Sabayon Sauce Gourmet Ice Cream Dessert Recipe

A gourmet ice cream dessert using French wine-based Sabayon sauce.

The sauce for this gourmet strawberry ice cream dessert is based on an older recipe for French Sabayon cream, also known as crème sabayon. This is a simple dessert to make and excellent for entertaining. This Sabayon sauce is white wine-based and flavored with orange liqueur and vanilla. For this gourmet dessert, strawberry ice cream is covered in the Sabayon sauce, then topped with a layer of hardened caramelized sugar, the same as used for a crème brûlée.

Orange And Vanilla Sabayon Sauce Recipe

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• 4 egg yolks, room temperature

• 1 cup dry white wine

• 1 tbsp Grand Marnier, orange liqueur

• 1 tsp vanilla paste

This recipe for Sabayon sauce yields half a quart, which is enough for 12 or more ice cream desserts. I keep the ratio of egg yolks lower to achieve a thinner sauce that remains soft when frozen, specifically for use in this ice cream dessert recipe. The lower egg yolk ratio also helps prevent curdling when thickening at higher temperatures, driving off some of the alcohol in the white wine and mellowing the sauce. The vanilla paste offers a robust vanilla flavor, and the dark specks of vanilla in the paste enhance the appearance of the sauce for use in desserts. The Sabayon sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 day.

Sabayon sauce - white wine-based and flavored with orange liqueur and vanilla paste.

Instructions for Orange And Vanilla Sabayon

1. Beat room-temperature egg yolks with a whisk for a few minutes until they foam.

2.  Add sugar and wine while whisking to thoroughly combine ingredients.

3.  Place the sauce in a double boiler over simmering water. Whisk vigorously for 5-6 minutes, until the sauce reaches a temperature of 160°F (71°C) to 170°F (77°C) and has thickened and increased in volume. If you want to cook off some of the alcohol in the wine to mellow the sauce, whisk over a low simmer, bringing the sauce up to a temperature of 173° F (78° C) or higher, but not exceeding 176°F (80° C).

4.  Add the Grand Marnier and vanilla paste and whisk for an additional 1-2 minutes. 

Orange And Vanilla Sabayon Sauce

Preparing And Topping The Sabayon Ice Cream Dessert

Ingredients

• ½ quart Sabayon sauce

• ¾ gallons of strawberry ice cream

• ½ cup granulated sugar

It is best to prepare the strawberry ice cream by softening it in a food processor. It is much easier to manage and shape the ice cream into your dessert glass when it's softened. About 3/4 gallons of strawberry ice cream will yield 12 servings.

1. Using a food processor with an S-shaped metal blade, soften the ice cream until creamy, smooth, and foamy.

2.  Put a layer of about 6 to 8 oz of strawberry ice cream evenly into your serving glasses, top with a layer about ½ inch thick of the Sabayon sauce.

3.  Sprinkle the surface of the Sabayon with granulated sugar to completely cover it.

4.  Using a culinary torch, melt and caramelize the sugar layer in the same manner as used to make a crème brûlée.

5.  After the glass top has cooled from using the torch. Cover the glass with cling wrap. These desserts store well in the freezer until they are ready to be served. The Sabayon sauce under the caramelized layer stays soft.

The Simplicity Of - And Historical Recipes For Sabayon Sauce

We are used to detailed and technical recipes, which were not so in days past. It is always enlightening to look back at times to get a perspective on how simple things were often presented then. These three recipes, from 1914, 1964, and 1976, each present variants on the Sabayon. I have left the recipes as they were written in the books.

• The classic French culinary reference book “Le Répertoire de la Cuisine,” first published in 1914, includes a Sabayon recipe under the category of Entremets – Sweets – Sweet sauces. It is a straightforward, brief recipe: 8 ounces sugar, 6 yolks of egg, 1 glass of white wine. Whip on a slow fire until frothy and thick. Flavor to taste.

• The 1964 book, translated from French, "La Cuisine De France” by Mapie, offers a recipe for Sabayon cream (Crème sabayon) for twelve people, as follows: 2 ½ cups sugar, 4 cups dry white wine, 12 egg yolks, ½ cup cognac, Armagnac, or Kirsch. Beat the sugar and egg yolks together. Beat the mixture hard and long or until lemon-colored and creamy. Add the white wine and continue beating. Cook over simmering water in a large enamel- or porcelain-lined double boiler, beating constantly until thick. It will triple in quantity. Never let the mixture boil. Add the liqueur. Serve warm or ice cold in individual dessert glasses. You can substitute port, marsala, or sherry for the white wine.

• In the book, “The Saucier's Apprêntice” first published in 1976 by Raymond A. Sokolov, Sauce Sabayon is presented with more descriptive ingredients and steps, as follows; 1 cup sugar, 6 egg yolks, 1 cup dry white wine (or Madeira, Sherry, Marsala, Asti, or other fortified or sweet wine), 3 tablespoons dark rum or Kirsch (optional)  Whisk the sugar and egg yolks together (or beat with an electric mixer) until the mixture is smooth and very pale. Stir in the wine. Whisk constantly over low heat in a heavy-bottomed, non-aluminum pan until thick and foamy. You will get a much better result in a round-bottomed, copper zabaglione pan. Serve immediately. If you use dry white wine, then flavor the sauce, off heat after it is otherwise finished, by whisking in rum or Kirsch or any other alcohol you choose. This flavoring is unnecessary if you use a fortified or sweet wine.

You can see from these three Sabayon recipes that they historically used white wine, with two of the recipes specifying a dry white wine. The sauce is then flavored with a lesser amount of liqueur or brandy.