats set up without eggs, gelatin or cornstarch; like magic, the acid in the lemon juice thickens the cooked down cream to a smooth, lush, spoonable consistency as the desserts cool. Although blackberries are superb in this recipe, you can substitute raspberries or blueberries withPossets, sometimes served as beverages, sometimes as desserts, date back to medieval Britain, and often contained wine or mead. If you haven’t heard of them, you haven’t been ready enough Shakespeare! Lady Macbeth drugged the possets given to the guards stationed outside Duncan’s room and noted that they were snoring as she crept in and murdered the King. Reminiscent of eggnog or syllabub, possets were once so popular, fancy spouted pots or elaborate sets were used for serving them.
Tip: Don’t try to sub a light cream or milk in an effort to save calories as the possets won’t set up properly and may even curdle. Since they are rich, just plan on serving small portions. Small ramekins, demitasse cups, and liqueur glasses that hold about 1/4 to 1/3 cup each are a perfect size. Be sure to incorporate the exact amount of lemon juice called for as well. Feel free to slip a blackberry or two into the possets for extra fruitiness; or omit them if you prefer perfectly creamy-smooth possets.
- 1 large, well-washed lemon
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup fresh or frozen (thawed) blackberries, mashed with a fork, plus fresh blackberries for garnish
- 1 1/4 teaspoons dried culinary lavender buds, plus fresh or dried lavender sprigs for garnish, optional
- Grate all the zest (the yellow part of the skin) from the lemon onto a small plate; be careful not to remove any of the white pith underneath. Squeeze and strain enough lemon juice to yield 1/4 cup into a small non-reactive bowl.
- In a 1-quart or similar non-reactive saucepan thoroughly stir together the cream, sugar, berries, lemon zest and lavender buds. Adjust the heat so the mixture boils very gently. Gently boil, stirring, for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Let stand to cool, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
- Immediately strain the posset through a fine sieve into a large glass measure, pressing down to extract all the cream and discarding the solids. Divide the posset among 5 to 7 small demitasse cups, liqueur glasses, or ramekins. If desired, add in a berry or two as the glasses are being filled with posset. Garnish the possets with a berry and lavender sprig if desired. Cover and refrigerate for up to 48 hours. Let warm up just slightly before serving. Makes 5 to 7 small servings.